Autumn Nature Activities to Enjoy with Your Family

Autumn is here. The leaves will soon be changing colors and falling off the trees. With the changing of the season, the opportunity to explore nature is at hand. There are so many wonderful things that you can do with your kids outside in the cool autumn breeze.

Apple Picking

This is something that we enjoy every year. We visit a local farm for a day of apple picking, corn mazes, pig races, and hayrides. We leave with several pounds of apples and plans to make deep dish apple pie and apple butter. Here is a fantastic recipe for apple butter:

Apple Butter Recipe

Need:
Crockpot
vegetable oil
2-3 lbs of apples (tart works the best)
1 cup apple juice or cider
6 cups sugar
1 tsp allspice
1 tsp cloves
2 TBSP cinnamon

Coat the inside of the Crockpot with oil. Cut, peel, and slice the apples and place in the Crockpot. Use as many as needed to fill to the top - they will cook down. Cover with lid and cook for 12-18 hours on low. Using a hand mixer, blend the apple together until most of the chunks are gone. Add the sugar and spices. Mix until well blended. Cook 1 hour on low with lid and then remove the lid and cook for 7 hours. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Patch

Picking your own pumpkins from a pumpkin patch is fun for everyone. Your kids will enjoy hunting for the perfect pumpkin. Plan to carve a pumpkin together and toast the seeds for a special treat. Another fun activity to do is Painting a Pumpkin. Kids of all ages will enjoy using craft paints to make faces and designs on a pumpkin - a great alternative to carving.

Nature Walk

Take a walk around your yard, the local park, or your neighborhood. Look at the different trees, plants, and flowers. Watch for wildlife that lives around you. Listen to the sounds of nature. You will be able to hear some wonderful sounds. See who can hear the most sounds and then talk about what made each sound you hear. You can check out the local library for nature guide books and plant, animal, and insect identification books. I use my state's conservation website to see what lives in my particular area.

Nature Collection

Look for neat items in nature to collect in a bag or shoebox. You can do a family collection or let each child do their own. Leaves of all types and sizes, bird feathers, nuts, seeds, and pine cones are all items that you will find outside. It is important that you teach your kids to respect others' property and to never pick planted flowers, plants or trees. You will find plenty of things lying on the ground. I write a list of items to find on the front of a brown, paper lunch sack and then each child places the items found inside - fun!

Bug Hunt

Kids love to collect insects. Choose a plastic container for bug collecting and then see what you can find. It is good to have an insect/spider identification book so that you can quickly see what you have found. Know what poisonous spiders and insects live in your area and teach your kids to stay away from these.

Cloud Watching

What a special time to spend with your kids. There is not much better than lying in the grass and watching the clouds go by with your kids next to you. Take turns telling what you see in the clouds. It is amazing how many pictures we can see every time we cloud watch. We like to lay on our trampoline and cloud watch.

Fall Planting

Spring is usually the time for planting, but there are a few things that you can plant in the fall. Bulbs get planted in the fall and although they do not bloom until spring, you can plant tulips, irises, daffodils, and many other bulbs with your kids and then watch them come up during the first signs of spring. Mums are also a popular flower in the fall and bring color to your yard when most everything else is dying.

Bird Watching

Set up a bird feeder in your yard to attract local birds. Do a little research and find out what kind of seeds they like the best. Now sit down and watch the birds. A good bird identification book is a must. We have one specific to the species in our state and we have seen many different birds at our feeders. Be sure to keep putting out seed even during the winter and the birds will keep coming back.

Enjoy the nature of autumn!