Moments like these are golden.  I want to hold them front and centre in my memory and savour them for as long as possible. They warm my heart and put a smile on my face. Creating together and encouraging each other's attempts at drawing in our nature journals is a highlight of my week. 

I am so grateful to the wonderful Mel Turnbull of Firekeepers. She runs our weekly Currawong Kids sessions at the stunning Darebin Parklands just outside Melbourne's CBD. At the start of the year she brought along a nature journal for each child to record their adventures. 

What a brilliant idea and wonderful gift. Of course, I just had to go out and buy one for me too! Now, after each adventure with her at Darebin we sit together at the kitchen table, drawing our experiences of the day. The girls have decorated their journals (plastered them with stickers actually) and even stuck envelopes in the back to keep their treasures safe. Interesting leaves and feathers all make their way into the envelopes and into the journals. 

My pencil tin has twelve pencils and it's a real challenge to draw what I've seen using just these colours. I've started to layer the colours to try and get different effects. I'm having so much fun experimenting with shading and lines. And it's so satisfying to be able to look back through my journal at what I've seen and drawn. Such a beautiful memento of our time in nature together.

I love sitting down with them, recording the experiences of the day in pictures and in words. The more crafting we do together, the happier I am!