Eco Academy - Canoe Safety

Today was fabulous!  We got to capsize canoes and learn how to flip them back over while in the water.

First we capsized the canoe

 

  ...then another team would come to rescue us.

This is Scout - coming to the rescue!

 

 Once the canoe was tipped over to drain the water, it could be lifted up onto the rescuing canoe and flipped back over. 

 

 

 

Eco Academy - Intertidal Coasts

Today we went to Blackpoint to see the tidepools.  It was high tide... so you can imagine... there was lots of water.  The class learned about using a Quadrant to find and count things. They learned how to move the quadrant and record their findings just like the marine biologists.

Eco Academy - Scientific Inquiry

Today was a get wet day! The kids took large nets and swept the seafloor with them. They found all sorts of fish, shrimp, crab, and muck down there.

We placed all the items that people found in buckets of water so we could count and categorize them.

 

Here is a Pipefish someone scooped up.

Eco Academy - Orienteering

Today we learned how to use a compass.  We trekked from point A to B, in a geocache manner.  It was great fun and the kids enjoyed themselves.   We also made pacing beads before class and were able to use them to mark off how far we walked.  This will come in very handy if we have to walk great distances without a GPS.

Eco Academy - Mangroves

Today we learned all about the different types of Mangroves and how to identify them. We went tromping through the marshy mud and saw lots of wildlife as well.

These are the roots of the Black Mangrove. They poke up through the ground like little feelers.





Scout loved looking all over for crabs and spiders and other living things among the muck.

You had to keep a watchful eye overhead so you didn't walk right into the webs of the giant banana spiders that were abundant.

Scout had to give it a try too!

We also saw a big blue crab.


And a ladybug that didn't have any spots.



The red mangrove has long pods and long green leaves.  It also has roots like fingers.

 

 

The Black Mangrove's leaves are white on the underside.  They filter the salt out through their leaves,  You can wrap your fish in black mangrove leaves to flavor it when you are camping.

 

The white mangrove has little nodes above it's leaves where it excretes salt.

 

It's leaves have a heart shape at the top and it's seeds are small and white.

 

 

 

 

Eco Academy - Photo Journaling

Eco Academy - PhotoJournalism

Today was Scout's first day of school. She is attending the Eco Academy at Deering Estate and loving every moment of it. They even have their own CLASS BLOG which contains photos and lesson plans of the amazing activities she has participated in.



 


They've got some amazing teachers, Panama and J.T.












Here, Panama is showing us the scarring left behind from the hurricanes of 1920, 1930, and Andrew: 1992. The waves punded the trees leaving scar marks 15 feet up.















They taught us how to recognize poisonwood and other indigenous plants and trees.

 

This is a gumbo limbo tree trunk. It looks wrinkly like an elephant's foot.

 

 

We learned about Banyan trees, mushrooms, and the endangered banded snail.



The kids took all sorts of pictures and had a great time discovering and exploring





Then someone spotted a snake in the grass. All the kids ran to see it and we learned all about rat snakes. This one was a baby rat snake. They are pretty harmless. It's wonderful when the teachers go with the teaching moment - not just the agenda!







There is a red-tailed boa in the classroom that all the students are able to hold.  Scout LOVES to hold it and asks me almost every day.


















Shelby was even brave enough to hold the tarantula.

Shelby's talents

Today,Shelby played the piano in sacrament meeting. She accompanied 4 singers and one doing sign language. She's just 11. I'm amazed. She's been practicing all month, and played it the best she ever had. I'm just beaming for her. It's so interesting, the feeling when u see your child do something better than you. It's an awe struck type feeling. I'm happy.
She also reads much faster than I ever have in my life. She can finish 400 pg book in 2 days.

Bindi's place

Bindi has found her place in the pack. She knows she is lower than us, but higher than the chickens. (cuz she gets to sleep in the house with the farmer) I'll go out to find the new hens and if I can't then I'll call her out. I didn't even train her, but she just knew what to do. She has a clear cut signal and everything. We've got one smart schnauzer. I think they were originally bred to hunt rats or something, and she has great blood for it.
There is an aire about her now. She knows she is useful to the pack. It's kinda cool to see her self worth.

Amazing day

Yes, I watched conference today. It was great. And in between sessions Grey killed our rooster. We had always planned on getting the chickens for self sufficiency purposes. It's just a lot more real when he came back in the house with blood splattered on his clothes. Kinda sad too. Definitely a learning experience. I think everyone in America should experience this, just so they really understand the value of the food in the store.
I understand more deeply why the word of wisdom says to eat meat sparingly.

Lookout on the Tower

Today is General Conference.  Twice a year we get to hear a sermon direct from the Lord's prophet and the 12 apostles.
  It is a wonderful blessing to hear the Lord's will and comforting words. They sit on the lifeguard chair, able to see the jellyfish-infested water, and warn us.  We swim through life, and find comfort in their warnings.

My Inspiration

I was at Barnes and Noble when I came across the magazine Artful Blogging.  I was hooked. You know, one of those people that sit in the isle, reading, oblivious to those around them trying to browse. I bought 2 issues to take on my trip the next day. (I wish the airport stores stocked a broader reading spectrum than those smutty magazines Hearst pays to stick in your face.  Knowing the sad reality, I try to always stop at BN pre trip.)
That airplane ride was like a trip to the spa.  A mommy day.  What awesome, bucket filling pleasure I found between those pages.  Such talent.  Such expression.  I loved the photos, the feelings.
I decided right there, that I was home.  I was among friends.  Family.
So, here I am, starting my own space, my own script.  Maybe one day soon I will be listed among those who have gone before. What an honor.

2011s challenge

I've decided to challenge myself this year.  I call it my year of 52 pictures.  The goal is to find something each week that is inspiring.  It has driven me to look for the positive. Look for the art.  Look for the beauty. 
     One thing it has taught me is that my daughter is one of my biggest teachers.  She is always pointing out the beauty in between the cracks of life.  And I have slowed down, to smell the roses.  This is my Shelby. My daughter.  My teacher.  This picture, taken of her on San Juan Island last summer, captures the moment of discovery.  She's pointing out the whales to her cousin.