The Snow Came At Last

The Snow Came At Last

With two recent posts displaying warm weather attire, you might be thinking that I am in denial about my mid Winter existence. I have to say though, this is just not (entirely) the case. I certainly look forward to warmer weather days – oh yes I do, and my mind is bubbling with images of […]

South Mountain Reservation

South Mountain Reservation

On our Wednesday Hike this week (that was actually on Tuesday because of predicted rain) we went to the South Mountain Preservation. This is a little further away than the hikes we have been doing and involved a 20 minute drive from Montclair to get there. As usual we left straight after school pick up, […]

Bonsal Wildlife Preserve

Bonsal Wildlife Preserve

On our Wednesday Hike this past week we went to the Alonzo Bonsal Wildlife Preserve. Nina suggested it as a fun spot because it has a stream and a bridge. It was my location choice this week and so I mentioned it to Anneliese. Anneliese has been there before and said it was one of […]

Wednesday Hikes

Wednesday Hikes

On Maya’s First week of school Elle and I made friends in the playground with a lovely lady and her 2 year old daughter. As it turned out, she also had another daughter in Kindergarten with Maya. The fact that we each had two daughters the same ages is a good recipe for a friendship…that […]

Muddy Feet

Muddy Feet

So off we went to the woods to look for a stick/branch for the leaf mobile. This agenda lasted about two steps into the Reservation – that was until I trod in a big mud slick. From the recent torrential rains there was a small constant flow of water down the mountain, and while it […]

More Mushrooms

More Mushrooms

I have become a little fanatical about finding mushrooms – and with good reason, they are so beautiful. After my first post about Moss & Mushrooms, I have continued to photograph my fungi friends in all their glory. I have two great mushroom spotters to help me find them on the forest floor (or at […]

Two Little Trail Blazers

Two Little Trail Blazers

It has always been a dream of mine that I would hike with my Family, that my Children would grow up hiking. Since moving to Montclair, the Girls have relished walking in the woods. Daily they have said to me “Mummy can we go for a hike today?”. I have noticed that in the 10 […]

Moss & Mushrooms

Moss & Mushrooms

A few days of rain and some summer time warmth and the moss and mushrooms are alive and flourishing. Popping up all over our yard, and hidden in the woods, we have discovered an eclectic array of toadstools, fungi, mushrooms and moss. Some of which look like they belong in the pages of a fairy […]

The Woods - Thursday

The Woods – Thursday

On Thursday morning the Girls asked to go to the woods again. The deer sighting of Tuesday was still fresh with them and they wanted to explore the woods further. I love a walk in the forest and on a hot day it is such a cool spot. We had bright sunshine instead of the […]

The Woods - Tuesday

The Woods – Tuesday

A slight walk uphill one and a half blocks from our home, we come to a shaded cul-de-sac. At the end of the cul-de-sac is the beginning of the woods. The road leads into a small grassy clearing and then the combination of domestics and native brush gives way to solid old wood growth. On […]

Mills Reservation & Lenape Trail

Mills Reservation & Lenape Trail

This weekend we enjoyed some restorative time in the woods. Having not been in open endless woods for a while, it was a great reward. We had to drive to Montclair on Friday to enroll Maya in school (yes – we are moving soon!) as she will start Kindergarten in the Fall. I am trying […]