In every endeavor and every goal we get to a certain point and have to reflect. We pause and look around us, observe the patterns and results to check our progress. Midyear feels like the most appropriate time for that. 

This week was short as we were coming back from a family break, with lot's of school envolved, but a break nonetheless. When we came back we tackled math. 

Astor was given a page with numbers and items on a page and had to match the number of items with the items. 

Ada worked on factoring, simplifying fractions, and long division. 

Nahuel worked on the same things as Ada and led the kids in a game of fraction fortress.  

Leonardos progress was surprising as the task he was given wasn't one we'd prepared him for. He practiced writing the numbers 7, 11, and 12. He was presented with a page of numbers written out in one column and in numerical form in another. He was able to successfully match 8 of the 20 numbers with the correct word. That tells us that he can read a bit more than he lets on. The way kids learn in fascinating, how they absorb information. Leonardo is a person who lays in bed and processes in the morning. He often get's irritated if someone interrupts this time. And often when we ask him a series of questions he gets irritated and bored at the questioning so it can be hard to see what he is gleaning from everything we are doing. But the exercise in number matching shows that he picks up more than we realize. It's a gratifying moment to realize you are doing something right after so much time spent.

It's a good sign that things are going well when they happen fluidly and without force.

Leonardo has been doing a lot of hands on projects this year and one day he came up with his very own creation. He has never shown much interest in cooking before so it was quite a surprise when he decided to come up with his 'very own recipe' It was granola bars, cut up into pieces, with nutella on top and half of a raspberry...Quite delicious, but now half as satisfying as a kid who wants to do things for themselves. 

Something else that was a good reality check this week was Astor. He was frustrated one day because someone he admired could do a headstand but the only place he could practice was the trampoline. It was too bouncy for him, especially since he always jumps with other people... We had a great conversation about yoga and how it can help you with your flexibility and balance. Once he learned that lots of boys do yoga, something he was quite convinced against, he spent the rest of the morning doing yoga, over and over again, trying to perfect the movements he saw in the kids in the video.

Perhaps the best example of learning happening fluidly and without force was this morning with Nahuel. We went to grandma's house for breakfast, a 45 minute car ride to and from. As we were driving I noticed that Nahuel was reading his book. It's one in a collection I picked up a while back and didn't know if it would be of interest. It's important that kids find things to read that they're interested in and we've been trying to help Nahuel find books he is interested in reading, but that he picked up this book on his own, without being coaxed or introduced. The expression and intensity with which he was reading in the car impressed me. A love for reading is obviously a cornerstone of a lifelong learning journey...

Along those lines, and not to steal Nahuel's thunder, Ada was excited to finish Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire this week. 

So at least for today I feel like we're doing something right. 

Apple Valley Escape

This week Palenque school has taken learning on the road for a little R&R and family time. Which to us means so much more discussion than normal because we have so many more things to look at and ask questions about! We came to a little hide away in Southern Utah called Apple Valley and have been spending most of our time enjoying the geology and red buttes in front of us. Our window looks out on Smithsonian Butte. A great introduction to everything we've been doing since arriving, basically diving into fossils and science! It seems to be our specialty lately. 

On the first morning here there was snow melting and large redrock boulders just a few feet from our window. Ada and I watched the little birds drinking from the melting snow. On top of the rocks were rounded out bowls where the snow melted creating natural bird baths. Ada watched and wondered what kind of bird they were, she thinks they're finches. I think we'll find that out today...But it opens up the question of how the natural bowl forms were created...Possibly we had just watched how it happens.

We brought bikes with us, as the weather is generally better here. Ada has fixed up her bike all on her own, adding a basket and lights and adjusting the seat. And Leonardo got a new bike! His previous tricycle was just too small and had a flat when we left home so he acquired one when we went to Walmart. It's blue! His favorite color. 

Astor has been spending most of his time Rockhounding! Papa created an adventure kit with a small hammer/axe, magnifying glass, brush and carrying case. We've been observing the sandstone and used our tools to open up a few, noting that younger sandstone holds more moisture and even found some fungus or the beginning of a lichen growing on the inside of the sandstone on one of our hikes. 

Nahuel is enjoying all of the games and things the house we're renting has to offer. Foosball, pingpong, legos...and a game of Chess with Papa. Astor got in on the fun with chess too and has been learning some new chess skills practicing on Papa's tablet so he can beat Papa some day.

