Jul 18, 2012

Take a hike!



(clicking on pictures will enlarge them)

Three energetic little children arrived at my house this morning all dressed in clean clothes and ready for the day.  From "no where" the thought entered my mind to take them to the Seiberling Nature Realm, part of the Summit County Metro Parks System.  I'm ashamed to say that though this particular conservation park is only about 10 miles away, I've never been to it before!  I was in for a very pleasant surprise!



(If you click to enlarge this picture, you will see a little guy posing)

Thankfully we had  Dora the Explorer Elylah to guide us with a map...


and watch the signs along the way...


And I was glad we packed a little lunch to bring along...



When we arrived at this spot, I encouraged Ethan and Elylah to take a long look around and say a prayer of thankfulness for all the beauty of the good earth that God created for us to enjoy...




The Visitor's Center was quite impressive.  Everything was nice and clean, air conditined, and very "hands on" for the children.  They could learn what the land in our area was like 200 years ago, and why we need to practice sustainable habits for the sake of our environment.


I loved the way they had little step stools so the kids could see







a teaching "recycling center"


a replica of a Great Blue Herron and nest



art created with recycled materials





The above four photos were taken from behind a one-way glass. We could see the wild life, but they couldn't see us!



I was very happy to think of something "free" to do today that was fun and would wear them out so they'd rest this afternoon.  One last "perk" we had on the way home...we had run out of water and everyone was very hot and thirsty.  I pulled up to a McDonald's drive through window and asked only for 3 glasses of ice water, and offered to pay for them.  The girl was so sweet and waved me on...

Our little field trip to the Nature Realm reminded me of the words of two great old hymns...

♫ Were the whole realm of nature mine
that be an offering far too small
love so amazing, so Divine
demands my soul, my life, my all. ♫
+++
♫ For the beauty of the earth
for the glory of the skies
for the love which from our birth
over and around us lies.
Lord of all, to Thee we raise,
this our hymn of grateful praise! ♫

7 comments:

Diana said...

I'm singing to the words Jacquelyn!! I love hymns. What a great time with the beautiful grandkids. I'll bet you earned brownie points with them for that trip! What a great grandma you are.
It's amazing the wonderful places there are in our own backyards. It only took me 20 years to go inside the Court House three blocks from my house to see where President Lincoln argued and won one of his first cases as a lawyer before becoming President. That's pretty bad!! It is a beautiful, beautiful historical building. Clara Barton set up a temporary hospital in the building after a horrible tornado in the 1800's. My husband still hasn't been there, isn't that awful?
I think you've inspired me to take him there for a tour with your post. Thank you, Love Di ♥

Lois Christensen said...

Beautiful day! Must have been really hot, but I'm sure the kids enjoyed every minute. Enjoy your night. Hope you get some rest!

Dee said...

You are an amazing grandma....with energy. :) It blessed my heart when I read where you encouraged the kids to look around and say a prayer of thankfulness ♥ My grands will be here next week and I am hoping to explore a couple of our metro parks.

Jacquelyn Stager said...

There are some places I will take them by myself and others I need hubby or mom to tag along...like the zoo and the flea market. Three against one can be challenging. The Nature Realm wasn't crowded at all so I felt more confident. I DID have a good energy day today, for which I was thankful. That isn't always the case, believe me!

Jacquelyn Stager said...

Di are you near Springfield, Ill or somewhere else? We loved a couple of trips there and would like to go back now that the Lincoln Library is open!

Jess said...

WOW! What a wonderful and enriching day! I love all of the photos of the visitors center displays.
Tell the children that a blue heron visits your friend Jess' pond! I love to watch for him and have named him "Harold."

Summer Blessings to you and yours~

Anonymous said...

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