We live on a farm, so it was easy to study a whole range of mammals for our weekly Outdoor Hour Challenge…
horses, sheep, lambs, cats, dogs, mice, and a heavily pregnant cow!
I encouraged the kids to sketch and/or paint the animals of their choice, and took our “What to Draw and How to Draw” sketch notes by E.G. Lutz along, but when her pictures did not turn out as she wanted, Miss.L10 became discouraged .
I gave her the camera and asked her to take several photos of the animals.
She could simply print out the photos she liked and write her observations, or use the photos to make more realistic sketches.
I enjoyed sketching and painting several of our farm animals ~
I subtly read selections from Anna Botsford Comstock’s “Handbook of Nature Study” and we discussed the cow in quite a lot of detail. We loved the description of “illuminated with gentle eyes” because we all think our cow’s eyes are mesmerizing!
Despite our genuine hands-on work with our gorgeous Jersey milk cows, Anna’s scientific information about milk production was really interesting and her detailed descriptions of the different cow breeds made us examine our Milly with new eyes. Her bony hips and slightly concave spine and dainty legs are characteristic of her breed. We smiled at the description of her “fly brush” tail as we have all had a swipe across the head at some time while milking!
I hope to read a little more about horses and sheep as we spend more time this week completing our mammal studies.
What have you enjoyed in this month’s OHC?
Blessings,
Practical Pages 
Fabulous journal pages. Although I used to like to draw more, I feel like I don’t have time. My son and I take pictures instead and I like the combination of photos and hand written/drawn items on our pages.
Given your description of Milly’s condition, I am sure she can’t wait to calf either!
Sarah
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@Sarah, your photos and nature posts are incredible! What a rich record ofyour outdoor explorations! I throughly enjoyed browsing through your blog.
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What beautiful nature journal pages Nadene.
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I loved seeing your entries and reading about your mammal study. I would love to taste the “creamy milk” from your cow. Thanks Nadene for keeping us all inspired. 🙂
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@Barb,thanks for your encouragement! We just can’t wait for Milly to calf as we have had months and months of “artificial” shop-bought milk. Real, raw milk is so nutritious, delicious and full of cream. We make our own butter, yoghurt and cheese too, and hope to be back in our home-dairy production soon.
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These journal pages are inspiring….you make me want to get out and do it now!
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@Phyllis, thank you! I have found that when I see other people’s sketch books, my fingers itch to get started too!
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You daughter’s pages are lovely! My daughter gets frustrated with her drawings too. I’ll have to give your idea a try.
So far this month, we have managed….well, nothing, for OHC. We have spent a lot fo ftime outside looking for signs of hibernation, though.
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@Eddie, these are my nature journal sketches. My daughter was unhappy with hers and I didn’t publish her pages, but thank you for your compliment! [smiles]
Time outside is the real objective, isn’t it? I have often felt that the need to post/ publish/ or record our nature study sometimes inhibits the innocent delight of our time outdoors.
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