My Nature Nook
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About My Nature Nook
Hello and welcome to my nature nook. I am Leila – founder, creator and designer of My Nature Nook. I have been told I should write a little bit about myself and share some stories behind the creation of my Nook. So, here I am and here they are!
Firstly, what is our mission and what is My Nature Nook?
Our Mission and Values
The idea behind my Nook is to create a beautiful, inspiring, family-orientated, nature-centered resource encouraging the immersion and connection of families to Nature.
This is reflected in our values:
- Inspirational
- Accessible
- Playful
- Family-friendly
- Nature-centered
And also in our mission statement: To inspire and connect families to Nature.
My Nature Nook is unique in what we offer, since everything we do and create, is:
- Designed and illustrated by artist and founder, Leila Bassir
- Designed with families in mind
- Designed to be fun, usable and practical
- Designed to encourage an appreciation of the depth and beauty of Nature.
We want families to be inspired, to learn and to have fun while spending quality time together immersed in a Nature Adventure.
About Me & My Nook
Hello, I am so pleased to meet you.
But, I should introduce myself! Who am I?
My name is Leila, and I am a full-time toddler mum, artist and nature lover. I grew up all over the place, (both in the British Isles and beyond) and after a winding career as a Medical Herbalist, Educator and Medical Doctor, I took a career break to marry, travel and raise my daughter.
So far, I have visited 25 countries and lived in 8 countries – 5 in just in the last 4 years!
I came up with the idea for My Nature Nook after receiving both negative and positive comments from other mothers while teaching my daughter about nature.
When she was less than a year old, I began introducing her to trees and flowers and bugs and birds. By 18 months, she could copy and recognise our common local bird songs, identify more than 5 plants and flowers and identify 6 local trees by their leaves, seeds and bark. I was very proud of her. However, other mothers thought otherwise.
Some thought it was a waste of time and I should have been teaching her something more useful instead of filling her head with nonsense. But other mothers were genuinely intrigued and wished they knew enough to teach their own children about nature.
So, the idea for My Nature Nook was born. I had already started creating fun little activity books to use with my daughter, so, I decided to make them available to everyone. Who knows… maybe the mothers who did not like nature might see them and be inspired… and they would be a useful resource for the mothers who wanted to learn more about nature!
I must confess, before starting this project, I did not have the foggiest idea how to create or maintain a blog… or a website… or a social media profile! So it has been a steep learning curve. It is also for this reason that you may find the odd inconsistency or change of look, as I continuously trial and experiment as I go along. So, if there is something you love, or something you find a little awkward or annoying – let me know! I would love to continue improving My Nook with all my lovely families in mind x
Anyway, I am not sure what else to write here, so if you have a query, comment, idea or suggestion, please feel free to email me at lbassir@mynaturenook.com and let me know. I look forward to hearing from you!
Happy Nature Walking,
Leila x