Yes this is a bunch of cottonwood. Why let Rachel play in the cottonwood...why not. I figured the more things I expose my daughter to the less likely she is to have sensitivities to them. Plus she loved feeling the softness of it in her hands. We would pick it up and blow it away. Then chase it around the park. The best part of going outside in spring is all the new flowers and animals you get to see. This day we went out to a family friends house to pick up my pump I forgot. Rachel was acting up because of being stuck in the car for so long. Lucky for us they live right becide a cute little park. The dogwood cotton was everwhere, in the trees on the sidewalk, in the grass and on the playground. It was like walking in fuffy warm snow. I am not sure who had more fun her or me. Poor daddy has to stay inside when we play with pollen, one day she will ask her father