It was a wet, muddy mess in the forest a couple of weeks ago. As we were leaving, a gentleman passed us and commented, “I guess you chose the wrong weather, eh?” His comment was in reference to Sweet Pea’s muddy appearance:

I assure you, the back was just as muddy. We knew going down that we weren’t going to come back clean. The girls know that when we go to the forest, they need to wear their “forest clothes” (our version of play clothes, those that have been worn down to the forest once or twice before, and now have holes or stains from all our fun). We play hard, and that’s OK! Actually, we encourage it. They’re only small once, right?

I’ve often heard (from my good forest friend, Anya) there’s no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing, and it’s true! We try to get out in all types of weather, which means we dress for the weather in layers, or a rain suit (or both!), so that we can keep having fun for as long as possible. Kids love to jump in muddy puddles, and who are we to deny them this childhood right of passage?

When we went down to the forest one time, and found this beautiful root system from a fallen tree, we had to explore! And you can too, as long as you’re prepared (or have a really good laundry detergent…). Also, always have a change of clothes ready, because no matter how many times you warn them of a messy area, they will be drawn to it with a seemingly magnetic force.

I want to encourage you to let kids be kids. In this root photo, Little Miss found some beautiful clay that she moulded into tea cups with a friend and her mom. There’s always something to find in the outdoors!

Full disclosure: Little Miss is not wearing a Muddy Buddy in these photos. We were able to snag a rain suit when Sears was liquidating. However, it’s the same concept, and great to have on hand for rainy/muddy days.

Blessings!

Liz