The day was beautiful! Altogether there were 18 of us homeschoolers out on the lake fishing, canoeing, and enjoying the mild February weather that we call “winter” out here in AZ! My son was even bold enough to jump in and give it a go…it was so very funny. He got about 5 steps in – took a 1 second pause and then did a quick 180 and high tailed it back! It was still just a little bit too cold! It felt like ice water. But for some reason my 2 year old had no problem wading and sitting in it! I could barely keep my feet in!
The hike was also very enjoyable (Jojoba trail). It was super well done and beautiful. I could tell the flowers were about to burst forth! We’ve had lots of rain so I’m looking forward to a great spring season of flowers, flowers, and more flowers. As we hiked on we saw lots of little caves that I’m sure all sorts of critters live in. And I enjoyed identifying the different trees, bushes, and cacti.
We even got some nature journaling in! Nature journaling is a fun way to express yourself artistically in the outdoors and each nature journal entry is like a little time capsule capturing and commemorating this event in time. It might just be about a bird or a particular flower, or tree. But it forces us to slow down, get some vitamin D, soak up the rays of the sun, and appreciate all that God has made. So often we don’t stop to smell the roses–or even notice them for that matter. Nature journaling is an intentional way to do just that – look, see, and study all the wonder and glory of God’s creation.
Today I was most impressed with the scenery and how beautiful it all was. The lake was serene. As blue as the sky. Because it was winter there were hardly any boaters. Sadly, we didn’t catch any fish, but that didn’t deter them any! There is a lot of strategy in getting the slow moving fish of the winter to bite–and where to find them. It just made the boys (and my husband) all the more determined to figure it out and try again!
