Fiddleheads Service at Connelly Creek 4-28-17

It was a warm surprise to have the sun shining down on us all afternoon this past Friday as the Fiddleheads worked hard to save the banks of Connelly Creek from invasive reed canary grass and blackberries. We enjoyed a collaborative afternoon of service, games, and new connections as the girls worked alongside the Spotted Owls and two BEC groups. Some highlights from our day together included:

• Gathering for a check-in and snacks in the parking lot before heading to Connelly Creek for a brief opening circle before getting to work.

• Using lopers, shovels, and our own woman power to pull out invasive blackberry, stomp down reed canary grass, set up fencing around planted areas, and mulch a new designated site for native plantings. 

• Connecting with the Spotted Owls and BEC groups through teamwork, collaborative stewardship, and games!

The Fiddleheads set a great example of how to Walk Your Talk as they worked hard right up until the end of the day.  Morale remained high at the work site- A LOT of silly songs were sung and hilarious plant-related jokes were told.  We ended our day with a giant collaborative closing circle with the Spotted Owls during which many thanks were given for each other and opportunities to serve the beautiful place we live in.  Check out more photos from day here!

Mottos especially alive today:

We're All Teachers

Walk Your Talk

Safety First

All Things Are Connected

Connect and Protect

Our Cups Overflow

Widen the Circle

Attitude of Gratitude

Many Hands Make Light Work

Baking for Bellingham Community Meals 3-4-17

The Fiddleheads reunited this past Saturday for a unique outing: we spent much of a blustery afternoon inside, aprons donned, to bake up a storm for Bellingham Community Meals. BCM is a group of volunteers that comes together once a month to prepare and serve a warm meal free to the community. The only thing that isn't prepared onsite is… DESSERT! This is where we put our energy, and the girls collaboratively counted, measured, stirred, whipped, beat, melted, poured…and cleaned! 

After an introduction to our project, we explored questions like: Whose "cups" are we filling today with this project? What other needs are we meeting by helping with this community meal? What impact do acts of kindness and service have on our community? How else can we carry out acts of kindness and "fill cups" beyond this project? The girls responded with thoughtfulness and genuine compassion. We all agreed that filling others’ cups makes our cups more full. Today our goal was to help people meet the basic need of food. But going a step beyond this, the girls discussed how community meals meet other basic needs as well, like love, community, and connection.

The girls split into three groups, with determination to stir lots of love into the batter along with the other ingredients. The kitchen was a-flurry with egg cracking, whirling beaters and recipe checking. We remembered to go one step at a time, implementing our motto, “Think It Through Before You Do.” Soon our treats were baking and our mouths were watering, and we began a serious Leave No Trace kitchen clean-up.

After our hard work we ate lunch, played some indoor games, and then geared up and headed out for a mini-exploration of the grounds outside of the Cordata Co-op. We stopped for a nice surprise downstairs- a local band playing irish folk music to spread St. Patricks Day spirit! After dancing and listening to the music for a while. we headed outside for some fresh air! We explored, got a little muddy, and played games in a park just beyond the Co-op parking lot as we waited for our baked treats to cool. Our time outside was quick, yet very refreshing, and our treats were ready to bag by the time we made it back indoors. 

We enjoyed a final Attitude of Gratitude in our closing circle, expressing thanks for our group, for filling up our "cups" even more, and for the humans who will enjoy our baked treats. 





Our words of the day? "Baking, Fun, Chocolate, Music!"

Mottos especially in use today: Our Cups Overflow, Leave No Trace, Everybody Helps, All Things Are Connected, Widen Our Circle

Check out our photo album of the day here!

Art in Nature Day at Whatcom Falls Park 2-11-17

The Fiddleheads gathered again for the second half of an awesome 2016-17 season on a brisk and busy day at Whatcom Falls Park! Amongst the chaos of a running race, our Fiddleheads found each other slowly but surely. Once we were all together, off on our adventure we went!

We began our day with an Opening Circle. As we had a new Explorer joining our group (welcome Shea!), we all explained what it was like to be a Fiddlehead. We talked a lot about the Mottos that guide our time in Explorers Club. See if your Fiddlehead can name a few! Our group also weighed in on our comfort of art. The girls acknowledged that the day wasn't about being "good" or "bad" at art, but about exploring our creativity! It was encouraging to watch the Fiddleheads stick to this all day, never belittling their or anothers' work, and always finding ways to support others in their journeys.

