While getting you outdoors with your kids is our main mission, we are also parents and know that’s not always easy or possible. Sometimes weather, work, illness, injuries, lack of daylight, chores or other circumstances keep us from getting outside as much as we want (or at all). In those instances, there are tons of ways you can bring the outdoors in. Today, we have Jessica Jackson here sharing 20 simple ways that you can easily incorporate more nature into your daily life and routine. These tips are great for anyone (even those spending tons of time outside) wanting more nature in their homes and indoor lives.
Getting out can be difficult
This past winter began with the best intentions of spending lots of time outside and doing lots of outdoor exploration. We were excited to bear witness to the changes that happen during the cold season. We love learning about creatures and wintertime habitats as they survive the cold temperatures. Watching the sky colors change, catching snowflakes, and sliding about on frozen paths were all on our winter bucket list. There is so much beauty and wonder in our world during the winter season.
However, as the winter passed, we also began to feel it’s brutality. Record-breaking lows, piles and piles of snow, slippery ice, power outages, school closures, early darkness and dangerous road conditions kept us inside more than we expected. As beautiful as the winter can be, it can also feel isolating and dreary. We faced one polar vortex after another. The negative temperatures and brutal conditions halted our winter outdoor play. Even after properly bundling up, sometimes it was just too much for the kids to endure and enjoy.
This is also the time when seasonal depression can set in. We can feel trapped in our own homes and hopeless in winter. We crave sun, warmth, and the reawakening that spring brings. Kids feel this, too. After the initial appeal of sensory bins, indoor tea parties, new holiday toys, living room obstacle courses, dance parties, and basement forts has worn off, we just want to get back outside and into nature. We desperately want to hike, camp, fish, garden, swim, and enjoy the beauty of our outdoor world.
Incorporating nature into your life
I’ve found that there are may ways to combat the wintertime woes, which can also be used year-round to improve your mood and mindset. Incorporating more nature and natural elements into our daily rhythm has been therapeutic and rejuvenating. Bringing bits of the outdoors into your “indoor life” is a great way to stay connected to all the beautiful things nature provides. These elements reduce stress, relieve anxiety and refocus your attention when it’s not practical or possible to get outside. By incorporating these ideas into your daily life and routine, you can keep a healthy, positive outdoor mindset year-round.
Here are a few small things you can do to incorporate nature into your daily indoor life.
1. Sprinkle plants in every room
Bringing more plants into your home is a great way to incorporate nature into your life. Pick out a selection of plants that are easy to grow indoors. Consider where you’ll place them in your home and how much sunlight they’ll get. Make taking care of the plants a family-centered activity. Let your children choose plants for their bedrooms and let them be responsible for their own plants. Feeling ambitious, try growing an avocado from a seed. Adding plants throughout your home is such a fun hobby and a great way to get your kids involved. Plus, plants help reduce the number of airborne pollutants in your home, so it’s a win for everyone!
2. Choose natural items as decor
Another way to incorporate nature into your home is to use natural items as home decor. When choosing storage bins, accessories, and colors for your interiors, consider choosing natural-made or natural-looking items. Select a color palette inspired by your favorite garden or landscape. White and grey stone pair well in minimalist settings. Wood furnishings can be dressed up or down to suit any theme. Taupe, tan and camel are trendy neutral beachy colors that pair well with nature-inspired wall coverings or rugs. Incorporate decorative items made from wood, stone, antlers, branches/stumps, driftwood, pebbles or other textures found in nature. Paint a mural of trees or frame pressed flowers. Buy wicker baskets for storage and shelves.
3. Natural scents
You can also bring the smell of nature into your home. You can find candles, wax melters, diffusers, and sprays in many natural scents like pine, rain, fresh cut grass, citrus, oregano, lavender or lilac. There are so many different applications to bring scents into your home to excite your sense of smell and fill your space with something fresh and natural.
4. Nature journaling
Nature journaling is a great hobby that you can do both in and outdoors with a focus on nature’s fine details. Gather a quality-made journal, pens, colored pencils, and some watercolors. Or just some scrap paper and your kids’ crayons! No need to be fancy. Take your time and draw nature. You can draw what you see, copy from a photo or sketch from memory. If you need extra inspiration, go sit in a forest and journal about every detail. If you can’t draw, find a nature-themed coloring book – there are great ones for both kids and adults. Getting creative by practicing this stress-relieving form of expression is a great way to unwind with nature.
