30x30 Challenge: Weeks One and Two

I am participating, for the second year, in the David Suzuki Foundation 30 x 30 Challenge to spend 30 minutes a day in nature for 30 days in May.

As with last year, I find that my overall minutes in the outdoors is quite high, but sometimes the challenge on work days is to make sure I get in some time outside.

When I come home from work I am tired and want to sit down, or I am rushing out the door to take someone somewhere, so I either need to make time during my work day to get outside (with my class) or head outside as soon as I get home. On these days the best I can muster is time in my garden, sitting peacefully, wandering around and observing the new plant growth and little critters that reside in my backyard, watering and weeding.

On my days off, and particularly on weekends I find I spend a large portion of the day outside. I go on bike rides and do yard clean up and maintenance. For the past several weekends we have enjoyed a backyard campfire roasting marshmallows with my girls on our BBQ pit.

This past week, however, my time outside was limited for a few days because of a strange virus that worked it's way through my family. Each year for Mother's Day I like to pick an outdoor adventure to do with my family, and this year I wanted to go on a bike ride to our local farmer's market. Alas, this was not to be.

Last year I kept track of minutes outdoors, but this time I am only keeping track of my daily activities and sharing photos on Instagram.

Week One and Two Outdoor Activities:

• bike rides to Garry Point in Steveston
• bike ride to meet a friend for coffee
• quiet time amongst trees at Minoru
• backyard BBQ campfires
• tending my backyard garden
• playing at the beach 
• dinner on the shore of the Fraser River in Steveston 
• playing at the park with my class
• knitting outdoors
• walks along the river's edge in New Westminster

For the next two weeks my goal is to find time in more natural settings, like a local nature park or rural area. 

Follow my 30 x 30 adventures on Instagram. I'm crustyroll35. 

Join the 30 X 30 Nature Challenge

Like many people who care about the environment, I love spending time outdoors in nature. When I am feeling stressed or overstimulated it just takes some quiet time by water or trees and I'm much more relaxed and happy. Studies support that time in a natural setting can reduce depression, anxiety, anger, and pain. It also feels like common sense to me that time in nature can help people have a greater understanding of and appreciation for the environment; the more you know, the more you love and have a vested interest in protecting. 

For the fourth year the David Suzuki Foundation is holding their 30 X 30 Challenge for the month of May to spend thirty minutes each day in nature. For a great info graphic about time in nature, go here.

As an avid gardener this is no problem for me, but I love a good hashtag, so I will be participating again by sharing my daily photos to the hashtags #30x30challenge and #natureiscalling on Instagram and twitter. I will also be blogging about how I'm doing here. 

Continue reading at The Green Phone Booth>>>

Nature Heals

I have struggled with blogging for the past few weeks, with little desire and seemingly little time to do so, which is ironic given that I am on summer vacation. I have also been trying on post ideas and tossing them to the side because they didn't grab me. I have even forgotten to post when I have made commitments to do so, which makes me feel guilty. But I now have something that I think I am ready to share, and it is going to be hard for me, so please be kind.


I have been depressed for many weeks now. Thankfully I have not struggled with depression for many years, or a lifetime, as some people do. I am no expert on depression and in the past I have struggled to empathize with people who are depressed. You know, like just focus on the positive, stop dwelling on the negative in your life. 

For many reasons my life this summer has been a perfect storm for depression. Professionally I am struggling because I am involved in a prolonged labour dispute that shows no end. This has triggered monetary stress, which in turn has triggered a whole variety of other stresses. Then there are cyclical reasons for my low mood (what woman hasn't experienced this?). The cherry on top is that my left hip has been inflamed and extremely painful since June (hmm, coincidence?) which has caused my lower back to go out. Anyone who has every experienced chronic pain can tell you the effect that it can have on mood. Of course, the pain has slowed me down and I have not enjoyed as many long walks and bike rides as I had hoped I would. Thankfully my hip and back are improving (but that is another story).

Also playing into this, I believe, is that I may be spending less time outside than I should in the last couple of weeks. My middle daughter was stung quite badly at the beginning of the summer and it has been a struggle to get her to spend any length of time outdoors, which caused us to cancel our summer camping trip. Also, because it is so hot out during the day (we have had an unusually hot and dry summer here in the pacific northwest), we have been seeking cooler locations, usually indoors during the warmest times of the day. 

