January 17, 2012
Did you know that 85% of kids want more adventure in their lives!?!?!
Even if we, as adults, are a little nervous about this, let’s try to give our kids some good, clean, fun adventure!
Read this great article on the bringing more adventure in to our family lives: click here.
December 1, 2011
The goal of the g2g program is to connect kids (and families) to nature. Your kids will want to do more outside and spend more time in nature if we, as adults, share with them why we love the outdoors.
I am reminded of a quote by Rachel Carson, “If a child is to keep alive their inborn sense of wonder… they need the companionship of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with them the joy, excitement, and mystery of the world we live in.”
Take pictures together outside
You don’t have to be a biologist or ecologist to share your love of nature. Names and facts are less important than how the wind or the shade of a tree makes you feel. Share with your kids why you love a park or what makes you want to return to that tree year after year.
Nature is constantly changing, when you’re outside, be in the moment. Watch. Listen. Ask questions. Guess. Have fun!
Whether it’s the calm of watching the clouds on a warm spring day or dancing crazy while chasing dragonflies, your kids will enjoy the natural world alongside you if you show them your love of nature in the simple, personal ways.
Catch bugs together
For more ideas about how to share nature with your children check out our g2g Outside Parents Night Out.
November 14, 2011
Here are some wise words from Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods and inspiror of the Children and Nature Network as well as the g2g Outside program.
The vision for the Children and Nature Network is A world in which all children play, learn and grow with nature in their everyday lives.
October 14, 2011
Sorry for such late notice, but I just heard about this 5 minutes ago. This Saturday at Quivira National Wildlife Refuge there is a really cool event for the entire family. Grab a few friends and head west to Quivira this weekend. See below for details.
To celebrate National Wildlife Refuge Week, Quivira National Wildlife Refuge will how an event that features a combination of science, education, and fun. They will have a BioBlitz! The goal is to find as many species of plants and animals in a 24-hour period at Quivira, and the public is invited and encouraged to both watch and help!
Bioblitz begins at 5:00 pm Friday, October 14, with two evening programs, then continues from 7:00 am through 5:00 pm on Saturday October 15. 
Accompany a scientist collecting insects, banding birds, studying small mammals, or surveying birds. Featuring: Interpretive Programs, Hands-on Science, Species Scoreboard, and Food and Refreshments. All programs will start at the Quivira National Wildlife Refuge Environmental Education Classroom, located 7 miles North of the QNWR Headquarters and Visitors Center.
Friday, October 14, 2011:
Event begins: 5:00 p.m. – Environmental Education Classroom (EEC)
Programs: 5:15 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. – Bird Survey
7:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. – Night Bird Prowl Reservations required
8:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. – Insects at Night
Saturday, October 15, 2011:
Programs: 7:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. – Bioblitz Central open for lab
viewing, scoreboard
7:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. – Bird Banding Demonstration.
7:30 a.m. – 11:30 p.m. – Bird Survey AM. morning
8:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. – Small Mammals
10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. – Getting to Know Wetland Plants
10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. – Highlight: Herps
11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. – Lunch available
12:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. – Dragons and Damsels
12:30 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. – Bird Survey, PM
1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. – Prairie Plants
2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. – Forgotten Fish
End of Event: 5:00 p.m.
Opportunities to help capture insects, and survey birds, all day!
For more information call QNWR at 620-486-2393
For a full schedule of events, check out the Quivira National Wildlife Refuge website by clicking here.
September 28, 2011
Suzanne Perez Tobias wrote a great article in this week’s Wichita Eagle, about how she was inspired to spend more time outdoors with her kids (playing, walking, homework, etc). Check out the article here.
August 29, 2011
Click here for the article.
Leave a comment about what we can do here in Wichita/Sedgwick County/Kansas to promote safe outdoor play for our kids where they can imagine, explore, discover, play and create.
August 18, 2011
Packing the kids’ lunch is not that much fun. But, one way to spice up the chore is to challenge yourself and your kids to make the lunch as waste-free as possible.
In one year an average size school will create 10 tons of trash just from lunches. Here are a few hints to reduce your lunch waste:
Check out this mom’s blog and her ideas for a waste-free lunch!
