The “Ish-y” part is this: What you create will be tree-ish, branch-ish, landscape-ish, sunrise-ish, sunset-ish…you get the idea.
A different scene will be used to practice with each week.
We are not going for detail here but tapping into our own intuitive self-expression by using simple strokes, blending and shading, creating an idea of what we see.
In simple terms – I am providing the space, supplies and guidance in which you can explore and connect to your inner artist.

Rules of the class:

No judgements, no competition, and no expectations.

Barbie (Babs) Luepke will serve as your Art Guide.

This class will be held on Mondays, starting January 10th, 2022 from 1 pm – 3 pm.
$35 per class.
ArtPlay classes practice small inclusion, so there is limited space available.

In this 6-week course for those new to creative non-fiction, you will learn how.  We’ll identify the many kinds of first-person stories and what distinguishes them.  With helpful prompts, you’ll learn about and experience the writing process.  We’ll look at the work of accomplished writers to deepen our understanding of theme, description, dialogue, setting, character, and story arc.  With these tools, you’ll take steps to create a fully rendered piece rich with subtle meaning as this class gently guides you from idea concept to conclusion.  You’ll get feedback from the instructor on short excerpts along the way and a supportive reading of your story after session five.  At the end of the course, you’ll have one well-developed story, ideas for many others, and a format that can be used to complete them-all that, and fun along the way in a supportive virtual classroom community where you’ll meet new friends and expand your appreciation of the written word.

You will uncover what hygge items you already own and receive tips on how to use and display them to make your home cozy and comfortable this winter.

Instructor: Valerie Cady, of Winnow & Spruce

Cost: $5/free for co-op owners

This class will be offered online via Zoom app so you won't have to leave your house. You can register for any of the online classes on River Market website: http://www.rivermarket.coop/news/classes/

After registration, an email link to join this presentation through Zoom will be emailed to you as well as a handout that we will be using in the class.

Drop in any time between 10 am and 12 noon on Wednesday mornings in January or on Saturday, January 8, weather permitting.  In addition to the storytime, we will also have an outdoor self-directed activity available to enjoy on the terrace plus an indoor winter craft option in the upstairs Margaret Rivers Room. This program is designed for young children and their families.

Please note that we will cancel by 9 am that morning if there is a snowstorm or if the temperature is below 20 degrees Fahrenheit—please check the Library's website to confirm.

Learn about local Lichens from expert Joe Walewski of Wolf Ridge Environmental Learning Center. Lichens are all around us, but it takes effort to notice them! Once you begin to see them, you’ll start seeking them out everywhere you go. Joe will share images and stories of discovering lichens in the St. Croix and Namekagon Riverway and tips for identifying lichens anywhere else you might explore. Together, we will learn the basics of lichen biology, ecology, and observation.

Joe Walewski, Wolf Ridge Naturalist and Interim Program Director, has been a Naturalist all his life and could never imagine doing anything else. In addition to managing the Wolf Ridge Graduate Naturalist Training Program since 1999, he authored Ferns & Allies of the North Woods and Lichens of the North Woods.

In advance of our Lichens of the Riverway presentation, we would love to see what lichens you are finding in the watershed! Send in your photos of lichens you find while out exploring. Describe where you found them, and send them to Wendy Tremblay ( wtremblay@wildriversconservancy.org ) by Monday, January 24th. Three lucky lichen photographers will go home with a copy of Lichens of the North Woods.

This webinar is FREE, but registration is required.

Ladies who love to dance - this is for YOU!
With a focus on fitness and fun for women 50+, DancePlay is inspired by the idea that you can playfully celebrate aging. It is important to move your joints and muscles throughout your life to reduce risk of injury and to increase and/or maintain mobility. DancePlay is designed to make this celebratory idea an enjoyable , fun experience by using our imaginations, playing with occasional props and adapting the suggestion of movement.

Barbara Luepke will be your Dance Coach and encourage, guide and inspire you to connect to and dance your authentic self.
For active adults 50 and older. Beginner to intermediate.
Honoring the idea of good exclusion, class sizes are limited allowing for our self expression through dance to best be achieved.

Date Night. A night out with your best friend, your significant other, a fellow foodie or a group of friends who want to celebrate and explore new food experiences. Our hands-on Date Night classes are led by a trained chef who will create an experience that's fun and engaging, and where everyone learns a few tips and tricks to take home. All participants are divided into small groups to prepare a dish. The evening comes to an end with a celebration feast of all the fruits of combined labor. Delicious!

In this fast-paced class, students with some needle felting experience will learn to needle felt a three dimensional Cardinal from corriedale wool roving and apply lifelike characteristics using merino prefelt and merino roving. Learn finishing details for glass bead eyes, mounting, and finishing as a hanging ornament, mounted on a branch.  Each student will leave with one completed bird.

Our students have loved classes with Karen Engelbretson, here’s an opportunity to add to your needle felting skills with a more advanced project.  Perfect for a mid-winter day, on your own or with friends!

This  class will include discussion and demonstrations of the planting techniques, then there will be time to try your hand at planting  using the materials provided by the instructor, plus get answers to all your planting and growing questions.

You will then have the satisfaction of harvesting your own food in just days! Enjoy some samples of microgreens and learn more about ways to incorporate them into your table and the nutritional benefits of these power packed greens.

The class fee includes the cost of a $15.00 class kit. Each participant will receive a kit that includes 4 easy to grow varieties of microgreens and we will be planting 2 varieties during the class.  All materials needed for this class will be in the kit.

