As the weather starts warming up, we are all eager to get outside, smell the fresh air, and participate in our favorite outdoor activities. Spending time outdoors is a great way to reduce stress, participate in family time, and add physical activity and fun into your day!
When you find yourself craving to be outside, I challenge you to find a new activity or find a way to change up your usual routine.
A few of my favorite activities this time of year are biking, hiking to explore a new place, and playing softball (when the fields are finally dry, of course.) An example of changing it up would be playing kickball on a softball field, or choosing a new destination to bike to.
Next time you plan to go outside, try one of these activities!
1. Create and go on a nature scavenger hunt. This is an easy way to get exercise and have fun with the kiddos! Start by listing things that can be found in nature--like pine cones, maple leafs, or red rocks--and then complete the list as a group or split into teams to make it a friendly competition. Happy hunting!
2. Try geocaching. Geocaching is an activity where you use navigational techniques to hide and seek containers called "geocaches" or "caches." These containers usually have trinkets of all kinds inside. The rule is when you find one, you can take the present item, but you must replace it with a new one that you brought with you. If you don't want to bring trinkets to replace, you can just go on the adventure anyway because the hunt is the best part! It's kind of like a treasure hunt! To find out more, get the Geocaching app or go to their website. Time for an adventure!
3. Create an obstacle course in the backyard. Time to use your creativity! Kids love to use their imagination, so come up with interesting descriptions for each part of your course. For example, pretend the hula hoops you have sitting on the ground are actually rocks that you have to use to get across the rushing river! Be creative and take time to use different skills for each prat, such as jumping, skipping, army crawling and any other fun skills for the kids and yourself to try. Use a stopwatch to make it a competition, or just have fun with it!
4. Play a new sport. No matter your athletic ability, trying a new sport can be an exciting challenge for the whole family! Whether it's two people trying tennis or a family of five playing big base, learning a new sport challenges the mind and body. My family always found a way to make a new rule. For example, with volleyball, we made the rule that you could have one bounce off the ground and still hit the ball. This made the volley go longer, which meant more fun! See what you and your family can come up with to make an old game more interesting, or try a new one!
There are many, many other activities to choose from now that spring is upon us! The main idea is to get outside, smell the fresh air and get moving with new activities!