5. Indoor Herb Gardens
Incorporate nature into your life by bringing the garden indoors. You might be surprised to know how easy it is to grow edible plants in your home. All year! Simple clay pots of herbs next to a window are always a good place to start. Basil is an easy choice and will provide lots of yummy leaves for salads, pesto, pastas, and more. Turn your countertop or windowsill into a small garden with pots of your favorite herbs such as rosemary, mint, and thyme. You can also regrow some vegetables from kitchen scraps. Try your green thumb on regrowing celery stalks, green onions and romaine hearts from leftovers. Countertop hydroponics gardens are another neat way to garden indoors. It’s easier than you think to grow everything you need to make your own salsas, salads, and more inside your home!
6. Edible flowers and fresh herbs
Another way to bring the outdoors in is to opt for edible fresh flowers and herbs to garnish and cook with. You can do this easily by freezing them directly into ice cubes to add to your drinks. You can cut up herbs and flowers and use them to brighten up a salad or garnish a plate. Adding these bright bites into your daily meals will not only please your palate but give you a boost of antioxidants and vitamins. You can grow your own (see above) or find them at a natural grocer or your local farmer’s market.
7. Soundscapes
Tap into your auditory sense by bringing the sound of the outdoors inside. Create a nature-themed playlist that you can listen to at home, in the office, or on your commute to work. Nature has its own music – ocean/wave sounds, gentle rain, whale songs, thunderstorms, bird calls or a crackling campfire. Close your eyes, listen carefully and connect yourself to the sound of nature for instant relaxation and stress-relief. Kids really enjoy these sounds, too and you can incorporate them into so many daily activities. Next time you’re playing with your kids, turn on the playlist and see how they react. Pretend you’re SCUBA diving while listening to whale sounds. Or hide out in a blanket fort in the basement while listening to a thunderstorm track. The meditating and playtime possibilities are endless.
8. Scroll nature
If you’re going to be online, incorporate nature into your media by following accounts and pages that share amazing shots and videos of nature, wildlife and outdoor activities. Consider this time as research to get inspired by new adventures and activities when you get back out there. Relax by looking at photos of the depths of the oceans, wildlife in the desserts, or camping under the stars. Overload your feed with all things nature. Stay connected with local farmers, garden shops, florists, and state parks. Find online nature-based communities and become involved – this is a great way to also meet other like-minded parents in your area and make new friends. Incorporating nature into screen time is a great escape to beautiful places and a nice break from the daily grind.
9. Nature studies
Find a good nature study book or nature-based curriculum and follow along with the activities to learn new things about the outdoors. Set up a bird feeder outside your window and place a bird guide and binoculars next to it for easy access. Read about wildlife habitats, local flora and fauna, and study trail maps for hikes you’d like to go on. Learning about nature can be done through books when being outside to study isn’t possible. Learn about the plants that grow in your area and identify the trees in your neighborhood. Review animal track guide to figure out who made those footprints in your yard. There are so many ways to study nature on a daily basis that will inspire many adventures to come.
10. Garden dreams
It’s never too early to start planning your outdoor garden space and figuring out what you’ll plant this year. Use the time and preparations indoors to kickstart a thriving outdoor garden. Research what zone you’re in, what plants grow best there and when to start planting. Learn about soil types. Start indoor seedlings. Stroll through your local nursery to get ideas and ask questions. Collect planters and supplies during the offseason when things are on sale. Gardening can be a year-long adventure and a part of your routine every day. And when you’re ready, choose some easy vegetables to grow with kids and work on your garden together.
11. Find a sunny spot
Pay attention to the times of days when the sun is shining through the windows of your home and find that super sunny spot to warm yourself and soak in the sunshine. Set up tables in that spot, play areas or cozy sitting spaces. Add a comfy chair and some pillows and turn it into a reading nook. Rotate your houseplants in this sunny spot. Notice how the light changes in that location throughout the day and at different times of the year. During the perfect time of day, when the sun is shining through, sit, play, and enjoy it’s warmth.
12. Fresh flowers
Decorating your home with bouquets of fresh flowers are a wonderful way to incorporate nature into your daily indoor life. Grab a bouquet of cut flowers during your next grocery trip. Take time to hold each flower and smell its fragrance. Carefully trim off leaves and snip the end of the stems. Place all the flowers in a vase or spit them up into lots of smaller bouquets. Spread them throughout your home in places where you spend a lot of time: next to your bed, on the kitchen counter, or on a mantle. Seeing bright bouquets can bring so much freshness and happiness to your indoor space.
