Well folks, we have lived in Evergreen for a year! If you didn't already know...WE LOVE IT! We were warned by EVERYBODY down the hill(for all y'all out of staters "down the hill" refers to the communities East of Evergreen which are also lower in elevation than Evergreen such as Denver and it's suburbs) that the weather up here is extreme. We were ready for anything...but we didn't need to be. It's not that different than down the hill. It may be 5-10 degrees cooler up here but not always. In the summer we are thankful for this fact. We don't have air conditioning and we never felt we needed it last summer. There isn't that much more snow up here. The snow still usually melts a couple days after it falls. We were also told that an AWD vehicle is necessary, also not true. It's helpful but not needed. I guess since we grew up in Wisconsin and New York, winter weather doesn't phase us a bit. Especially since I never owned an AWD vehicle and Wisconsin is covered in ice for half the year(ok, I'm exaggerating a little but that's what it feels like when you live there). The winters, even at 7600 feet in elevation, are a breeze compared to the northern states we are used to. We hope we never have to move out of this amazing community. I'm so glad we trusted our instincts and started to house hunt "up the hill"!
In other news, I have completed all of the requirements and training for my CAPPA Lactation Educator Certification. I mailed everything in and now I wait 4-6 weeks to see if they are going to certify me. I created a VERY basic website for my business, Mountain Mother's Milk:
If I get certified I will be updating and adding to it. I'm planning to teach a monthly class (unless the demand is higher) starting in June to expecting parents. I will also do in home visits for new parents in our community if they are having issues with breastfeeding or need support. I will be doing this in the evenings and weekends since we are unschoolers and I spend all week with the kids. I also started volunteering a few hours a week at the Mama 'Hood in Denver: http://www.themamahooddenver.com I hold and weigh babies at their breastfeeding support group. I have learned SO much from the IBCLC's at the 'Hood. Maybe I'll start getting paid after I'm a CLE?
Speaking of unschooling! I have to touch on the one comment I get all the time about homeschooling/unschooling...here it is: "How are they going to get the social aspect that going to school would give them"? I can't believe people are still asking this. Really? School gives them social interaction?! In school they see the same people EVERYDAY! They sit in desks in the same building day after day unable to socialize for the majority of the day. They are surrounded by mainly their peers - only learning to interact with people their own age and only when told they can speak. Now that I've been away from the town I grew up in I realize I didn't really have anything in common with most of the kids I went to school with but that's who I spent everyday with for 12 years. There's also not a lot of choices in most schools. Sports tend to be the main focus. I was miserable doing competitive sports. I would rather spend all day in my garden or hiking! I want our kids to have the opportunity to try a lot of different things, activities they are interested in, not activities I want them to do. We are also raising them agnostic so they can choose their own religion or no religion.
Also, I dislike the term homeschooling - because we aren't home most of the time. We are out in the world meeting new people on a daily basis, people of ALL ages. We go places and see new things. We couldn't be more social. We learn through play and experience. Learning isn't forced on us with assignments and tests, we enjoy learning and look forward to it. I say "we" because I am learning so much through unschooling. My education was memorization and testing in a traditional public school so after years of detox from that system I finally enjoy learning and don't look at it as a chore. I still have nightmares I am back in school, stressed about finishing all my homework and getting those A's! It took being away from that messed up "system" to find what I'm really passionate about. My negative experience with school isn't the reason we are unschooling. There's hundreds of reasons why we choose to keep them out of the system. The fact that the kids go home with homework after sitting inside most of the day is insane to me -the average amount of homework an American child has is 4 hours a night. Kids should be outside or doing things they love after spending all day in classes. There's never time for them to figure out what they love or what career would make them happy. There are tests you take in school to tell you what you should do when you graduate but careers such as; Midwife, Lactation Consultant, Childbirth educator - those were never on that list. I wonder why most Americans are unhappy with the career they chose. We are exposed to so little in the traditional school system. I didn't even know what a doula was until I moved to Bozeman!
Ella goes to play with other homeschool/unschool kids at TLC:
I have spoken about TLC on here many times but we can't get enough! The kids are all different ages - preschool through high school kids all mixed together. She is surrounded by these amazingly kind and wonderful kids and adults at TLC. These kids can have a conversation with me, interesting conversations! I have never met kids in traditional school that will start a conversation like these kids and not be awkward. These kids know how to talk to people of all ages, they are so SOCIABLE. At TLC they spend their days creating and exploring. The school is a democracy so they get an equal say as the mentors in what they do. The place is always filled with talking and laughter! I even get there early for pick up some days just to be surrounded by the positive energy.
I could ramble about TLC all day. With that being said, I hope TLC sticks around for years to come. They can always use donations ; ) They offer the program at such a low rate that they need to rely on outside help to stay open. They accept monetary donations, supplies, or donation of your time.
Videos:
I took most of these while Ella is at TLC so I don't have a lot of Ella videos this month ; (
Spring has arrived!
"Relaxing" against a fence
Elk Jam
Lots of girls at TLC that day! They put on a play and then watched it on Miss Emilie's phone.
Packing to spend a night at Nana's
We (as in we I mean Mark ; ) have been doing a lot in the yard with power tools. Gordon is quite skilled with a drill.
Sick boy...again! These spring colds are hitting us hard this year. It's the first spring I'm not breastfeeding them so they aren't as protected against this crud.
30 seconds later he was out.
We poured plaster into deer tracks in our driveway
They came out better than I thought they would.
Our friend, Jonatan, visited from Sweden! Mark worked with Jonatan at NIST in Maryland. He has since moved back to Sweden. Jonatan had a conference in Colorado Springs so he came early and spent a few days with us. The kids loved him! We hope to visit him in Sweden someday.
Ella took some beautiful pictures while at Red Rocks.
Jonatan treated us to Swedish pancakes. Yummmmy!
I told Gordon to get into bed and I would be right in. I walked in the dark room and said "where are you", he replied "I"m all snuggled in". He crawled in next to sleeping Ella. It was pretty darn cute.
Finally coloring eggs, I have been behind on Easter festivities since I've been sick!
Nana hid baskets for them at her house this year. I was so sick that I never went to the store to buy anything for their baskets!
Nana lives with Jane and takes care of her. Jane's family invited us over for Easter day. It was so nice to spend the day outside talking with nice people. The kids had two little boys to play with and they had a blast! Jane's granddaughter is friends with a bunch of my homeschooling friends and she also birthed her boys at home and was involved in Le Leche League so we had plenty to talk about ; )
Easter egg hunt.
Gordon's basket was in the bathtub - Ella's was in the closet but she found it before I could get a pic
Easter egg hunt
Easter day squirt gun fight
After the water fight
The first thunderstorm of the season!
Aunt Shirley and "Grandpa" Ken (Gordon calls him that) sent Gordon some lizards and a new shirt for his birthday. He gave one to Ella so they can play lizards together.
Gordon has been making new friends while Ella is at TLC
Fun at TLC
Miss Emilie gave Gordon 3 flowers for his 3rd birthday, he was so proud ; )
He wanted bacon and spaghetti for his birthday meals so that's what he got!
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