Upside Down - Nature - Etc.

Each day when we aren't on the road the kids are supposed to practice various stunts, tricks, exercises to keep themselves in shape and keep muscle memory. Since I am having everyone learn to stand on their head, walk on their hands and a couple of them learn flips, I thought it only fair that I at least try standing on my head.  It's been a while and I was a little shaky at first but this old fat man pulled it off.   OK when I rolled out I missed the mat and banged my tail-bone on the hardwood floor.   But other than a pain in the coccus, I'm well. I'm sure I will feel it tomorrow.  

The local state parks dept. has a special nature program for home schoolers once a month.  The kids get to learn about nature, conservationism, and animals. Today they got to use cool  microscopes to look up close at butterfly wings, feathers, plant stems, hair, bees faces, etc. Then they had a nature walk. The trail  was peppered with "taxidermed" animals like a rattle snake and a skunk and such. But we did get the treat of meeting a real deer. A doe in fact. She was within ten feet of us and cared less about us as she grazed.  

I loved the look of that old tree behind the kids so I had to have them pose with it.   I also learned a few things on the walk.  I often wondered what the name of a particular pine tree that grows abundantly around  here. Turns out to be the Foothill Pine.  And being from the Bay Area  I was used to the California Live Oak but I either forgot or never new the name of the Blue Oak that is all around the foothills here.  I Also learned about the Toyon, a red berry plant that grows around the area. In fact, it has a nick name, California Holly or Christmas Holly.  Early settlers found this abundant around the hills of the L.A. area and hence named that part of town Hollywood. Cool, huh?  Well the berries are edible  and are sweeter the older and drier the berries get.  The research on the Toyon lead me to a couple of other edible plants in California so I have to say it was a very educational day for me. And when society falls apart search me out and I will fix you a nice Toyon Tea a salad a week earlier you would have weed whacked and thrown away. 

Peek a boo. 

Real, stuffed skunk.  The guide even taught the kids a silly old skunk song from his childhood.  It was cute.   

Each month the kids are given rubber gloves and small garbage bags and they get a special treat if they bring it back filled with litter they picked up at the parks. (The kids are advised against picking up cigarette butts and other not so desirable things that can sometimes be found in a park.)

Olivia took this picture of Uncle JC.  The Magician of Paradise, CA. It was a while back but she insisted I down load the pictures from her camera today so here is one of them....and the next one with Amelia and Tater Tot.