But I know that Mother Nature is the greatest medicine, and I have a treatment plan.


Continue reading at The Green Phone Booth>>>

Cheapskate Summer Bucket List

My Pinterest feed is full of cute ways to document a summer bucket list, along with all the fabulous things to do during the summer. Due to some unforeseen circumstances, however, my summer bucket list will mostly consist of free things to do with my kids. If life gives you lemons, as the saying goes, make lemonade, so I'm excited to try to do as many things with my daughters that will cost little to no money. To continue with the May 30 by 30 Nature Challenge, I hope to have as many bucket list items take place in nature or relate to nature as possible.

Continue reading at The Green Phone Booth>>>

How To Play In Nature for Kids Of All Ages

For the month of May I participated in the David Suzuki Foundation 30 x 30 Nature Challenge, along with Eco Novice and Eco Yogini. I value time in nature, not just because it is good for my health, but also because I enjoy the sensory experience of being outside. I enjoy observing the insects as they go about their business. I find it relaxing to listen to the wind rustling the leaves, and I have been known to fall asleep to the sounds in the Mama-Do-Nothing-Chair. And to me there is no better smell than the wet soil after a rain storm.

Now that the challenge is over, I am looking for a variety of ways to continue to spend time in nature. Play is important for children, but I believe that everyone should play. Time in nature provides so many opportunities to play beyond they typical nature walks and hide and seek.

Here are some ideas for nature play that will get everyone, young or old, interested.

Continue reading at The Green Phone Booth>>>

Week Four: 30 x 30 Nature Challenge

For the month of May I participated in the David Suzuki Foundation 30 x 30 Nature Challenge to spend 30 minutes in nature for 30 days. I posted each week on my progress and shared photos of my experiences outdoors.

To get caught up on my month and my reflections each week:

Week One

Week Two

Week Three

I'm a little late posting photos from my final week and sharing my thoughts on the challenge. I've had a stressful few weeks at work and have experienced a great deal of negativity. The 30x30 Challenge has been the bright spot in my month because it has helped to motivate me to get outside when I might have chosen to sit on the couch. 

Highlights of the 30 x 30 Challenge:

• My time outdoors is evident on my face. I'm already sun kissed and all that extra vitamin D feels good. If I've had a bad day even just a few minutes outdoors can turn it around for me. 
• I'm more connected with my daughters because when I'm outside they follow me out, and when they're outside it helps to get me out too. We've gone on multiple family bike rides, hung out at the beach and gone on nature walks.
• My oldest daughter is becoming a real preteen and often prefers alone time in her room. I've been "kicking" her outside, which in turn has made me realize that I can take what I'm doing and sit outside doing it as well. I've done some marking, edited photos on my iPad, worked on a knitting project, read a book and had a nap in my backyard, with the sounds of the birds and wind in the trees helping me to de-stress.
• I managed to check everything off my list for the month: lots of family walks and bike rides, using our foot power to get to school when possible, using my bike to do daily errands, keeping up with daily gardening tasks and trying geocaching for the first time. 

Some downsides to the 30 x 30 Nature Challenge (as if there are real downsides to spending time in nature!):

• While the garden is beautiful, the inside of my home is a disaster. I am currently looking at seven baskets of unfolded laundry that soon will be eight baskets. There is grass all over the downstairs floor from so much foot traffic going in and out the back door. And those dishes all over the counter are not going to clean themselves. 
• My crafty projects have really taken a back seat this month. My one little word for the year is make, and I have a long list of craft and DIY projects to do. I am about an hour away from finishing knitting a pair of ankle socks, but by the time I sit down in the evening I'm too tired to pick up the needles.
• My blogging has also been neglected. I've tried to keep up with posting about my progress with the 30 x 30 Challenge but many of the DIY projects I'd hoped to write about are not done.
• I'm also behind on my work. Granted the last couple of weeks I haven't been able to do any work from home (thank you BC government), but I have huge pile of marking that is calling my name.

Here's my fourth week in photos:

I chose the rainiest day so far to try geocaching for the first time. My girls
were displeased and acted like the water was burning their flesh.

