Wildflowers: September 9, 2026

It was a rainy Wednesday for Wildflowers, but that didn’t slow the girls down much.

We gathered together in the morning, and one of the girls had brought a surprise from home: a stuffy named Jack and his friend, Froggy Jump. Jack had even written us a lovely letter, complete with some watercolour painting. It was a very sweet way to start the day.

Something we’ve all been noticing lately is just how many wasps are around, especially when we’re trying to eat! So, we spent some time learning about yellowjackets, their life cycle, and why we tend to see so many of them at this time of year.

The girls were especially interested to learn that most of the colony will die as the season changes. Rather than becoming more afraid of the wasps, they immediately responded with empathy. They talked about how sad it was that the wasps were going to die and decided that they aren’t really our enemies, they’re just hungry.

We also talked about what to do when a wasp comes near us: stay calm, avoid swatting at it, and give it space to move along. The girls were quite enthusiastic about the idea of sharing what they had learned with other people who might misunderstand wasps.

Then we packed up and headed down to The Flats.

Everything was beautifully green from the rain, and as we made our way along Fish Sidewalk, we spotted Sharon the Heron perched on a branch.

We also had an up-close encounter with another plant we’ve been getting to know lately: stinging nettle. One Wildflower was stung, so we stopped and took a closer look at the plant so everyone could learn to recognize it.

From there, the girls came up with their own system for helping each other safely navigate the patches of nettle along the path. Whenever nettles were blocking the way, they used their umbrellas to gently push them aside and talked through who would hold what and where everyone should walk. They repeated the process each time we came across another patch, making sure everyone could get through safely, including me with the wagon.

It was one of those small moments where cooperation happens because there is a real problem to solve. Nobody needed an assigned role or a teamwork activity. They simply had somewhere they wanted to go and figured out together how to get there.

Eventually we made it to a spot under the Oxford Street bridge that the girls quickly named Crayfish Island.

They happily settled in and began trying to build a bridge out of rocks across the water. There was lots of experimenting involved as they chose rocks, moved them around, tested where they would sit, and tried to extend their bridge farther out.

Our littlest Wildflower eventually came to sit beside me, and we started singing “Down by the Bay.” Before long, the others were joining in from the water while continuing their bridge building.

One of the girls also found a crayfish, which gave us a chance to take a closer look. Naturally, he needed a name, and Pinchy joined us for the trip back to Heron Tree Estates.

After lunch, the girls repurposed the Buds’ toad habitat in the Tuff Tray into a temporary home for Pinchy. We also settled into some quieter activities. We read stories, and our oldest Wildflower took over reading to the group for a bit while I finally ate my own lunch. There was colouring, Bird Bingo, blocks, and puzzles before we headed out for one last adventure.

We ended the day at the park, where the wet playground equipment immediately became something entirely different.

The girls discovered that their jackets slid very well down the wet equipment, and before long they had created the Slip n Slide Olympics. They invented challenges for one another and took turns attempting them, gleefully sliding their way through the rain.

Then they discovered some chalk that had been left at the playground. Mixed with rainwater, it became a thick paste that they experimented with on the equipment, including leaving some very dramatic handprints behind.

It felt like a fitting end to a rainy Wildflowers day: a little messy, very collaborative, and full of ideas that emerged simply because the weather had changed what was possible.

Thanks for a great day, Wildflowers!