PHOTO GALLERY: Children's Day at Brookside Gardens

Brookside Gardens celebrated its 12th annual Children's Day on Saturday, September 18, 2010.  This year's theme, "Adventures in Food", focused on educating children about where their fruits and vegetables come from and the importance of naturally grown and local food. 

Families participated in activities at 11 different stations, including: fruit and vegetable bingo, a printmaking project where fruits and vegetables doubled as stamps to decorate homemade wrapping paper, and a farmer's market where children had the opportunity to "buy" all of the ingredients for a recipe with play money. 

Many parents said that they were excited that the event offered an opportunity to combine a beautiful September day spent outdoors with a little education.

"Recently we've been talking about healthy eating at home, so this totally goes along with what our family has been focusing on," Allison Gilbert said.

Gilbert's seven-year-old daughter, Olivia, said she was most excited about the musical performance by the Richmond Indigenous Gourd Orchestra, a local band that performs on instruments made from homegrown gourds.  But Olivia did admit that she had learned a few things during all the fun and games.

"I learned that an avocado is a fruit!" Olivia Gilbert said.

Over 70 volunteers helped with the event and garden staff estimated that more than 3,000 people participated in the day's activities.