365 Days with Kiddos - #34 - Look Down, Find Treasures

Just some of the things we have collected recently....

Ok, ok, it has been a very LOOOONNNNGGGGG time since I posted a 365 Days with Kiddos. Very long. This doesn't mean I haven't been doing creative things with my kiddos, it just means I have been doing sooooo many that I have not had time on top of everything else to blog about them. Shame, shame. I am sorry... My kids and I have many opportunities when walking around town to find treasures. These treasures may not be what many people consider to be treasures. In fact, aside from the occasional coin, they are not worth anything at all in monetary value. They are the kinds of things that one may need a good imagination to consider valuable. Fortunately, we have that. Many of my finds make their way into my art. The rest go into the kids' art, on the awesome moulding halfway up the wall in most of our house, in bowls, on top of the mantle, in pockets, in our backyard, even in the car, and sometimes to show and tell. These treasures are rocks & stones, sticks, bark, pine cones, seashells (if we are near the ocean), feathers, pottery shards, rusty bits like bottle caps, hardware, wire, and pull tabs, and random things like broken jewellery, ribbons scraps, and recently, a pencil split in two the long way. I know, I know, some of you stopped cold when you read, "feathers, pottery shards, and rusty bits". Now, please don't worry, we are all professionals at this collecting. We know all about safety first. If my kids see something unusual that they are not sure about, they ask me before they pick it up. All of our finds can be washed, and we wash our hands once we are finished. We have not had one injury or illness as a result of this treasure hunting. It has only resulted in a heightened sense of possibility (in finding ways to use our finds), in a better job of enjoying the present (instead of being focused on what will happen when we get to our destination, we are focused on the actual journey), and an ability to see the beauty all kinds of things (instead of letting everyone else tell us what is beautiful). My kids are full of smiles when they find something interesting, and there is nothing better than hearing, "Mommy, mommy, look what I found!"

 One day, we decided to look under the trees on a small piece of property in the centre of town. 

We found 16 feathers in 5 minutes. I often use feathers in my art.

Do you collect things when out walking? I would love to hear about them...