Whimsical Forest Adventures

09/14/2026

October Nature Kids Journal pre-orders available! $35 for the booklet, pumpkin for the STEAM activity, and extra *spooky* crafts. Perfect addition for a BOO-Basket! Message to put your order in. 💗

09/08/2026

Here's a fun nature walk activity to try this fall!
(keep reading for instructions)

•Cut a shape out of a piece of construction paper to be the top of your tree.

•Add a trunk with a marker or a piece of brown construction paper.

•Cut a piece of clear contact paper to the right size to cover your sheet of paper.

•Stick a piece of clear contact paper over your tree sheet, sticky side down.

•Take your tree on a nature walk and have your child stick colorful leaves to the sticky side of the contact paper.

•Tape your finished tree in a sunny window.

*You could also do this activity in spring with green leaves and wildflowers.

09/08/2026

It’s time for another giveaway! 😍🍂

October’s Kids Nature Journal is here, and I’m so excited to share this one with you!

This month’s bundle includes the journal, a pumpkin for the STEAM project, and two crafts. The journal has a daily activity calendar, phenology journal, information about Samhain/the Wheel of the Year and how the seasons change, coloring pages, and more!

I wanted this month to have a little bit of that HalloweenSamhain magic while still keeping it focused on nature and all the cool things happening outside this time of year.

The bundle is a $35 value, and I’m giving one away!

To enter, just:
🍂 Like this post
🍂 Share this post
🍂 Follow my page
🍂 Comment “done” below once you’ve done all three!

I’ll draw the winner on September 28th!

Good luck, friends! 💗

09/03/2026

Our Holden's story & 5k fundraiser made the news! Its coming up at the end of the month and there is still time to sign up, or you can come and do the raffles that will be there. I know of a handful of the donations already and they are going to be GREAT. 💗

Another Kids in Capes MN 5K is coming up at the South Ridge School, and will support a Cloquet child with cancer.

08/30/2026

What goes on during a Whimsical Forest Staff Meeting you ask?

08/29/2026

This year I had a mullein plant pop up right next to our side deck, and I was SO excited when I spotted it! I knew right away I wanted to harvest the seeds so I could plant some in my front garden next year.

Last week, my kiddos broke the top off of it, so I’ve been patiently waiting and hoping I’d still be able to collect some seeds.

Tonight I finally got my little crop! It’s the little things that make me happy. 😂

Who else loves mullein?!

08/23/2026

We are a BIG board/card game family!

And honestly? I really didn't love playing games with the kids when they were little. 🙈 I like to PLAY. I like a game that moves at a steady pace—not slower than molasses in January because you're playing with a 3-year-old. 😂

HOWEVER... we played the games with them anyway. And now we are absolutely reaping the benefits!

Our kids LOVE playing games with us. They understand how to play so many different games, pick up new ones really quickly, and are actually fun little competitors now. Our 8 & 10 year olds LOVE chess, recently learned how to play cribbage, and can even beat their 38-year-old uncle. 😂

This slow Sunday morning, my oldest and I pulled out Sequence, and it got me thinking about just how many hours we've spent around the table playing games together over the years. 💗

What are your favorite family board or card games?! We're always looking for new ones to add to the rotation!

08/22/2026

Mabon isn't just "witchy fall." 🍂✨

Yes, there are apples, pumpkins, candles, cozy meals and all the beautiful fall things that I absolutely LOVE.

But Mabon is really about something deeper.

It falls around the Autumn Equinox, when day and night are nearly equal. From here, the days continue getting shorter as we move toward the darker half of the year.

It's a natural point in the Wheel of the Year to slow down and ask:

🍎 What have I harvested this year?

🌾 What am I grateful for?

🍂 What am I ready to let go of?

⚖️ Where do I need more balance?

Mabon reminds us that we don't have to constantly be growing.

Nature doesn't.

There is a season for planting.
A season for growing.
A season for harvesting.
And eventually, a season for resting.

I think sometimes we forget that we're allowed to have seasons, too.

Maybe that's why I've grown to love following the Wheel of the Year so much. It gives me little reminders throughout the year to stop, look at what's happening in nature, and check in with myself.

So yes... give me the apples, candles and all the witchy fall goodness.

But don't forget the magic underneath it all.

Slow down. Take inventory. Give thanks. Find your balance. And prepare to let go.

08/21/2026

Things I wish adults remembered about playing outside…

Kids don't need us to make nature entertaining for them.

They don't need a perfectly planned activity every time they step outside.

Sometimes they need to dig a giant hole for absolutely no reason.

Carry around a stick that is VERY IMPORTANT.

Make soup out of mud, leaves, rocks and approximately 47 dandelions.

Spend twenty minutes watching a bug.

Build something that immediately falls over.

Get dirty.

Be bored long enough to come up with something completely ridiculous.

And have an adult nearby who doesn't immediately say, "Don't touch that!"

There is so much learning happening in those moments.

Problem solving. Creativity. Risk assessment. Confidence. Curiosity. Cooperation. Imagination.

But more than anything…

They're building a relationship with the outdoors.

And that doesn't happen because we gave them the perfect nature activity.

Sometimes it happens because we gave them the time and space to just play.

08/21/2026

I'm still awkward in front of the camera, but we have a Winner Winner Chicken Dinner! 🥰 Thank you again for all the shares, comments, likes, promoting my nature based business. 💗