January 29th, 2021
10 am – 12 pm
From there, our shared creative energy came up with the idea to do the Plant Meditation Class in addition to supporting the release of her book.
On a quiet, wintry January day, we could think of no better way than to gather with plants, with the assurance that new beginnings are just around the corner.
Come experience a meditative journey to listen, speak to, create with and receive messages from plants.
Intuitively choose from the available plants we have on hand. Which one are you drawn to?
With accompaniment of the drum, we will journey to the plant you have chosen.
Connecting with the spirit of the plant and meditating on it.
Upon returning from our meditation, we will draw the essence of the plant along with writing notes of your experience and any messages you may have received.
We will then discuss our individual journey and reflect. A book signing will follow. Books will be available for $15.
Cost: $36

Enjoy a winter nature experience with just you or the whole family. The park naturalist will give a brief how-to-snowshoe lesson and lead a walk through a winter landscape.

Bring your own snowshoes or borrow our traditional wooden ones for free. No experience necessary. Snowshoes will fit over your winter boots. If there isn't snow, we'll still go for a nature hike.

Elderberry Syrup is one of the most esteemed cold and flu remedies in herbal medicine!

Elderberries are known for their fabulous immune-enhancing properties. They are antiviral and have been known to reduce the duration of flu symptoms to mere days. They are also excellent at clearing mucus from the sinuses and reducing inflammation in the respiratory system.  Elderberries are a rich source of vitamins A and E, which are crucial in helping your body maintain optimal health.  The bioflavonoids in elderberry syrup boast the body’s immune system.

This class will help keep you and your family healthy by learning how to make elderberry syrup.

Students will learn to make their own Elderberry Syrup and will be able to leave class with their own supply.  This is a family friendly class and children 12 and under are welcome to attend with a paid adult at no extra class fee.

Looking for a new expression in your needlework?

This in-person tutorial is intended to encourage new ideas to incorporate in an older craft.  You will be challenged to make a small embroidery sampler concentrating on varied stitches, colors and materials.

Later, using your imagination, these ideas can be used as patches, wall hangings or pillows.

This class is just perfect for those who want to learn something new while honoring a traditional craft. Imagine sitting near a fire and relaxing . . .  aah!

Enjoy a winter nature experience with just you or the whole family. The park naturalist will give a brief how-to-snowshoe lesson and lead a walk through a winter landscape.

Bring your own snowshoes or borrow our traditional wooden ones for free. No experience necessary. Snowshoes will fit over your winter boots. If there isn't snow, we'll still go for a nature hike.

Presentations at 1pm, 2pm and 3pm
Check in at the winery (Red barn) prior to presentation for waiver to atttend and enter drawing
Meet the dogs!
Learn more about this fun winter sport!
Enter a drawing for a dog sled ride through the vineyard after the presentation!
No reservations required or accepted

https://www.scvwines.com/copy-of-events

You don't need experience, but be prepared to snowshoe 2 miles on moderately steep terrain. This may feel like hiking 3-5 miles. If you prefer a gentler experience, register instead for a Snowshoe Discovery Walk for Beginners.

Bring your own snowshoes if possible. There are a limited number to borrow, so just ask if you need them! Dress in warm layers. Snowshoes will fit over your winter boots. If there isn't snow, we'll still go for a nature hike.

Did you know that fire can be a good thing? Prescribed fire is used by a variety of governmental agencies and private companies to restore health to ecosystems. During this webinar, Alex Wenthe, the current chair of the education and Outreach Committee for the WI prescribed Fire Council and owner of Quercus Land Stewardship Service, will join us to talk about common problems seen by private landowners and how prescribed burns can offer solutions. We will also discuss the planning of a prescribed fire from beginning to end – including burn unit selection, burn planning, weather, equipment, and ignition.

*Please note: This brief introduction will not qualify you to conduct a prescribed burn, but will hopefully allow you to start the process or ask questions you already have.

This workshop is scheduled for Saturday, February 19 & Sunday, February 20, 9-4pm.

Here is a two-day workshop to learn how to carve a spoon from start to finish.  Or if you’ve taken our ‘Intro to Spoon Carving Class’ and want to learn more, this is the class for you.
This workshop covers all aspects of spoon carving, from splitting and axing, to spoon design, carving techniques, knife grips, safety and finishing cuts.
Suitable for all levels of experience, including beginners. Class will go from 9:00am-4:00pm each day, with an hour break for lunch. Please bring your own lunch.

In this workshop, we’ll discuss pieces from these writers to see what they teach us about ourselves and our world. By writing and workshopping response pieces, we’ll also learn from these mentors how to enhance our own writing of essays, poems, and stories.

It will be a “window-moment,” described by Jane Hirshfield in Ten Windows: “Encountering such a moment, the reader breathes in some new infusion, as steeply perceptible as any physical window’s increase of light, scent, sound, or air. The gesture is one of lifting, unlatching, releasing; mind and attention swing open to new-peeled vistas.” Come join in the moment.

Bring your snowshoes and trek the trail winding throughout our beautiful vineyards! Warm up with a cup of hot mulled wine and some tasty snacks inside our rustic winery.
Guests must bring their own snowshoes. SCV does not provide/rent snowshoes. 
*$20 per person: 1 cup of wine, 1 charcuterie box
*$25 per couple: 2 cups of wine, 1 charcuterie box to share
*NO Reservations required
**Additional wines and wine flights available for purchase
https://www.scvwines.com/copy-of-events

With support from the National Park Foundation’s Junior Angler grant program, we’ll have all the necessities to help you or your child to catch their first fish, for free! You will learn ice fishing basics like how to use the equipment, fish species identification, fishing rules and regulations, and conservation connections between clean water and fish populations. All you need to bring is an excitement to learn and your own winter weather gear to stay warm out on the ice.

If you are 16 years old or older, you will also need to bring a valid fishing license. If you don’t have one, you can buy them here for MN or here for WI.

Items to note: State Park passes are required, daily vehicle admission is $8-$11. Annual passes available.

Bathrooms: Outhouses available near the Nature Center.