All that changed when we found it! These happy campers
were so enthusiastic they wanted to look for another
geocache right away. This will be on my summer
bucket list for sure!

Again lots of bike riding this week. We all rode my oldest
to her gymnastics class and continued along the dyke.

We paused at this pier along the Fraser River to watch
people fishing and the tugboats chugging along.

My youngest had a preschool field trip to the Richmond Nature Park.
They pretended to be honey bees looking for flowers. Then they observed
nature with a magnifying glass.

After the class trip was over we stuck around for our
own quiet walk in the park. So serene.

Of course I spent hours and hours in my vegetable garden. Things are really
starting to come up and we've already enjoyed many meals, and lots of
impromptu snacks from the garden beds. 

A quiet moment in my backyard, trying to get caught up with my
crafty projects, and feeling grateful for the many buzzing pollinators,
humming birds, dragonflies and chickadees I viewed while sitting here.

There's nothing like coming home from a busy day to a cooked meal
and a backyard campfire. It's so meditative to stare at a fire.

My pride and joy, and where I can be found most days. We've had many
family meals from the garden already. So excited for summer!

I'm not one for resolutions and challenges, but this one really appealed to me. I knew that I would find it easy to fit in 30 minutes outside a day, even if it only meant going out to weed and water in my backyard garden. I spent much more than 30 minutes many days each week, and we have had such beautiful weather this month that I was able to spend most of each weekend outside. 

I hope to continue my own little 30x30 challenge for the upcoming summer months. I'm home for July and August with my girls so I know we will be adding lots of outdoor adventures to our weekly agenda, but it is the daily time outside that I want to keep up. Tonight I am exhausted. I have a kitchen to clean and kids to put to bed so I'm sitting on the couch for a few minutes to work on this post after driving my daughter to her gymnastics class. Because dinner was a bit later than usual we didn't have time to ride our bikes to the class. Now I should be out on the back patio soaking up the last rays of the sun and watching what my girls like to call the dragonfly ballet as they swoop around catching flying insects. And now that I'm on the couch, I'm not motivated to get up. I know that there are days like this, and I know that tomorrow I have plans to be outside, so I am not concerned, yet. 

Did you participate in the 30 x 30 Nature Challenge? Do you feel like you get enough nature time each week? 

Follow my fellow Green Phone Boothers who also participated this month:

Eco Novice

Eco Yogini

30 x 30 Nature Challenge: Week Three

I am partipating in the David Suzuki Foundation 30 x 30 Nature Challenge, to get outside in nature for 30 minutes a day for 30 days. To read how I did in weeks one and two, click here.

This week was a very busy one and I found it challenging to get outside and spend meaningful time in nature every day. On a few days it only amounted to watering my garden. However, I more than made up for it on others days when I binged on time outside, either at the beach, at the park, going on a bike ride or doing some serious gardening.

I generally don't have difficulties getting outside in the spring because of my love of gardening and the hours that my backyard vegetable garden requires. However, there are times when I just don't feel like getting off the couch, especially after a long, stressful day at work. The 30 x 30 Challenge has been a good fit for me because I feel some accountability to get up and get going.

Take today for instance; it was my day off and I just wanted to sit, do some knitting and maybe catch up on the internet. The sun was struggling to get out from behind the clouds and it wasn't particularly warm in the morning. I dutifully watered my garden and sat down on the couch. Luckily I had mentioned to my youngest daughter last night that I wanted to take her on a bike ride to a park to see ducks and rabbits, and she was quick to remind me of this when she saw me getting comfortable in the Mama-Do-Nothing spot. I would have been tempted to redirect her to some other activity if I hadn't signed up for the challenge and for this I am grateful. We had a nice morning riding the bike for an hour and spending time exploring around Minoru Park.

I have yet to try geocaching! Must do this last week so I can say I met all my 30 x 30 goals.

Here is my third week in photos:

One way I enjoy being in nature is taking photos. I don't have a fancy
DSLR camera unfortunately, but I think my iPhone does a nice job.
I love taking macro photos of my garden with my Olloclip lens.

My girls love to play at the beach and it is always a battle to get
them to leave. 

This is my "naturehood" where the Fraser River meets the Gulf of Georgia.