13. Nature-themed play
To keep your kids connected to nature while playing indoors, choose toys that incorporate nature into your children’s daily lives. Look for toys inspired by nature or made from natural materials like wood and stone. Create nature-themed sensory bins. Bring in bowls of snow for the kids to play with and eat! Paint on collected leaves, sticks and rocks. Use loose flowers and let them make their own arrangements, dissect them to see all of their parts or use them to make flower jewelry or crowns. Create little worlds of landscapes and leave animal figures inside. Creating natural themed play areas is so satisfying for parents and kiddos and will encourage them to be curious about the world outside.
14. Nature documentaries
When getting outside isn’t possible, take advantage of the vast selection of earth and natural wonder documentaries on your streaming services. These exciting series can take you to places you’ve never even heard of and introduce you to animals you never knew existed! Choose episodes of places you dream of going or wish to revisit. Watch as life cycles change, seasons pass, and animals travel. The calming voices and beautiful cinematography are captivating to all ages. Discuss what you see with little ones and ask them lots of questions about their favorites and interests. Use what you see to incorporate into play area themes, sounds, and journaling when you need a fresh perspective.
15. Display nature art
Displaying nature art on the wall of your home is another easy way to incorporate nature into your indoor space. Shop thrift stores and find vintage paintings of landscapes, wildlife, herbs, plants or other natural elements. Order canvases of photos of your kids/family on your latest adventure or enjoying nature. Purchase prints from your most admired nature photographer or a local artist. Display projects that you and your family have created together, such as pressed leaves or flowers. Switch them out through the season or with holiday decor.
16. Open the curtains
Bringing the outdoors in can be as simple as adding more light to your day. Make a morning ritual of opening the curtains and let the fresh light fill your space. This can be just as invigorating as your morning coffee and is a wonderful natural way to start your day. Bringing natural light into your home is so much better on your eyes, and aesthetically pleasing. More light will improve your mood and help your body adjust to the day.
17. Plan celebrations
There are so many wonderful ways to celebrate nature, the seasons and holidays. Plan celebrations around the changing of the season or the full moon. Plan a garden tea party or a May Day celebration in the middle of winter. Check out some of the more obscure holidays and plan a celebration around them, such as World Wetlands Day, World Bird Day, World Soil Day, International Mountain Day and World Animal Day. Craft natural decor, design invitations, and plan a fresh menu when you are needing some nature inspiration.
18. Indoor magic gardens
Kids love creating imaginative worlds, so play to that strength using natural elements. Painted rocks, figures, and tiny accessories can turn any potted plant into a magical world. Use your child’s favorite dinosaurs, fairies, or lego figures to create a magic forest around a plant and make it special to them. Adding whimsical touches into your house plants is an inviting way to add some more focus onto them. Choose one item and move it around regularly and make a game of who notices first.
19. Pressed flowers
Save flowers throughout the year from your bouquets, gardens, or dandelions given by kids. Find a couple of heavy books and press flowers inside sheets of wax paper. Wait a few days to reopen the pages to reveal a preserved flattened flower. These are delicate reminders of bright blooms that will lighten your space and bring back precious memories. Use the flowers in artwork and hang them on the wall. Glue them onto paper and create cards and stationery to send to friends and loved ones. Cut them up and use them to make an organic confetti mix.
20. Botanical baths
Finally, one last way to incorporate more nature into your daily life is to literally bathe in it! Fill your tub with bubbles, salts, scents of your choice and a sprinkle of fresh or dried flower petals. This is the perfect way to warm up after a long winter day. Unwind in a botanical bliss and transport yourself to a luxurious spa after the kids are in bed. The flower petals are a perfect touch of nature to a relaxing indoor bath.
Bringing nature indoors
These are just a few fun ways to incorporate more nature into your day. If you’re looking to make some changes and bring the outdoors in, I recommend starting small. Choose one thing from these ideas and grow from there. You do not have to be an outdoorsy naturalist to reap the amazing benefits of bringing nature into your daily routines. Look for moments to bring in small touches and add them all year long. You will appreciate them during long winter days and throughout the year. Especially on days when getting outdoors wasn’t feasible. Incorporating nature into your life is important for all ages and lifestyles and can add so much value to your days.
About the author
Jessica Jackson is a homeschooling mother of three. She currently has roots planted near Kansas City, Missouri where her and her family live, grow, and explore. Growing up in Colorado, Jessica has been an avid nature explorer, hiker, and camping enthusiast since childhood. She spent some time living in the Caribbean, exploring beaches, ocean life, and island landscapes before settling into motherhood. Jessica enjoys photographing, nature journaling, and sharing about her family’s adventures.
Instagram: @irieideas