Summer Schedule

JUNE

Wednesday June 8th- Sunrise Ranch fun day Farm Tour. We will start to meet up around 9:45am. If you want to have a yummy lunch out at the ranch go to link to register. You can bring your own then registration is mandatory.

Saturday June 11th- National get outdoors Day. At Spring Creek Canyon park west side.come out and play. I will be leading a group in doing Fairy Houses but there are lots of fun things going on. We can meet up find a spot with picnic blankets and have lunch and whatever!!!
There will be demostrations on, fly fishing, rock climbing, car camping and cooking tips and more!!

Wednesday June 15th- Gateway Project. I will send out an email with the Mama's and kiddos that will be planting. If you sent an email with an interest I have you down.

Tuesday June 21st- Summer Solstice Celebration. We will meet up around 10 am for nature play, making nature necklaces, playing with flowers in our hair. This will be a summer potluck of yummy food.

Thursday June 23rd- Nature Walk at Young Gulch. Beautiful wild flowers and butterflies. Bring Lunch on the walk, there is water crossings so make sure you have shoes that can get wet... Maybe bring dry clothes in the car for after. We will start meet up around 9:45 start off around 10am.

Sunday June 26th- Sweatlodge. I have sent the details out to those that are interested. If you are interested please contact me angelaeva@q.com

JULY

Wednesday July 6th- Nature Walk TBA

Wednesday July 13th- BEACH TIME!! We will be meeting at the Beach in Loveland around 10am. We can chill and play in the water and hang out. Bring lunch

Thursday July 14th- Nighttime picnic and play under the Full Buck Moon. Lets have a potluck dinner and hang out and play and stay while the moonrises. Time and place to be announced!!

Wednesday July 20th- Music at the Lagoon at CSU. The Band Hollyfelds. Lets meet around 6:00 ish bring dinner and drink and listen to music and the kiddos can play.

Thursday July 28th- Butterfly Woods Nature Walk this will be an educational visit with a Master Naturalist. Bring lunch for afterwards. Meet up around 9:30am. More details soon.

AUGUST

Wednesday August 10th- Nature Walk TBA

The schedule after school starts will change we will meet up Wednesday afternoons and a Thursday morning. Schedule will be up later.

Fossil Creek Reservour

Beautiful Beautiful hike. So pretty the lake was lovely and we got to see a Bald Eagle and was sooo majestic the way it was just soaring all around us!! thank you lovely nature for such and abundant day!!

Such a gorgeous view!! so lovely.

What was so special we were walking back in our usual some ahead some behind and the kiddos ahead noticed the Eagle soaring ahead and told the grown ups.

Good-bye

hugs and happy trails.

The Well-Stocked First Aid Kit

Hi Tribe Members,

This is Sarah L, guest-blogging for the Nature Flock. This is the first in a series of articles about hiking with kids. We will discuss creating a first-aid kit, packing a well-stocked hiking pack and general tips for making hikes fun with children of different ages.

When I started hiking with my kids on a regular basis, I created a checklist of everything I thought we would need. I packed plenty of diapers, water, snacks, sunscreen and bug spray; I also made sure we had a first aid kit. I felt sure that our pack was filled and we would be ready for anything. Last week, I discovered my mistake.

While hiking, my toddler tripped going down the trail and landed face-first, gashing her forhead open in several spots. It was at that point that I discovered the all-purpose first aid kit that my husband had thrown into our pack was out-of-date and completely inadequate for our needs. While my 3-year-old screamed and thrashed like a wounded animal, I discovered that we had no gauze pads or disinfectant, we had no bandages larger than finger-sized, the triple antibiotic ointment expired 8 years ago (yes, EIGHT YEARS ago!), the ice-pack wouldn’t get cold, and the roll of bandaging tape was so old that it had melted together and I couldn’t tear any off.

First off, my toddler is fine. I jerry-rigged a bandage using an absorbent pad (kind of like a small maxi-pad), the out-of-date antibiotic ointment, and we used her sunhat to keep the whole thing on her head. Luckily, when we got to the car, I was able to use our well-stocked car kit to properly bandage her up. This whole situation, however, made me realize how poorly I had prepared for any emergencies on the trails with my daughters. I figured that as long as I had a first aid kit - any first aid kit - we would be okay. What I didn’t realize was that our first aid kit needed to be customized to our needs and regularly checked to make sure that everything was up-to-date.

After several hours of internet research and list-making, a whole lot of scrounging from our medicine cabinet, and a little bit of shopping at the drug store, I can now say that we have an appropriate and well-stocked first aid kit. I want to share what I learned about creating a child-friendly hiking first aid kit.

Your First Aid Kit should include:

• Lots of bandages, assorted sizes
• Sterile gauze pads and/or a roll of gauze
• Tape (I like the kind that is pre-perforated. It’s really hard to tear a strip of tape off cleanly when your hands are shaking!)
• Tweezers & needle to remove splinters or ticks
• Small scissors
• Ibuprofen (include age-appropriate doses - adult as well as infant/child)
• Liquid antihistamine (include age-appropriate doses - adult as well as infant/child)
• Triple-antibiotic ointment
• Instant ice-pack
• Anti-bacterial wipes
• Moleskin for blisters
• A first-aid guide - ours was included with the kit

When you stock your pack, be sure to use appropriate products. Choose the proper medications for your child’s age/weight, and don’t forget to include medications for yourself, too. Make sure you write down the correct dose of medication for your child(ren) based on age/weight. Update it as they grow.

If you have any special medical conditions, take those into consideration. For example, if you are hiking with someone who has a heart condition, you will probably want to include low-dosage aspirin. Never give aspirin to children under 12 years old. If you or your child has allergies, include an epi-pen. (Which you should be trained to use safely!) If you regularly take medication for any condition like diabetes or high blood pressure, bring some of that medicine along in case you get stuck on the trail for some reason. Think about your situation, and jot down anything extra that you might need.

Have you been in a situation that required you to use your first aid kit? What do you consider to be the most vital thing in your kit?