Normally May is a wet month here on the west coast, and the weather
keeps threatening rain, but we have been blessed with picture perfect
days. The iffy days just make for stunning cloud photo moments.

No matter how many hours I spend in my backyard I can still be surprised
by what I find. In a little used corner I found some volunteer poppies.

Britannia Heritage Shipyards, full of history of Steveston's fishing and
pioneer past, is along my running route. I love this old tree and always
stop to take in the view of the local swans nesting here. 

I challenged myself to ride my bike to Minoru Park in the city centre today.
My four year old and I were thrilled to watch, from a safe distance, these
goslings with their mother.

Join me in the 30 x 30 Nature Challenge here.

Follow my progress with the 30 x 30 Nature Challenge here.

And follow my fellow Green Phone Boothers who are also participating:

Eco Novice

Eco Yogini

Week Two: 30 x 30 Nature Challenge

I have completed the second week of the David Suzuki NatureChallenge to get outside, preferably in nature, for at least 30 minutes a day for 30 days in May. Last week was a resounding success and I was highly motivated to get outside for over twelve hours, by biking, gardening, walking to school and playing at the beach.

This week was more challenging to get outside. It rained on and off for a few days this week, so I had to dash out into the garden in between rain showers. Then, at the end of Mother’s Day three of us got a stomach bug, which limited our ability to do much outside for the rest of the week.

Next week I hope to increase our time spent in more natural settings, by water and amongst trees, and to hopefully finally give geocaching a try.

Some Positives to being motivated to get outside each day: 

• I am not just task oriented when I spend time outside gardening. Much of my time is spent just observing. I love sitting in one spot and watching the goings and comings of the insects and birds around me. It is amazing how busy nature can be.

• My mood improves after being outside, particularly if the time is spent being active.

• I have more daytime energy to get things done.

• I am naturally a night owl, and I have a bad habit of staying up too late and regretting it the next day. For the last two weeks I have been more tired and ready for sleep.

• My television viewing is generally limited to a few favourite shows that I catch up on in the evening. Because I am more tired, I have not been watching as much television. 

• I am up-to-date with gardening tasks, which is a first for me. On more than one occasion it crossed my mind to procrastinate, but then I remembered that I needed to get outside for the challenge. This week I planted the second round of carrot seeds, thinned more beet and turnip seeds to give the stronger plants a chance to grow, transplanted my tomato seedlings, and started the sisyphean task of weeding. 

Here is my second week in photos:

This is where I spent the majority of my time outside this week:
my backyard garden.

Along with gardening chores, I am now spending time wandering around
my garden beds looking for food to harvest. This is kale and rhubarb.

My youngest daughter enjoyed watching the dragonflies and noticed this
one land on our fence for a rest. We spend over 10 minutes observing it.

I have let my kale go to seed, and in addition to the benefit of seed
collecting, I have been fascinated with all the pollinators the bright
yellow flowers have attracted to my yard. The plants are humming
with bees.

For Mother's Day I like going on outdoor adventures with my family.
This year we went to Fort Langley and learned about a
piece of our province's past. My girls' favourite part of the day was
panning for gold. 

I have been walking to swimming lessons with my class each day,
and I always enjoy the landscaping around city hall, especially these irises.

My favourite part of gardening is sitting and just observing. I even grabbed
a few minutes to put up my feet and have a coffee one morning.

By the end of this week everyone was feeling better and I managed to get
back on my bike to go shopping and meet a friend for coffee. I took my
favourite route home past Britannia Heritage Shipyards on the banks
of the Fraser River. 

Join me in the 30 x 30 Nature Challenge here.

Follow my progress with the 30 x 30 Nature Challenge here.

And follow my fellow Green Phone Boothers who are also participating:

Eco Novice

Eco Yogini

Week One: 30 x 30 Nature Challenge

I have decided to join The David Suzuki Foundation 30 x 30 Nature Challenge to spend 30 minutes a day outside, preferably in nature, for 30 days in May.