Speaking of journeys, we then headed out on ours! It was fish feeding time at the hatchery at Whatcom Falls Park, and the generous Parks workers allowed for us to spend some time feeding the rainbow trout. How fun to watch the fish swim and squirm at feeding time, knowing exactly where to go for their morsels of breakfast!

From there, we found an incredibly diverse and magical set of rocks that the Fiddleheads were immediately ready to climb. We completed an S.T.O.P Risk Assessment to ensure that we would be safe, and proceeded to spend a signficant amount of time scampering up and sliding down this mini rock face. The Fiddleheads lent helping hands, pushes, boots, and pulls to get each girl up the rock, which provided them with a sense of accomplishment. Sometimes on cold days, moving your body is just what you need, and it was clear that helped keep our bodies and hearts warm and happy!

We celebrated our climbing success with a snack, and shared another decision-making circle about what to do and where to go next! As the Fiddleheads will likely let you know, decision-making in a group of 14 is HARD! We're learning how to hear everyone's voice, how to Collaborate and Compromise, and how to do this as efficiently as possible so we can get going and move! Meeting everyone's needs is always a challenge, but I was proud to see Fiddleheads asking regularly if people were in agreement, if there were any dissenting thoughts, and taking this feedback gracefully. I am excited to see how the problem solving skills of these girls develops in the months and years to come!

From this decision circle, we moved to do some art and play some games. We "caterpillar walked" our way into a nice thicket of trees and set up a little basecamp where we would stay for the rest of the day. We started our time in the thicket with an art activity called "Zoom, Zoom, Zoom!", where we focused on perspective drawing. The girls chose to draw a larger scape and drew all that they could, then they zoomed in on maybe on tree in the scene, then zoomed in again and drew a close up detail of the bark and lichen on that same tree. It was a great exercise in understanding the scope of our observation skills in addition to practice in drawing in a variety of ways. Some chose to spend this quiet time drawing their own sketches, which also provided many girls with the space to just CREATE!

We finished our day with a few rousing games that got us moving and kept us warm. Some girls chose to keep sketching, and others took to using natural materials and built fairy and bug homes on the forest floor. We shared a Peaceful Place surrounded by the faint whoooossshhhh of Whatcom Creek, and closed our day with a Circle of Thanks. We felt gratitude for the practice of art, for water, for each other, and for the park that we called home for the day! Another fantastic adventure with the Fiddleheads!

Our Words of the Day? : "Art, friends, and resources at Whatcom Falls Park!"

To view a slideshow of our day, click here!

Exploration at Hoag's Pond 11-20-16

Hello friends!  What a fun and sweet day we had on Sunday exploring around Hoag's Pond.

Our original destination was the 100 acre wood but Laura and I decided to head to Hoag's Pond as the day was somewhat windy.  It proved to be a nice compromise.  The girls enjoyed a day of exploring, playing games, and gift making.

After a check in, we hiked the short distance to the pond.  We began our time together settling in to a little grassy area near the pond, eating a snack and chatting about how we would like to spend the day.

The girls decided they first needed some game playing so a few rounds of Poison Dart Frog ensued.

Our attention was drawn to the pond as, with each gust of wind, a shimmer of moving water would dance across the pond like ballerinas. This fascinated us all for about 20 minutes....  and inspired a walk around the pond.  We suggested the walk be in silence so that we could engage our senses, and upon return we would use our journals to record our discoveries.   

Wow, the things we all noticed: duck boxes and bird calls, tiny bridges and mushrooms, a decaying dock, a single apple hanging from a tree, rose hips, and that shimmering wind across the water.  They all honored the silence as they walked.  When we returned to our little spot the girls spent some time with their journals drawing and writing about their discoveries.  

A suggestion had been made early in the day to engage in secret admirer.  Everyone picks a name out of a hat and then spends the day making nature art or gifts of some kind and secretly passing them along to their chosen person.  This seems to be a particularly engaging activity for this age group and some of the creations are simply amazing.

After some time it was necessary to eat more food and play more games!  Lunch is also a favorite with ALL age groups.  We had a stove as well to heat water so everyone could enjoy a bit of hot cocoa.  And then a few rounds of Spider's Web.