Yesterday we took to the hills and found a nice secluded spot to hike, It's great to be here in the winter when the only people out enjoying the scenary are the locals. We went to Water Canyon, where we had most of the hike to ourselves. But one of the fellow hikers was a beautiful chestnut horse! Talking to it's owner we found out that he was a rescued mustang that is well versed in climbing canyon rocks and though sweaty, was obedient in the narrow jagged passageways. 

We took a few pauses in our hike to look at the rock formations and discuss how different things were made, specifically the rocks that had lichens vs. those that didn't, why certain rocks had slanted seems while others were horizontal. 

We discussed plant materials and helped the kids understand the different things they found. Astor found 'porcupine needles' that were actually from the ponderosa pine trees. Leonardo found 'rose bushes' that had thorns that were actually blackberry brambles.  

It's hard to explain what it has meant for our family to live around farms and animals. In actuality we're from in-town and miss the sounds, smells, and quick access to convenience and diversity. But living out where no one has heard of our town and half the people who live here seems like they're trying to disappear from the world, has it's perks. We've gotten a real feel for a few things we've been curious about and wanted to learn and one of those things was goats. 

Now that Christmas has passed...tis the season for kidding. Lots and lots of kidding. We've been lucky over the last 2 years to experience a small heard that is housed next door. We've seen more animals die than we like to remember but we've seen plenty live to learn a bit more every time of what it takes to raise a few animals. We don't have more than our small flock of Chickens, a dog and 3 cats at the moment. But we're lucky to learn with some animals that aren't ours. It's all preparation for later when we can find a place for our own goats and such... When we moved here we wanted to teach our kids how to learn from things in a hands on way and we're having that experience every time we go next door. This isn't the first experience like this and it won't be the last, but every time it's special. 

Two nights ago Astor was called upon to help guide the little goats out of this tiny little coop-house. He fit and the goats needed to find their mothers. But while we were there trying to understand goat behavior there was a little guy who was barely holding on. He couldn't walk and he couldn't fight or defend himself for milk. His mother was a first time kidder and she hardly knew what to do either. Astor and I decided to try to help the little guy. I held onto his mother and Astor brought the baby over to try to nurse without the other goats pushing them one way or another. The baby got a belly. Maybe not full. But he got some. He was so week he couldn't even walk on his legs, but on the back of his hooves doubled over. We were delighted to see that The little guy made it. This is him(Teagan) nursing from his mam (Meagan). He  seems like he'll be strong and we'll be happy to watch him grow and frolick... Another fun thing is that last year we met Meagan when she was just a few hours old. He name comes from her coloring of nutmeg. 

We watched the goats and saw another little baby, scrawny and bleeding. A mother goat picked him up on her horns and threw him off. Mother goats know their kids by smell. This little guy is called third wheel because he doesn't quite belong. Nobody will let him nurse, he's skinny, his ears are puffy from frost bite and he might not make it through another night. That's the reality you have to accept when you have lots of animals around. Some are stronger than others. Some will die. 

But we weren't going to leave before we tried to him get a belly full of milk to help him get through the night. Astor was very enthusiastic about helping. He didn't get to do what he really wanted, which was to milk a goat, but he did something more important. Babies can suck much more effectively than we can milk their mothers and there will be more opportunities to milk the goats to come. Astor didn't hesitate to be right at the mothers hooves holding that baby even when she pushed and fought not to let the baby suck and he could have been kicked. He was pushed over a time or two...

Astor tried to get this friendly goat to take the baby... not so much luck. Third wheel sucked on Astor's ears, nibbled on his chin and posed for a picture. 

Astor and 3rd wheel.

Helping 3rd Wheel get a few sips of milk from somebody elses mother...

In other School News:

Ada has been using the typewriter she asked for from Santa Claus to write an adventure story of a wizard. We' played a train game with lot's of geography, strategy and math that will hopefully help her to think of plots twists!

Nahuel has been doing lots of research about different trains and working on his train table Today he helped Papa to change the air filter in the car!

Leonardo got a few awesome books from Santa and has loved having them read to him. He has difinitively decided that he likes the stories that are longer better than the ones that don't have very many things happen...His favorite is Lucia the Luchadora. It's about a girl who learns a special skill from her abuela (grandmother) and her name is Lucia and Leonardo has an abuela named Lucia!