Geocaching

Over Christmas break, our friends turned us on to this fun hobby/obsession- geocaching.
From the site description: "Geocaching is a high-tech treasure hunting game played throughout the world by adventure seekers equipped with GPS devices. The basic idea is to locate hidden containers, called geocaches, outdoors and then share your experiences online. Geocaching is enjoyed by people from all age groups, with a strong sense of community and support for the environment." Our first geocache was found in the base of a hollow tree off a path in the woods. We were amazed to then find out that there were at least 120 geocaches within a 5 mile radius of our house! It really changes the way you look at the world. Jack is constantly finding places that would "be great for hiding a cache." The children and I have logged in over 30 finds, including helping a travel bug find its way towards California. Some of the neatest caches we have found were in Atlanta when we were visiting Jon- it was a great way to introduce him to our new hobby.

Birdwatching

We stumbled upon the greatest bird-watching spot while eating bagels one day. It is such an unlikely nature preserve, sitting on a small inlet behind a shopping plaza but we are ever amazed at how many different species we can find there on a given day. Our most recent trip included the usual ducks, anhinga, pelican, heron, egret and great egret but also a woodpecker joined the ranks of crows and seagulls also out scavenging. It's become a weekly event for us and we even got to help save an anhinga from a discarded fishing line recently, which served as fodder for many lessons.

How to teach the days of the week

I won't post a picture of this so you will just have to take my word for it...my children have both learned the calender with a very important teaching tool...days of the week underwear. My daughter became obsessed with hers last year, requiring me to tell her not only what day it was but how to spell it so that she could find the correct pair every morning. My son, who prefers to go commando (I know, TMI) recently informed us that he would wear underpants if he could also have a days of the week pair. Thank you Gymboree, for making them in a boys sports version! I knew their lessons were well-learned the day I overheard Jack say to his sister, as they were writing letters, "Jane, could you pull your skirt up for a second so I can see what day it is?"

The Everglades

What is a trip to South Florida without a visit to one of the greatest National Parks ever? Pretty boring, that's for sure! The Everglades is a one of a kind National Park experience. You really could spend days down there exploring- I think it would make a fun camping and biking trip once the kids are old enough to not look like such tasty morsels to the gators who call the glades home! We stuck to the Anhinga and Gumbo Limbo trails which are always sure to please the tourists.

While we were out seeking the big thrills- the gators of course, we also happened upon some smaller creatures. Jack almost stepped on this snake on the side of the road as I yelled at him to stay on the path.



While I was reprimanding him, I was shushed by the photographer taking the picture of the Green Heron in the next photo.


We saw 6-7 of the gators sunning really close to the path. They weren't "big" according to the Park Rangers but they were big enough for us.

We missed any up close panther sightings (thank you!) but still saw enough to earn our Junior Ranger badges!

South Florida Trip

In November, we took a road trip down to Hollywood to visit Great Grandma Mil-Mil (as the kids call my grandmother). The children were delighted to see where she lived. Jackson had been there when he was a baby but Jane had never been. Grandma's condo is full of photos, artwork and mementos commemorative of a lifetime of travel and other experiences. My grandfather was a talented artist, utilizing all sorts of mediums from oil paints, copper and wood and it was interesting to see the young eyes take it all in!

While there, Jack begged Grandma to teach him to play chess, which she gladly did. The kids also were fascinated by her library-sale-salvaged encyclopedia set and had us looking up everything from Pocohantas to the Tower of London to Ibis. The Towel of London look-up was inspired by a teapot, of which Grandma Mil-Mil has 104, according to Jane's last count.

Also of great interest were the 6 iguanas we encountered outside the condominium. These are likely former pets released into the wild and we were excited to see so many in one place. Of course, we looked them up under "I" and found out they eat fruit and swim and are from South America. Everything is a lesson when you homeschool!

This is what it is all about!

Jane is reading to Jillian. These wonderful moments when the children are together, just enjoying being siblings, are what home- schooling is all about. You just can't get that in a classroom!

Sanity Saver Tip #1

The internet has coloring sheets for every topic under the sun- I was recently surprised to find a Crayola picture of Shakespeare. Who knew? My children burn through printer ink like crazy. I collect the print-outs and place them in a 3 ring binder (one for each child). Voila! Who needs to buy coloring books when you can make your own? And where would you even find the Disney Princess-Election 2008- Mount Rushmore-Star Wars-Vikings-Scooby Doo-Planets-Holly Hobby-Backyardigans coloring book anyway?