Area youth go on a bear hunt, close to home

With the quarantine, my daughter Meah (5-years-old) has been bored, missing school and her friends. My sister had shared a post on Facebook a few days earlier, "We're Going On A Bear Hunt" based on the book by Michael Rosen. People in her community of Walhalla had put teddy bears in their windows for the kids to "hunt." I figured I would share it here in New Rockford, and Meah and I would go on a bear hunt later that day!

I shared the post early in the morning on Sunday, and instantly so many of our amazing family and friends started commenting that we should drive by their house because they had a bear for Meah! Meah's preschool teacher, Mrs. Demester, also suggested we graph what we found. So Meah took very careful notes on all the bears: colors, sizes, accessories. "Momma that one is a BIG teddy with a black and white nose and that one is a monkey with two hearts on its shoulders."

Over a 2-day time span, we found over 65 bears and other stuffed animals, and it took us about three hours! Meah had so much fun getting out of the house and finding the bears, waving at people in their windows. It was amazing to see so many people, of all ages, participating in the bear hunt! We also enjoyed seeing the other kids hunting for bears driving past our house.

I am so thankful for our amazing community. It takes a village, and I am thankful for all of you! We plan on leaving our bears up in our window for kids who want to "hunt" over the next couple weeks. Devils Lake also did this; they have a Facebook page for it, and I saw one family found over 300 bears in Devils Lake. So if you're looking for a day to get out of town, you could also head north for a great big bear hunt.