(We at g2g Outside realize that today’s post has nothing to do with outdoor play, but we thought that this green message was a good one to talk about at the start of the school year. The more we consider our environment the better it will be for our children when they are grown and packing their kids’ lunches. Now, go outside and play a good ol’ game of freeze tag with your kiddos!)
August 1, 2011
We are fishing this week at the Great Plains Nature Center , Wednesday from 6:30-8pm.
The Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks will be our fishing guides. Come and use their cane poles. They’ll also provide the worms. This is a great fishing experience for kids that love to fish, and those who have never fished before.
For directions to the Great Plains Nature Center click here. It is a gorgeous place to fish, hike and explore. Don’t forget your tennis or other sturdy shoes. 
July 5, 2011
Have you ever been to the Sedgwick County Fair? If you haven’t or it’s been a long time, this is the year to get back out the Cheney, KS to see what you’re missing!
g2g Outside is putting on a County Fair Scavenger Hunt! The hunt goes from 6p-8p on Thursday, July 7, 2011. Our table will be just north of the softball diamond in front of the 4-H Exhibit Hall. All kids who complete the hunt will recieve one FREE Sno-Cone! This is a great way to see all the fun animals, games, attractions and events going on at Your County Fair!
The Parade is also Thursday evening starting at 7pm. So come early for the hunt, and stay for the festivities. There is something fun going on every day of the Fair so check out the schedule here.
June 27, 2011
Pictures remind us of what has happened - where we’ve been, who we’ve been there with and what we went through. One of my favorite pictures of all time is one of my brother, my mom and I sitting on our front porch swing laughing our heads off. No one is looking at the camera, no one is smiling “nicely”, and it’s in an 14×18 frame hanging in my office at home.
Pictures tell a great story. So you’re job today is to tell YOUR story. You don’t need to submit your photos to us – this isn’t a competition of any kind. It’s simply for you, for your family and for the generations to come to enjoy these memories.
Here’s how you do it. Pick up a camera (digital is my personal favorite because you can take as many as you want without the fear of “will they turn out?” or “am I wasting too much film”?), gather together your family or your neighborhood buddies and find a spot that is really meaningful to you. My favorite place at home is our back patio. My husband and I spend almost every night out there – so when we take pictures at home, I almost always take them out there!
Some basic photography principles:
-Consider the angle of the sun (if you are taking your photo outdoors). If you don’t have lots of photo equipment, it’s best to take your photos in shade or in shadow. I like to take pictures with the sun behind me (so it’s on the front side of the person). Even if they have a little bit of squinty eye syndrome, it’s better than a dark face and a bright background!
-Frame your photo into thirds. If you are taking a landscape photo, frame it into three sections so that the person’s face is off to one side, the center or the other side. Some of the most interesting photos are where the person is off to one side and you are able to capture some of the background. If you are taking a portrait photo (“up and down”)- same thing. three sections. Either put the person’s face at the top of the frame, near the center or towards the bottom. The only time you would want to put the person towards the bottom of the frame would be to capture a beautiful sky or a tall building behinds. Otherwise, the person’s face always goes at the top of the frame (literally only a small sliver of landscape above their head).
-Distance from the object. If you want to take photos of your vegetable or flower garden at home, or bugs in your backyard take them up CLOSE. Use the “Macro” setting on your camera if you have one and don’t be afraid to get too close with objects. With people – you can decide! I like to take pictures of babies up close (they are so cuddly and cozy!) and like to take pictures of large groups of people a little further back.
-Time of day. The best time of day for photos is early in the morning (dawn) or right before the sun sets (dusk). The color from the sun is the richest, the opportunity for blasting sun in the eyes is minimal and you can get some really cool shadows! (Plus – it’s not as hot this time of day either!)
Phew. That should do it! Some great places to take photos in your neighborhood might be – your backyard, front porch swing, tree house, flower garden, veggie garden, big tree, swingset, pickett fence, and many more! GO EXPLORE! Here are a few of my pictures 
(Same baby, same area of the house, but the light in the upper picture is coming straight forward on the baby, and at the bottom the light is coming in from the side creating a more “dramatic” lighting photo).