We had a good lengthy peaceful place before all gathering again and packing up to head back to the pick up spot.  Before meeting you all again we shared our gratitude and our words of the day.  One of the gals invited us all to laugh as long as possible so we decided to laugh as we walked the last bit of trail.  Laughing is contagious..and good for belly and soul.  

Thanks for your commitment to this group.  

To view the full album of the day, click here. 

Fiddleheads go Exploring: North Lake Whatcom 8.28.16

Our first outing for the fall season 2016 took us to North Lake Whatcom. We had a sweet re-entry day of exploring, re-connecting, swimming in the lake, experiencing rain, and a marathon fort building session. Essentially, everything we would want in a GEC outing!

We have a few new members to the Fiddleheads this season.  So happy to welcome Ruby, Solveig and Payton.   Our gals widened their circle to help these three feel welcome and celebrated.

As the weather begins to shift and settle into fall, we are all reminded of the constant changes in our lives.  We talked a bit about these transitions: from summer back to school, entering a new grade, and some other transitions in our lives....and how nature shows us the way.  " Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished" ( Lao Tzu ).   Looking around the forest, we talked about the changing colors in the leaves,  and how the weather feels different.

This would not deter a trip to the shores of Lake Whatcom however, and a quick dip.  We made the most of a break in the clouds.  The water was still warm enough and most everyone enjoyed an exhilarating few moments.

And then the rain began to fall and we packed up for the cover of the forest.  Making decisions in GEC involves some direction on our part, but mostly it is a chance for the girls to Collaborate and Compromise.  The girls decided we needed to move to stay warm, and that a fort might protect us if the rain increased.  We spent a few minutes at the display board reading about the history of the lake and how many changes have taken place over the years.  Then we headed up a secondary trail to search for a good fort building spot.

The rest of the day was a fabulous collaboration of collecting, delivering, building, and decorating. Our shelter would eventually have a mossy carpeted floor, a mailbox, vents in the roof, chimes made of cubicle butt rot, and a sweet welcome mat.  Outside our shelter was a significantly smaller shelter constructed lovingly for any local fairies.  It too was a mossy wonder and had small entrances on multiple sides.   Every girl ( including Rebecca and Laura ) was engaged in this project!  So fun watching this process.

We closed our time together in a circle and shared our attitude of gratitude.  Everyone seemed so uplifted by this day.  We appreciate how many of you went back down the trail to check out the shelter.

Look at more photos here:  https://goo.gl/photos/Yiu8AThQ8BvyjcwG9

Words of the day: forts, shop, building, swimming, moss

See you next time;  Saturday, September 17th for International Coastal Cleanup service day.

Exploration at Teddy Bear Cove: 6.5.2016

What a fabulous day to finish our spring season!  We had a bright sunny day to explore the wonders of Teddy Bear Cove; and, for most of the day, the north beach to ourselves.  Before heading down the trail to the water we talked about a few of our EC mottos that would be important for the day.  Safety First ( and using S.T.O.P. ) was the first to be discussed. Most of the girls have been to Teddy Bear Cove and know about the train tracks, the steep trail, and the cliffs between the two beaches.  We also discussed the possible dangers of trash; being aware of glass on the ground and always wearing shoes, and not picking up any trash that we are unsure about.  Our other motto that we talked about, and that would be embodied throughout the day, was Stretch your edge.  More on that later!

The Fiddleheads and one guest Salish Seal excitedly hurried down the trail.  We checked our knowledge of some of the predominant trees and plants along the way.  The girls pointed out Douglas Firs and Red Cedars.  Almost immediately an opportunity arose to take a shortcut; a temptation for everyone as they were so excited.  We had a good discussion about why social trails are harmful, and LNT principles.

Once we were safely across the  train tracks it was time to decide where we wanted to explore.  This practice of Collaborate and Compromise  can be tricky for many adults and watching eight year olds grapple with this can be inspiring.  There is often the desire to vote, or simply to speak the loudest in hopes or getting your way.  As mentors, Laura and I gave all the information we could to help with this decision.  What was quite interesting though was that even with this information the girls chose the southern side...and after spending ten minutes there, changed their collective minds! They needed the firsthand experience of it being much hotter, due to the fact that the wind was coming from the north and essentially blocked by the bluff.

