By Richard Louv on April 1st, 2013 Thinking about Newtown. Chased by an unending stampede of 2,000-pound automobiles and 4,000-pound SUVs, we cocoon inside our homes. The assault continues. Unsettling, threatening images charge through the television cable and overwhelm us. Hyper-vigilance trumps mindfulness. Where do we find respite? The poet Wendell Berry offers...

Getting Kids Outdoors, the US Fish & Wildlife Service, Michigan Green Schools, Polly’s Planting and Plucking, and local teachers joined together to explore options for creating a unique outdoor landscape project with students.  Kim Buntin from Polly's Planting and Plucking led a wonderful tour, sharing tips on getting started with schoolyard habitats that promote outdoor...

By Richard Louv on April 30th, 2013 What’s a grandparent to do? Marti Erickson makes a practice of keeping two collapsible chairs in her car trunk. If she’s having a particularly stressful day, she drives to the closest patch of nature, sits on one of those chairs, and is soothed. She always carries two chairs in the trunk of her car. “My oldest grandchild likes...

Shannon Shuptrine, Faculty - Elementery News

• Guided hikes are available Friday, April 26, at Hartwick Pines State Park in Grayling.

• Event includes tree identification clinic, information session and hike through the last old growth forest in the Lower Peninsula.

• Free

• Recreation Passport required for entry.

• www.michigan.gov.

Click here to download flyer. Click here to download brochure.

Mothers, stepmothers, granddaugthers, or big sisters are invited to bring their daughters (ages 7 - 17) for a fun-filled Mother & Daughter Weekend, May 3 - 5, 2013, at Camp Daggett!  Cost is $150 for mother/daughter, plus $50 for each additional girl.  Space is limited, and registration is done on a first come, first served basis.  Participants can expect a weekend of fun...

• “Birding by the Seasons”
• Saturday, April 20
• 10 a.m.-noon
• Spring Lake Park in Petoskey
• Field guides and binoculars available
• All ages welcome.
• Pre-register at (231) 347-0991.
• www.landtrust.org

• Petoskey Children's Nursery Cooperative Preschool Earth Day Park and Beach Clean-Up
• Saturday April 20, 2013
• 9:30 - 11:30 AM
• Generously sponsored by Petoskey Plastics, Michigan Safety Products, Northern Michigan Emergency Physicians, and Latitude 45.
• Meet at the Clock Tower at Petoskey's Bayfront Park at 9:30 AM.

• An Earth Day Event to Remember !
• A Family Multi -Tour Geocache Adventure!
• Saturday, April 20th, 2013
•  Begin the fun @ 12:30 pm in the Program Room at the Petoskey District Library. You will receive your coordinates from us and our partners at the LTBB of Odawa, the Tipp of the Mitt Watershed Council and Emmet County DPW Recycling for a walking tour geocache...