climbed a mountain

Today we had a slightly windblown and scattered SpiralScouts meeting at our house; 2 new kiddos joined us and I felt the absence of 2 others sorely. After a cool science experiment involving warm milk, food coloring and dish detergent- the kids made calendars for the New Year and oohed and awed over one of the new kitties.

Afterwards we went to Maddie's birthday party. They have the most excellent creek and natural habitat just outside their back door. Grace and I had an terrific time on the hike. It was a grand adventure as we scrambled up banks and slid down dropoffs, using our walking sticks and encouraging each other.

Maddie really wanted to show us this "great view" and so we pushed on, leaving half of the party behind us. A little more than half way up we paused to take the above shot on my cell phone, Grace and the birthday girl high above the suburban neighborhood we had left below.

We made it to the summit (much further than I expected!) and then began the difficult part. Getting down is so much scarier than climbing up! We returned to the party secretly victorious- the mountain conquered.

We also met a family who fascinated me. They are travelling in an RV (well, a converted bus) - unschooling, living, learning, loving. I really want to learn more about their journey.