So off to the north side; and a simply amazing day of exploring.  It was just one of those days where everyone was connected to someone else, or happy exploring in her own way;  everyone coming back together when another explorer found something which excited her, giggles and screeching.

There was lots of life on this day: hermit crabs of all sizes, Dungeness crabs of all sizes...and the crab whisperer in photo above... various sea anemones, clams spouting, beautiful fish, sea stars, and a lovely sea cucumber.  One explorer even got to witness a barnacle feeding as she sat quietly during peaceful place.

We finished our day with the web of life activity; which embodies our motto All things are connected.  The girls shared something they have felt especially connected to over the course of the season.  We passed around a ball of yarn and physically connected to each other.  The end result is a web of connection.  The girls talked about how these different connections affect each other, and us! We also discussed how this web of life can be harmed by certain practices, and uplifted by others.  

What a wonderful season together.  I invite you to spend a few minutes connecting with your daughter about our outings together and her personal highlights.  Please see the link below to view more photos.  We all at Wild Whatcom thank you for allowing us to be a part of your child's education.

A special shout out to Willow DuBow for your presence and laughter and connection with this group on Sunday.

Words of the day:  Beach, crabs....crabs...crabs...

For the full album of the day, click here.

Service along Whatcom Creek: 4-24-16

The Fiddleheads jumped into high gear this past Sunday for their second outing of the week! The girls showed impressive collaboration, enthusiasm, and Owl Eye vision while cleaning up the litter along Whatcom Creek Trail.

We gathered in front of the totem pole for Opening Circle and shared how each of us felt connected to something in the totem pole that day (the carved eagle, the colors, the shapes, the people who created it). Rebecca then led a round of "on the bus", a fun game that showed the diversity of interests within our group. We then discussed the plan for the day and talked about the importance of the three R's- Reduce, Reuse, Recycle! Although recycling is better than throwing everything in a landfill, the reality is that much of our waste as humans ends up there anyways if it's not properly sorted. How can we minimize our trash and reduce/reuse? How can we teach others to practice this in their daily lives?  

Before setting off to pick up litter, we revisited the EC service philosophy explained at our first service project: Our Cups Overflow. To demonstrate this motto, girls called out different basic needs, such as water, food and shelter, while I poured a splash of water into a cup for each basic need. When all of our basic needs were accounted for, I asked the girls to share some things we have in our lives that we don’t necessarily need. The list grew quickly, overflowing the cup as girls shouted out everything from toys, candy, sports, and books to vacation, pets, and electronics. We witnessed just how much our cups overflow, leaving room for us to give back. We discussed how today we would be taking some of our own overflowing cups and pouring them into the cups of Whatcom Creek, the City of Bellingham, and all the animals, plants, and people who enjoy or live in the beautiful area.  

Our amazing EMA, Claire, helped review the Explorers Club mottos “You See It, You Own It” and “Leave No Trace” with the group. We enthusiastically agreed that we would practice these mottos as litter detectives & earth-keepers all day long. As we worked, we talked about how these things get left behind, and how this effects the water, the plants, the animals, and the other people that use this land. What would happen if no one picked this trash up? Where does it all end up after we gather it? Much of it in a landfill. Reduce and Reuse! 

We took a break for lunch after a morning of hard work and trash-hauling. The girls worked on their group collaboration skills during a game of "where's my egg?", transforming into weasels attempting to steal a blue egg from the robins nest without being caught in the action. After some fun play and running around, it was back to work for the litter detectives!

Girls ducked and climbed through the underbrush along the path to pick out things that didn’t belong. These girls worked with exuberance and passion to find and carry heavy and cumbersome trash out of the woods. They cooperated beautifully and consistently with each other to reach difficult-to-get-to items and to carry items together. The girls helped collect a truck-full of trash for the City of Bellingham to haul away!

We ended our day with a meaningful closing circle, offering acknowledgements and gratitude to each other, this place, the plants, animals, and our overflowing cups. 

Motto's especially alive today: Walk your Talk, You See it, You Own it! Leave No Trace, Our Cups Overflow, Collaborate and Compromise, Connect to Protect. 

Words of the Day: Litter scavenger hunt and overflowing cups!

For our full album of the day, click here.