Along with the academic book-work involved in home schooling our boys, we also like to go out and get hands-on experience whenever the opportunity arises. Being able to raise boys in the mountains of Idaho, affords rich outdoor experiences and allows them to test their mettle against nature.
The snow is almost gone from the lower mountains and most of the roads;
But there is still enough hanging round that we ended up walking the logging roads to get where we wanted to go due to snow drifts.
We always go prepared now days, since the introduction of Canadian wolves into our mountains, and of course one great lesson to learn is, "stop when daddy stops".
These trips to the mountains are three-fold, first . . .
They are a good way to expend energy, which is great for the younger generation, as evidenced by the blurry picture! Even after five miles they still have the energy to run back to the truck.
Of course baby bumpkins takes great joy in using his pent up energy to make his mother expend something she didn't have in the first place.
Second, they are taught the use of tools useful for watching and . . .
navigating in the woods.
Third they learn to appreciate the grandeur, and littleness, of God's creation.
Every now and then we stumble across a patriarch of the forest. Here is the opportunity for a lesson in determining the height of a tree using nothing but a compass and a dizzying array of mathematical equations, that leaves some minds reeling - but the boys find it fascinating.
Unless you know this child, you might not fully appreciate the irony of him sitting on this "road use restricted" sign!
Number one and number five - seriousness and dynamite.
Opportunities abound for learning to help your younger brothers while at the same time honing your own skills.
And of course there is usually time for a game of "King of the Mountain" somewhere along the way.
And at the turn around point baby TW gets to stretch his legs for a bit.
Until our next mountaineering class.