A Little Outside Time

We headed to our current favorite park yesterday. I misjudged how chilly it was, so we grabbed the leaves for our nature books and jumped back into the car to do the actual drawing. And then we took a walk. It was a breezy day, and there were all these fluffy white seeds flying everywhere. The kids assumed they were cottonwood seeds, and while I had my doubts (aren't those earlier in the year than this?) I couldn't say for sure that they weren't, so I didn't say anything. But I'm really glad we went on the walk, rather than just wimping out and going home. Turns out, it wasn't cottonwood fluff, it was from milkweed.

 And not only is it really soft, but we found one on the ground that had fallen out in a clump.

 I'd only ever seen them pulling from pods, all crazy and fluffy: it had not occurred to me that they would grow in an orderly way, but they do. And the seeds are considerably larger than cottonwood seeds. 

The kids all had a look, and were delighted by how soft it was. We talked about how it can be used as insulation in coats or other warm weather gear. And I let some fly; it was delightful. 

I wasn't the only one that thought that it was fun to make "milkweed rain". 

 Even in huge clumps, it floated really well. When it was just one seed, it looked like they would fly for a long while before the seeds drop.

It was such a beautiful day. I think that nature study is such a blessing. We always have a good time, and the more we learn, the more I recognize the local plants as we drive around, and I just love that.