Overall this first week has gone well and I've logged many minutes, far more than the 30 minutes per day. In fact, not that I'm officially keeping track or will continue to do so, but I have spent more than 12 hours outside this week. I've been lucky with the weather so far, with only one solidly rainy day, so I have been able to find time to do gardening, biking, and walking in between rain showers on less than perfect days. I'm a hardy pacific northwest coaster who is usually embarrassed to use an umbrella, so even a little bit of rain doesn't stop me from getting outside. That said, as I type this I am bundled up in a blanket on my couch to warm up after a particularly wet bike ride home from the school pick up.

Some interesting things have come up as a result of participating in the 30 x 30 Nature Challenge. I haven't worried too much about my three daughters getting their 30 minutes outside as they run around outside during recess and lunch at school. But when I've gone into the yard to garden they usually follow me out, then stay outside long after I've gone indoors.

After a quick tune up, we've been using our bikes far more than usual, and have used them to ride to gymnastics class and to a sushi dinner out at a local restaurant. My husband has also joined us on weekend bike rides to our favourite local spot, Garry Point. This has highlighted for him how much he needs a new bike, which will be his joint Father's Day / birthday present this year.

I can be lazy (can't we all) and I have been avoiding a few gardening tasks, but knowing that I am participating in the nature challenge has really motivated me to get out into the veggie garden each day and slowly tick items off my to do list. So overall, regardless of how I do for the remaining 23 days, it has been a success for us.

In photos, here is how I spent some of my time outdoors this past week:

We rode our bikes out to the beach at Garry Point, and had ice cream. After
coming home from work my husband rode his bike to meet us for dinner.

Wandering around on driftwood at Garry Point again.This was my first time
wearing my beloved Birkenstocks. Can you see the sand all over my feet?

I logged many hours outside in my garden this week. My biggest back-breaking
 task was thinning the seedlings, which gave me a yummy snack of microgreens.

My girls followed me out to the front yard while I was cutting the lawn (with a push
mower). They are natural tree climbing monkeys. Sadly I couldn't convince
them to help with the raking or weeding.

I am enjoying watching the progress of my mason bees.They have finally started
laying eggs and plugging the holes with mud. 

I love visiting the chickens at Britannia Shipyards,
just around the corner form my home.

I'm trying to motivate myself to run on a more regular basis. It's easy when
this is along my route. My shoes match the surroundings!

One of the many bike rides this week. This is on the way home from the school
drop off. Can you seemy four year old, Little Monster, in the bike trailer?

The only activity on my list that I haven't tried yet is geocaching, which I've wanted to do for a couple of years now. I've downloaded a free app onto my iPhone, but I'm looking for any suggestions of websites or apps to try, any tips and ideas for getting going.

Join me in the 30 x 30 Nature Challenge here.

Follow my progress with the 30 x 30 Nature Challenge here.

And follow my fellow Green Phone Boothers who are also participating:

Eco Novice

Eco Yogini

Let the Nature Challenge Begin!

Click here to sign up!

This month I'm participating in the 30 x 30 Challenge from the David Suzuki Foundation. The idea is to spend 30 minutes outside for 30 days. There are so many reasons why this is good for us; check out the website for great tips! I've officially signed up so I can receive ideas and reminders to keep me on track.

Even though I have natural couch potato tendencies, I always feel better after a natural dose of fresh air, vitamin D. The trick is motivating myself so that I don't get hung up on my many inside responsibilities.  Instead, I need to remember that being outside motivates me and gives me more energy, which in theory should help me accomplish all that I need to do. And if I don't, well, those dishes and that marking will always be there and that's ok.

It's easy to spend more time outdoors in May, with the warmer weather that pulls us all outside, and my vegetable garden that always needs some attention. But there are those days when it is a little colder, or raining, or I'm tired from a long day at work, and it is a challenge to avoid parking myself on the couch.


So here is my tentative plan for making it a priority to get outside for 30 minutes over 30 days:

• on my days off from work walk my kids to and from school as much as possible (when we don't have immediate after school commitments), which I try to do.

• continue to check on my garden with watering, weeding and cutting of the lawn

• try an after dinner family walk, which is easier now that it is light so late into the evening

• go on a family walk or bike ride on the weekends, which we have being doing so far this spring. 

• try geocaching, which has been on my list of activities to try for some time

I hope to check back throughout May to share how I'm doing with this to keep me honest and on track.

Do you get enough outdoor time? Do you want to join me in the 30 x 30 Challenge?