Can you believe December is already upon us? Seriously, just a few weeks ago I was organizing my children’s candy collection post trick or treat. Now with a belly full of turkey, gravy, and potatoes, I am wondering if my family could live without Christmas lights this year. Maybe it’s a good time to load our backpacks and hit the trail. Actually, anytime is a good time to load a backpack and hit the trail. So, if this is your first time hiking with children, allow me a moment of your time to bestow my humble, trial and error, realities from personal experience with you. Happy trails Not every ..read more

Throughout history, significant moments have been defined by an individuals ability to make a stand fueled by both bravery and the need for change. The very second that person rises above others and say, “no more” they have consciously decided something needs to be done. And so my segue for activism; a desire to make changes through multiple efforts in order to promote or make a change in society. Historically, activism has been used in many forms to initiate awareness and or change for a perceived greater good. Performed in a variety of ways we have seen activism take place in the streets, ec ..read more

At some point in our manly man lives we have heard of or partaken in the creation of a man cave. A place for men to go to do man stuff. According to Wikipidea, a mancave is a retreat in a home for male family members to do as they please without upsetting their wives. These activities include watching sports, gaming and pursuing personal hobbies. Furthermore, there are links on the internet explaining architectural design, etiquette and protocol for man caves. I guess I get it, once upon a time I too had those visions. For me, my idea was a place to set up my toolboxes, surround sound for the ..read more

If you are thinking about getting your children into the great outdoors or out on a hike and not sure where to begin logistically, then you came to the right place. Whether you yourself are a beginner or it’s time to dust off your own packs that went into storage since you became a parent, then you will want to keep reading. Get comfortable and allow me a moment of your time as I share some insights and realities from one parent to another. Father and son If you type “Hiking with Children” on any search engine, multiple options are returned. Including images of smiling children playing in the ..read more

Time to address a reality in our busy lives. That nesessary trip of grocery shopping. Well, if any of you are in my situation then you know what is next, taking the kiddos. But let this not be a painful trip, rather see it as another opportunity to engage and teach. Before starting a shopping trip, we first decide if the basket is a rocket ship, race car or helicopter. With the engines warmed up, off we go, first entering the Cucurbitaceae section. Here is where we talk about the factors that determine which of these melons are going home with us. Picking one up, I explain to my two year old d ..read more

If I had to choose one topic to ever blog about, the subject would be about getting children into the outdoors. Not just the backyards and parks (great start) but into the woods and mountains and deserts. An environment where they get wet, hot, cold and my favorite, muddy (not really). In fact, many researchers and educators are finding that outdoors time has multiple far-reaching and lasting benefits. These findings and reports can be found at the Harvard Graduate School of Education by authors like Ben Wild and Erica Fine. The learning opportunities are endless and are being incorporated int ..read more

“Space, the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Her five-year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before.” Can you believe this opening television monologue has been famous for over 50 years? Since 1966 Star Trek has opened each series with these words. Who would of known that these words stand true today. Alien attack ?? My family and I recently attended a James Webb Space Telescope Night hosted by the Montrose County Library. And wow, the event was an eye opener that both reignite ..read more

Yesterday, Orion, Cassi and I worked on a copy of Scholastics “My Big World with Clifford.” Inside we dug deep into the parts of an apple; the skin, the flesh and down to the pips, not to be confused with peeps. Appleology Regardless, as we were talking about what animals would eat an apple that fell to the ground like birds and worms, a learning opportunity began to form in my head. What a great moment to compare the layers of an apple to other areas of science. Pipology First, we compared the apple to a human body starting with layers of the skin. The epidermis, the dermis, then the cutaneou ..read more

Yesterday, Orion, Cassi and I worked on a copy of Scholastics “My Big World with Clifford.” Inside we dug deep into the parts of an apple; the skin, the flesh and down to the pips, not to be confused with peeps. Appleology Regardless, as we were talking about what animals would eat an apple that fell to the ground like birds and worms, a learning opportunity began to form in my head. What a great moment to compare the layers of an apple to other areas of science. Pipology First, we compared the apple to a human body starting with the skin. The epidermis, the dermis, then the cutaneous fat laye ..read more

“Hey look, a cornfield, lets go,” I exclaimed while thinking in the back of my mind, this is exactly how every horror story starts. Regardless, we proceeded, telling myself hah, it won’t happen to us. Scared daddy First into the maze, despite the horrifying screams (children laughing) echoing down the false routes. Stepping over skeletons of previous adventurers who had given up hope in search of riches, we pushed forward. Then after wandering for hours I started to grow weak and hungry, on the verge of giving up all hope, I screamed WHY? WHY? WHY? did we enter. Out of nowhere, Orion my son, g ..read more