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May 2010 Wagons Ho- Ian

Ian participated in Wagon Ho this year. It is a great program designed for 3-4th graders in Idaho.
Held in Veteran’s Park, the Wagon Master, Cal Clevenger, and his wife Marla, provide an authentic round of experiences from the old west designed to entertain and teach the children.

• Pump water into a bucket, then haul it across the back forty to wash clothes in a wash tub with lye soap and a
• Try to catch a spark with a flint and a rope coated in “bear grease”
• Use an eight foot crosscut saw and a bow saw to cut logs for our fire
• Shake fresh cream until it becomes butter
• Cut the carrots and potatoes with sharp knives to make our campfire stew
• Lasso a calf
• Use a hot branding iron to brand our property
• Stamp a leather “Concho”
• Wash dishes in pots of water heated over the campfire
• Sit in an old-fashioned school desk with an inkwell and write a journal entry

View the entire photo album here:
May 2010 Wagons Ho Ian

Troubled waters?


Cute Condor Couple Moves In

One of the perks of living in Idaho is the amazing bird watching opportunities and the fact that we are the home to a large population of birds of prey. If you have never seen a hawk soar and scream or seen a peregrine falcon perched along the road, you are truly missing out. Idaho is home to the World Center for Birds of Prey (it is on the south end of Cole Rd in Boise and well worth the drive).






This past weekend they hosted a Grand opening for the new Condor Habitat. I am a Condor fan, I think they get a bad rap because of their humble looks. Condors are very interesting birds. They are extremely helpful in eliminating waste from carrion ( think about how you love to see road kill on the side of the road..eww.Thanks for taking care of it Condors!!). They are also huge! They have the largest wingspan of any bird of prey-at 9 feet. They are larger that the bald eagle and way smarter! The most important fact is they are a endangered species so the work at the Center is very important.

The two birds now housed at the center will be used to bred new Condors to release into the wild. It is all very exciting!







If you'd like to learn more about Condors or other birds of prey check out the World Center for Birds of Prey in Boise, ID. Admission is only $7 General and $5 for kids. It is a great family outing or homeschool fieldtrip. They also have some great educational programs you can schedule for school, homeschool, or scout trips.

Also check out the educational resources provided on their website.

Below is our FAVORITE Condor book, the illustrations are incredible.

Cute Condor Couple Moves In

One of the perks of living in Idaho is the amazing bird watching opportunities and the fact that we are the home to a large population of birds of prey. If you have never seen a hawk soar and scream or seen a peregrine falcon perched along the road, you are truly missing out. Idaho is home to the World Center for Birds of Prey (it is on the south end of Cole Rd in Boise and well worth the drive).





This past weekend they hosted a Grand opening for the new Condor Habitat. I am a Condor fan, I think they get a bad rap because of their humble looks. Condors are very interesting birds. They are extremely helpful in eliminating waste from carrion ( think about how you love to see road kill on the side of the road..eww.Thanks for taking care of it Condors!!). They are also huge! They have the largest wingspan of any bird of prey-at 9 feet. They are larger that the bald eagle and way smarter! The most important fact is they are a endangered species so the work at the Center is very important.

The two birds now housed at the center will be used to bred new Condors to release into the wild. It is all very exciting!






If you'd like to learn more about Condors or other birds of prey check out the World Center for Birds of Prey in Boise, ID. Admission is only $7 General and $5 for kids. It is a great family outing or homeschool fieldtrip. They also have some great educational programs you can schedule for school, homeschool, or scout trips.

Also check out the educational resources provided on their website.

Below is our FAVORITE Condor book, the illustrations are incredible.

Cute Condor Couple Moves In

One of the perks of living in Idaho is the amazing bird watching opportunities and the fact that we are the home to a large population of birds of prey. If you have never seen a hawk soar and scream or seen a peregrine falcon perched along the road, you are truly missing out. Idaho is home to the World Center for Birds of Prey (it is on the south end of Cole Rd in Boise and well worth the drive).


This past weekend they hosted a Grand opening for the new Condor Habitat. I am a Condor fan, I think they get a bad rap because of their humble looks. They are very interesting birds. They are extremely helpful in eliminating waste from carrion ( think about how you love to see road kill on the side of the road..eww.Thanks for taking care of it Condors). The are also huge! They have the largest wingspan of any bird of prey-at 9 feet. They are larger that the bald eagle and way smarter! The most important fact is they are a endangered species so the work at the Center is very important.

The two birds now housed at the center will be used to bred new Condors to release into the wild. It is all very exciting!



If you'd like to learn more about Condors or other birds of prey check out the World Center for Birds of Prey in Boise, ID. Admission is only $7 General and $5 for kids. It is a great family outing or homeschool fieldtrip. They also have some great educational programs you can schedule for school, homeschool, or scout trips.

Also check out the educational resources provided on their website.

Below is our FAVORITE Condor book, the illustrations are incredible.

Education is an Atmosphere: Parent and Child

 art work by Mary_Anne Feely,


The atmosphere in which a child gathers his unconscious ideas of right living emanates from his parents. Every look of gentleness and tone of reverence, every word of kindness and act of help, passes into the thought-environment, the very atmosphere which the child breathes; he does not think of these things, may never think of them, but all his life long excite that vague appetency...toward things sordid or things lovely, things earthly or divine. 

-Charlotte Mason, Parents and Children (Union Maine: Charlotte Mason Research and Supply Co., 1993) 32-33.

CM Podcast: Catherine Levison

Over at Blog Talk radio there is an archived WATCHtalk episode of an interview with Catherine Levison. There are some great ideas for narration in the episode. It is great to hear someone so passionate about CM homeschooling talk about how it has worked in their family.

A Charlotte Mason Homeschool- Join Diana as she interviews Catherine Levison, long-time homeschooling mother and author of, "A Charlotte Mason Education." Catherine will share practical ideas as well as concepts that you can put to use immediately, regardless of your style of  teaching. Don't miss it!