Mill Street Park Natural Playscape

We have been eyeing a new park just as you go over the overpass into Goshen on SR 15 for the last couple of months. I heard about it from a naturalist with Elkhart County Parks and her husband. It looks like they are still adding finishing touches; however, nothing was there asking us to not be there. The parking lot was open and it looked open for business.

I'm excited about this park! It's not too far from my grandparents' house, so we can stop by when we go visit. It seems to be using the Nature Explore type concept, with separate areas for different types of activities. At the entrance is a water area, called Bubbling Rocks. My 5-year-old is starting to read and sounded it all out. There are lots of rocks, obviously, and a water pump with wooden troughs for the water to flow. The water is turned off right now, yet this will be a fun place to experiment with water this summer.

 

El bosque encantado

I had an extra dollar, a little time, desire to do a little Spanish refresher, and curiosity about Merry Lea's programs, though the program was hosted at Shanklin Park. El bosque encantado (The Enchanted Forest) was a little closer to home and on the way back, I could stop by my grandparent's house. I wish it were a little lighter out as my grandfather said the fall colors are gorgeous right now. I went to the Spanish speaking version of the program, though they have English speaking versions of The Enchanted Forest down at Merry Lea next weekend.

Hero Adventure

What a fun evening! Another mom posted on our moms group page about a mother/son activity yesterday called Hero Adventure at Grace Community Church in Goshen. We used to live near Indianapolis and there were yearly Touch a Truck (hint, hint, this would be a super cool activity for an organization to coordinate!) events that brought in big equipment, race cars, helicopters, and anything else with wheels for the children to climb on, look at, push buttons, and more. I haven't heard of an event like this in the area until I read about Hero Adventure. It is designed as a special evening for mothers and their sons (ages 2-11). Let me tell you, it was full of boy power!

As we entered, the boys received lollipops and met a local K-9. The boys enjoyed seeing the dog and the partner showed us his trick of having the dog look at the camera. The dog loves the toy ball. If the trainer puts the ball over the photographer's head, the dog will look at the camera. Makes for a good picture!

Project Learning Tree

Saturday, I went to a Project Learning Tree workshop at Rieth Interpretive Center in Goshen. It was a busy day, but I would have loved to spend more time on the topic and with the people attending. Thankfully, I do have the curriculum after attending and know how to find many of the people there. One lady who attended is an artist--I loved hearing her thoughts and applications on how to use different art applications to tie into nature.

Project Learning Tree is a multidiscipline curriculum that uses the forest as a springboard to help students understand environment, increase critical thinking and ability to make decisions, and to empower taking action in communities. I actually took this training about 13 years ago while living in Japan, but knew a refresher course, updated curriculum, and connecting with others in the area about local knowledge of trees would be beneficial. Plus, it was FREE! Elkhart County Soil and Water District Conservation underwrote the training for those living or working in Elkhart County. Still, it's only $20, so is an inexpensive way to learn about trees and get professional development credits. The instructors were Nancy Brown and Eric Kurtz from SWCD, as well as Aaron Kingsley, the Goshen city forester who works out of Rieth Interpretive Center.

We started by decorating tree cookies for name tags.

Goshen First Fridays: Rain Barrel Auction!

Friday night we went to Goshen First Fridays! When the weather is nice, there are lots of people there. The city, downtown businesses, and other community groups work hard to make this a great night out.

So, nature, you ask?
There were plenty of natural chalk drawings by children. I saw a few of the ever popular sun. I like to draw this one too!

Strawberry Picking

This morning we made it out for the first day of the Strawberry Upick season at Yoder's in Goshen! We have not been here before. The only address we could find was 15th Street in Goshen. I still don't have a better address, but we hashed out a few more directions in our Elkhart Moms and Tots group. Go south on State Road 15 though Goshen, past the library and South Side Soda Shop until you find College Avenue on the left. Turn left. Look for 15th Street on the right (several blocks down the road). Yoder's is on the right, across the street from Greencroft.

Congdon Park and a Little Treasure Hunt

The last day of school . . . the cousins were sleeping over and we wanted to go do something! The kids mostly wanted to go to Shanklin Park in Goshen, which is a fun fortress type park. We went and had a grand time running and playing. The cottonwood seeds were swirling all around! While we were just "at the park" it was a great time to explore seed dispersal too.

Watershed Treasure Hunt! #1

I'm so excited about this Treasure Hunt, sponsored by Greater Elkhart County Stormwater Partnership. There are 50 signs placed in various places along the watershed in Elkhart County. To be eligible for the prizes, we have to collect the letters and fill in the puzzle. My 4-year-old understood the letter concept, but not what kind of sign. As we started looking for the signs, he found a sign and said, "Look, LETTERS!" He did this for many signs until he started getting used to the type of sign we were trying to find. He is reading very short Bob Books as he is learning to read and doing lots of "letter play", so letters are on his mind! We've used these to start reading with the other boys, too, and had great success as we helped them form the words without reading the books to them. We provide support, but allow them to read the simple books to us. They've all been early readers with them. I found some of our sets at garage sales, too, which is a bonus!

We started with number one with is in the southern part of the county in River Preserve County Park. We're not as familiar with this park (which is HUGE), so weren't quite sure where to start. We'd love more time to explore, but were on a mission, so did a quick walk looking to see what we could find. If you haven't been here before, I suggest finding a map as there are various places to visit along the river. We found one at a kiosk in the park.

