From the moment my little girl was born, I just wanted to show her the world around us. I am well aware that without getting the next generation interested in nature and teaching them how to look after it, there may not be much left to see in the future.
Wanting to get Poppy interested in wildlife and nature from a young age, I racked my brains to think of ways to grab her attention and funnily enough it was her who gave me my first idea. One morning just after she turned 7 months, we were sat having breakfast and in her usual fashion, piece after piece of toast was tossed on to the floor. Wanting not to waste this food it went out into the garden on to lawn and bird table alike to cater of all potential visitors. I turned her highchair facing the patio doors to keep her entertained with the brightly coloured windmills spinning in the garden and I started to clear up. Within a few minutes I heard giggles and squeals of excitement coming from my little one, looking over her arms was waving around as the noises grew louder. Looking out the window, two wood pigeons had landed and started to eat the scraps. Going over and sitting her on my knee we both looked out as more and more birds descended.
Poppy is 10 months now and every day she sits eagerly waiting to see who will visit. Whoever is sat with her- whether it is me, her Mum or her Gran, we all explain who is visiting and point out each bird as it lands. I am lucky enough to get a wide array of birds in my garden, including blue tits, blackbirds, wood pigeons and robins, which means Poppy has a lot to learn. At the minute they are all simply 'dickie birds' to her, which she lets out energetic tweets when she sees them.
Moving on from this great start, I will be introducing more activities to her to show her how important nature is. Including taking part in this month’s Big Garden Birdwatch as a family and hopefully adding to our ever growing list of birds to grace our garden. We might even make our own feeders and get stuck in.
This weekend, Fairburn Ings are holding their annual bird feeder workshop for the little ones to get their hands mucky and spark curiosity in garden wildlife. Pop in 11am-3pm to make yours - £2 http://ww2.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/events-dates-and-inspiration/events/details.aspx?id=tcm:9-448423