We had lots of fun at the Kalapuya Food Day on Sunday, and we had a
sunny day, too! We had a group of SpiralScouts who were earning their
nutrition badge, and some families joined us too. We learned about the
lifestyles of the Kalapuya, with a focus on food gathering and
preparation. We had a fire-start-off, with Anna and Matt making a fire
with a bow drill and I was making a fire with flint and steel. Well, I
got a coal going first, but they actually got flames going first so
they won the race! (I think my tinder must have been damp.) It was
loads of fun, with everyone cheering us on. We also sampled some foods
similar to the Kalapuya diet, like dried wild berries, hazelnuts, and
honey on the comb. Much of what we were learning about the kids got to
touch and try out; hands-on education is really more fun, and it sticks
in your memory more!

On Sunday January 13th at 11:00 am we are having our first ever Kalapuya Food Day! We will be learning about the lives of the Valley's earliest inhabitants- the Natives who lived here. (And still do!)

We will be exploring what types of food they ate, hunting and gathering tools and techniques, food preparation, and fire starting. This workshop is for kids aged 7 and up, and requires pre-registration by calling me at 683-8271. We will be eating a sack lunch and visiting the pond to look at cattails. Please wear clothing and shoes appropriate for the weather. We will meet rain or shine! Also helping us with this workshop will be special guest volunteer Anna Bradley, a graduate of the U of O Anthropology Dept. We are looking forward to sharing the interesting artifacts and Native objects we have collected, and to answering your questions! We may even taste some traditional foods. As always, our programs are free; donations accepted.

On Saturday we had our first museum event and it was great. The weather cooperated, the kids had a good time, and the grownups had a blast too. We planted cuttings of milkweed in our new butterfly garden down by the pond, learned about Monarchs from our friend John Hogan of NABA, had hot cocoa, and created a beautiful butterfly mobile for the museum! Thanks to John for his wonderful, humorous, and gentle ways, his knowledge, and his milkweed cuttings!

We hope the plants take root well and we have a blossoming garden in the Spring. We hope to plant other nectar plants too, and attract many butterflies. We can study the entire life cycle if we get some eggs laid on the plants.

Here is Jade and Savannah digging one of the holes. The earth was very clay filled.

We are so excited to be working with John Hogan of the Butterfly Association. He came out today and we talked about the butterfly day we will be doing next Saturday (15th)  at the museum. We will be planting cuttings of milkweed to provide host plants for Monarchs. We are inviting children we know to come out and help us! John will be teaching us about butterfly life, food and host plants, and lifecycle (indoors!) and then planting the cuttings in our new butterfly garden, and then coming inside to make a butterfly craft. We will be serving hot cocoa and cookies and it will begin around 12:30 (weather permitting.) We are thinking we will have about 10 kids to come out and enjoy this unique experience and help us begin a garden that we can tend and visit year round. John grows milkweed cuttings and helps people plant them all around Eugene.