First Fridays

Have you been to any of the First Fridays, Second Saturdays, or Third Fridays? Many of the towns nearby have special downtown celebrations. We went to Goshen First Fridays this last week after dropping off dinner for my grandparents and visiting Shanklin Park. There are usually kids activities in the town square.

What's not to love about a free bouncy house? The wait was relatively short.

He liked it, he liked it!

We wandered the streets a bit and found the art alley.

There was someone carving statues with a chainsaw. We spent some time admiring his work.

There was also a person doing glass lampwork, so we watched for a spell.

We checked out the pottery.

And more of the artwork up close and in detail. Many pieces included natural or recycled elements.

Natural stone benches are always great!

There were some "green" components to this First Friday. Bags were being given away with some purchases. There was even a 5K and dance performances to get us moving or at least thinking about it. Other First Fridays have science, nature, or conservation themes from time to time. Each month there is something new! We enjoy getting out, seeing friends and family, tasting treats, and exploring the streets and stores!

Goshen is a quaint town. I was born here many moons ago and remember Olympia Candy Company, the 4-H Fairgrounds, The Chief (rumor has it opening again on April 17th!) and my grandparents' house quite fondly. Since then, I've enjoyed Ten Thousand Villages, Better World Books, Maple City Market, and many of the other shops and restaurants along Main Street. 

Shanklin Park

I was trying to convince the boys to go to the zoo on Friday, but they weren't that into it. They just wanted to go to the cool playground near it. It's a bit of a drive for us, so we compromised with the castle like playground down at Shanklin Park in Goshen, as we were going to be in the area later in the day.

My kids talk about this playground a lot--it's made mostly of wood and has a great story.

The playground is a small part of the complex. There are many fields to play sports. People were out practicing.

There are also shelters available for use and/or rent. There is a pool (fee) that is open in warmer months.

Some  trees were just beginning to open their blossoms. Finally starting to feel like spring!

The park is right by the Millrace Canal. Birds were singing and plentiful. It was interesting to see the exposed roots and adaptations of the trees to grow in this area.

Bikers and joggers zoomed by! I used the stroller just fine on these trails. I don't mind the backpack carrier, but sometimes it's nice to push!

Goshen Parks houses their maintenance equipment and such here. It was nice to see canoes--looking forward to paddling this summer! These are available for rent. There is a launch site on the river, too.

There is an open area around the power lines, complete with bird boxes.

I headed back along the trial by the river and saw lots of evidence of animals, such as holes.

Nests.

Logs chewed by beavers.

There was a fair amount of beaver activity in the area. People were also fishing, biking, and hiking.

What a pleasant walk! It was a warmer day outside, so a jacket was perfect. Had to store the heavier coats in the stroller. They came in handy later in the evening, though.

No jumping, just in case you were tempted. The trail continued over the river to an open section with smaller trees. 

We made our way back to the playground, where everyone was still playing.

Tommy's Kids Castle has a great story, as it was a community driven response to a downed police officer. Grief was turned into helping the community.

Shanklin Park is a great place to visit. There is a large variety of things to do there, so repeat visits would be encouraged. Also, it's easy to dovetail play, nature study, and recreational activities at a site like this. There are many geocaches in the area and it's just right across from Rieth Interpretive Center! Lots of possibilities!

Rieth Interpretive Center

Thursday I stopped by the Rieth Interpretive Center on my way through Goshen. Current hours for the public are 10-3 Tuesday-Thursday. It's open to explore, use the wildlife viewing window, etc.

It already looks like Spring is getting closer.

My son pointed this "spiky" shrub out to me. I like that he is using vocabulary, noticing details in plants, and wants to share it with me.

Once inside, Aaron, the local forester, talked to me a bit about the center, mentioning some of the unique characteristics of the land. One section is slowly being turned over to prairie in front of the center.

There is a small ox bow with varying levels of water, a butterfly garden, a nature area, and a nearby geocache even. There are videos of animals in Elkhart county playing on the television sets. I was mesmerized by the story of a man who wanted to capture nearby animals on video. It's a great resource for the center to have. 

There are several interactive displays on nocturnal animals, fall and winter, etc.

I could read the animals of Indiana's Past exhibit again--so much to learn! It is neat that some animals, such as the white tailed deer and river otter, have successfully been reintroduced.

There are low tables with artifacts, rocks, books, etc. It's a perfect height for a three-year-old.

Many specimens were donated and found a home at the center to help educate others.

These insect displays were from 4-H exhibits! How neat is that. I almost want to bring my older boys in to show them what they can do. We'll be back.

There are a few taxidermy animals on display. And even a few live animals in tanks.

The wildlife viewing area is lovely!

There are at least 18 bird feeders, plus some squirrel feeders. There is a comfortable bench to sit on, reference books, pictures, stuffed animals, etc. The sound is piped in from outside. We saw many birds at once with a good variety of feeder birds. 

He just thought I needed to take his picture on a big rock!

The building has great design and feels newer inside. It's a nice facility. Beachy Classified Forest Trail is nearby. It is 34.5 acres, full of 23 tree species. 

Across the street is Shanklin Park. My kids love the castle like wooden play structure. We plan to return over spring break or this summer. My itinerary will mostly likely start with a hike in the Beach Classified Forest, a visit to the Interpretive Center (bathroom and water break included), a picnic lunch at one of the picnic benches, finding the geocache near the sign, and then heading over to Shanklin Park to play!