“If you truly love nature, you will find beauty everywhere.”
- Laura Ingalls Wilder
Master Naturalist // Nature Journal // Cabinet of Curiosities
While living in Georgia, I completed a 9 month program offered through the University of Georgia Extension office and the Chattahoochee Nature Preserve to become a certified Georgia Master Naturalist. In the middle of the program we learned we would be moving to North Carolina for my husband’s job. I was bummed I was not able to use my newly acquired wisdom there. However, the region I learned about in my program, the Piedmont, covers the same flora and fauna here in the Raleigh area. Now, I will be teaching the Young Naturalists Club for the Wake Audubon Society in Wake County and I’m so excited!
Nature lovers are my people and when we are around each other, it’s thrilling and quite a hilarious sight! Imagine a group of adults, ranging in ages from late 20’s to 70’s, walking through a forest, each strapped with binoculars, finger loop magnifying glasses, journals and our pencils. We stopped at everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, to observe, comment, sketch, delight and be filled with awe. A track in the sand? Fascinating! A glow in the dark mushroom growing inside a decaying tree trunk? Wonderful. Animal scat filled with shiny seeds? Yes, even that is exciting to us.
Certainly, the awe and delight that is to be experienced when observing and discovering nature’s treasures is a direct connection to God, the Creator. And what a Creator he is!
Keeping a nature journal is another way that I appreciate and study nature. I draw what I see and that’s one of the best ways to learn about it. My nature journal pages are where I document questions, wonder, make observations and connections. There really is no better way to learn about nature than to truly experience it for yourself.
I have so many favorite nature subjects. Among them are birds, shells, beetles, seeds, mushrooms, and gems and minerals. I am an avid collector and our entire home reflects that with collections of our nature treasures, insects I’ve pinned, and dead insects lying around waiting to be pinned. In my art studio, which is my office, I have a large collection I call my ‘Cabinet of Curiosities’.
At one point, I posted many of my nature-related photos on my homeschool Instagram account that is still around: @thevine_and_thebranches
Below are pages from my 2021-2023 nature journals and photos of our ‘cabinet of curiosities’.
“We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature - trees, flowers, grass- grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence... We need silence to be able to touch souls.” — Mother Theresa
The two cabinets in my art studio - this is our main collection.
An extension, for nature books, etc.
Our nature collection has a little bit of everything, including a whistling oyster :)
Seed pods, insect specimens, fossils, interesting "treasures", horseshoe crab tails, porcupine quills, wasp nests...
Shells, bones, arrowheads, bird eggs...most of these things we have found!
Dead insects in acrylic and waiting to be pinned.
Our gem and mineral collection is incredible. We all have our favorite nature objects and this is a favorite for my boys.
So sparkly and pretty :) It makes me smile just to look at our collection.
Seashells are one of my favorites. Shark's teeth are also a fan favorite in our home.
The rows of teeth on that jaw are insane! This is incredibly sharp to touch and we keep everything behind glass doors. When the kid's friends come over, we have to warn them how sharp this is.
We don't just stumble upon these items, we search for them. We always have our eyes open for a cool treasure to add to our collection.
A selfie with my master naturalist group.
My husband giving me a lift to take a close up shot of an eastern tent caterpillar 'tent'.
I'm in my happy place, searching for shells and fossils.
Spiders were one of the reasons I wanted to study nature; I wanted to overcome my fear of them! This is a mama with her egg sac.
"Hurt no living thing..."
Pinning in process.
Teaching for Wild + Free Homeschool group
This was our 'nature nook' in our homeschool. Our homeschool was nature-focused and I taught my kids what I was learning as a master naturalist.
Our home is filled with nature and art in nearly every nook and cranny.
My son saved up his money to purchase some new treasures at a gem and mineral show to add to our family's collection.