This Fall Bring the Outdoors Indoors With Your Kids

Fall is here, and for many of us, it means more time spent indoors. This can especially be challenging for dads and moms with children who enjoy the freedom and space of summer days spent in parks, going on walks, and enjoying the back yard. The sounds and smells of the outdoors are soothing and life-giving, not to mention offering many new things for children to discover and explore.

During the cold fall and winter months, elements of the outdoors can be brought inside and worked into your decorating aesthetic to create beautiful conversation starters within your décor and provide some of the elements of discovery and distraction your children need. Indoor water features, rock collections, plants, and herb gardens are just a few ways to bring the outside in – and include your kids in the process.

Indoor water features can be made in a variety of sizes and with different elements. They can have more of a waterfall style or a soothing cascading effect that will draw the interest of any child as well as adding focal interest points to any space, and relaxing sounds and smells. Most indoor water features have rocks at the bottom, which look beautiful and shiny when wet. For a good fall activity, take your child rock hunting to find the prettiest, shiniest, most sparkly rocks to place at the bottom of the water feature and spend some time together to place the rocks in a beautiful pattern at the bottom of the feature. Your child will enjoy telling guests about your rock picking adventure, as well as contributing to the beauty of the home you share.

You can also add rock collection elements to other spaces in your home. Wooden bowls filled with rocks, or a few interestingly shaped or colored rocks look lovely sitting grouped together or alone on a coffee table or shelf. As a fun indoor project, pull out some paint colors that match your home décor, and let your kids paint the rocks in those colors.

Plants and herb gardens are great ways to teach kids about responsibility, control, and consequences, and they also add life and color to a home. Teach kids about photosynthesis, sunlight, and water and that it takes regular maintenance to nurture a living thing. Herb gardens add an extra component of education, because kids can also learn about nutrition and how plants flavor our foods and nourish our bodies.

Fall and winter can be just as adventurous and fun as summer by bringing outdoor elements indoors.

Paige One looks forward to writing about inspirational ideas on how to bring outdoor elements indoors. Add indoor water features, rock collection elements and more to the interiors in your home and appreciate charming spaces.