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A Tired Mom’s Earth Day Activity Ideas

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April 22, 2015

Earth Day is today. If you’re like me, that’s about 504,172 things down on your to-do list. In short, “Ain’t nobody got time for that!” Naturally, in the middle of the chaos, one of my dear sweet way-too-observant children noticed that tiny line on the calendar … Earth Day which, not unlike the mouse and the cookie, led to them remembering something about that in school, which meant the unavoidable question …”What are we doing for Earth Day?”

Seriously? How about breathing? Or napping?

So here’s my list of things that might actually happen between basketball, swim, grocery shopping, and work emails.

Go to the Movies

Every year, Disney Nature puts out seriously cute nature films that make stories out of the real lives of animals. They’re fun. They’re  educational. They’re on video! If you feel like more of a break, this year’s selection Monkey Kingdom is in theatres.

Feed the Birds and Other Animals

Take your remaining stale bread to a pond on the way home and feed ducks. Get a couple of hummingbird feeders and bird watch. Fill a bird seed feeder or just hang some bagels off the trees. If you feel like you want to take this a little further, you could go back to preschool, cover a pine cone with peanut butter then roll it in bird seed for a homemade feeder.

Observe

Send the kids outside with a pair of binoculars or a magnifying glass and challenge them to find as many different types of animals as they can in 10 minutes. Let’s be honest, binoculars or magnifying glasses might be lost in the piles of dirty clothes and misplaced toys. Using their eyes works just fine!

Water Plants

Show conservation by putting a bucket in the sink when your kids wash their hands. Then, take it out to water plants or a tree or whichever growing thing is closest to your front door.

Plant Flowers

This sounds very involved but I’m talking about the cheap boxes of wildflowers that you just sprinkle onto dirt. If the kids are up for bit more action, they can always turn over a bit of ground to help the seeds out.

Go Online

It doesn’t sound very “nature-y” but National Geographic has a ton of interesting and educational Earth Day events on their site. This includes opportunities for people everywhere to upload pictures or comment.

Spend a Night Out in Nature

It just so happens that the Lyrid Meteor Shower hits its peak at about midnight Wednesday night. Anyone in the Northern Hemisphere should be able to see it, barring cloud cover. If that chance has passed you by, take a moment just to watch the world after dark.

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