For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

The Art of Exploring!

Lots of kids(17 to be exact), 4 moms, lots of space to roam, lots of places to search, good camaraderie, a picnic lunch and very hot temperatures make for a very full day of adventure and exploration. We had such a great time with all of our homeschool friends. It was such a treat to get to share fun experiences with friends who have similar interest. The apprentice explorers are an amazing group of young people, and I cannot brag on them enough. We got to witness friendship at its finest! These explorers were kind, considerate, compassionate, very courteous, and helpful to everyone around them. They looked out for one another and took care of all the little ones without having to be asked. I am so proud of all of them. Way to go guys!

Every good explorer needs water to drink, a "soft and cushy" ride, and a momma to take care of every necessity

The Amazing Exploration Team....I think these are "swallows"... we loved observing the design and architecture of these nest, and it was fun to see the birds entering and exiting their homes. How far can you skip rocks?...

...then, there were the cave explorers...

The creek... we didn't see any creatures in this part of the creek...

...unless you count these two as creatures... oh, wait! They are part of the exploration team...


A very beautiful, hot and sweaty explorer... More rocks to skip across the creek...

What do they see down there near the water?... nothing but more rocks

Mandy and friend... they are in dance class together

Exploring at the "conservation station"... they grow different types of grasses on the roof of this building.... (Love the big brother giving his baby sister a ride!)

More creek to explore... they were having so much fun skipping rocks that they sometimes forgot to look for creatures.



Making the trek up a cliff.......and then back down again... (the older kiddos were so thoughtful and sweet...each helping the littles up and down the cliff)

Can she climb it?...yes, she can!A beavers dam... looks like they had just begun construction...

Beauty is very important in the world of exploration...these girls pass with flying colors.

The place of our outing today was a fantastic place to explore nature. We were unable to explore it all in one outing. We will have to make several more exploration trips. To all our firends out there... we have another fun place to take you to see...So, ya'll come for a visit.(** Ms.Jill, we missed you guys today. We promise to plan another outing of further exploration when you all can come too.)

5 comments:

Kim said...

Oh man....I wish I was there with ya. It looks like a great time of exploring.

Looking forward to spending time with the spectacular "S" fam :-D

((HUGS)),
Kim

Susan said...

We need to go again on a cooler day!

Linda said...

what a great trip for you and all the kids! glad you are surviving the heat.

Sarah said...

Looks like a great day! And some great kids!!!

Blessings,
Sarah

Jill and Rick said...

Kim, I hated missing the outing again! (& guess what. Annie refused to go to gymnastics. She's been struggling with wanting to go ever since she had the substitute instructor. We've switched around classes and going to try them all on Monday nights now - that would free up Tuesday mornings! - but they're bumping Annie up to the 5 yr old class, along with Allie, to see if that will make it easier for her to go. Say a little prayer that they'll all be brave enough to go to their new classes Monday night!)