Nature Journaling

Sharing a journal for pinecones, originally uploaded by OrganicSister.

I have been so inspired by Amanda Soule’s The Creative Family lately.

Today we ventured out to Mt Charleston to escape the heat – and the house – and do some Nature Journaling. We each received our very own sketchbook to use on these special occasions and packed them up with bits and pieces of art supplies – colored and regular pencils, pastels, crayons, etc – to take on our hike.

The weather was a beautiful reprieve from the triple digits temps we’ve been suffering through and we managed to find a mostly unbeaten path away from the masses of other city escapees.

We explored, climbed, jumped, (huffed, puffed,) admired and discovered before finally settling down on a fallen trunk, digging out our supplies and relaxing with our journals.

After several years of art classes, self-criticism is still something we’re overcoming in Z (as well as Justin!), but I think he felt better when he saw not all of what I drew turned out how I expected it either. Like my pinecone that we decided looked more like a rib cage, which Z finished off with a skull! It certainly helped him lighten up some and just enjoy the experience – a minor breakthrough for him!

He also had fun with the camera and took some pretty good shots as Justin and I continued to draw. It was great seeing him explore his creativity, as he posed Coco for photos or experimented with different angles.

After hiking, Z suggested we not turn home yet and instead head out to Corn Creek – a desert wildlife refuge a few miles outside the city where his favorite horse “Foody” lives.

He had gone several times with his Gramma A, but never with us. He was great at giving us directions (as usual) and even gave us a guided tour of the land, pointing out where the tadpoles, frogs, crabs and birds can be found. He seemed so grown up and mature, explaining how much further until this sight or that, promising me the shade was coming up (it wasn’t as cool there as in the mountains) and telling us how to call “Foody” and feed him carrots.

We had so much fun. We rarely make the time for these kind of activities, partially because there are few things like this to do in the valley, partially because Justin’s work schedule has been erradic.

But it was obvious today that I need to search out more alternatives like these to our days. Escaping the house, the city, the day-to-day mundane seems to transform us. We need to add more creativity into our everyday lives.

If you haven’t discovered Amanda Soule’s blog or book, I highly recommend them both!

[More photos from our day here!]