Blueberry Pie and the Resident Captain celebrated by taking a road trip to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore on the southern shore of Lake Superior in Michigan.
It was epic! The views kept coming and coming as they hiked and visited the local attractions.
It was full of adventure too.
They met Sasquatch, and they saw a real porcupine on the trail.
They found several new brands of root beer to sample, so Blueberry Pie was super excited about that.
Blueberry Pie took a dip in the 46⁰ water, but the Resident Captain decided against it.
John Mark, Julie, Marcus, Me (and Skeeter), Blueberry Pie
In 2020, we were supposed to have a family reunion, but we had to postpone it due to covid restrictions. This year, when it was decided to postpone a second time, my dad reacted a huge group site at Aspen Grove so that any cousins who wanted to see each other and hike up Timp mountain could do so.
Matt and Pete
We had such a great time camping and hiking and visiting.
Mom and MarcusMarcus and LukeyDad, Uncle Verne, and Aunt ChristieCegan, Verna, John MarkSammy, Lukey, Kimberly, JimmyJohn Mark’s girls
I took the four littlest kids up to the waterfalls.
I almost took them up the wrong trail.Here we are at the correct trailhead. John Darrell and Matt made it up to Emerald Lake.
The 4 little kids and I made it to the second waterfall (which, I believe, is 2 miles, but felt much longer.)
Zeke took baby penguin steps all the way up, so it was 2 hours up, and we only made it because I bribed him and Skeeter with fruit snacks most of the way.
Banana Cream Pie and Apple Pie ended up hiking ahead with cousins because the twins and I were so slow.
Zeke kept asking me if I would carry him, and I kept saying “no.”
Here is a very hot and tired Zeke at the waterfallThe water was ice cold and refreshing.
Skeeter had a lot more trail left in his legs. When we got to the waterfall, he asked “Where is everybody?” I told him, “all the little kids have gone back down ahead of us. The big kids are going to the top.” “I want to go to the top,” says he. “It’s 5 more miles,” says me. Raising both fists in the air, he announced “I can do it!” (I considered it for about 2 seconds before I came to my senses and we headed back down to camp.
About 2/3 of the way back down, Zeke stopped a total stranger on the trail and asked super pitifully, “Would you carry me?”
I could tell that good-hearted guy was considering it 😂 😬 😬😬😬😬
I assured him we were fine and continued shepherding my boys down.
Sometimes it’s hard to tell on a hike if your 5 year old is actually tired or just bored. I think Zeke was actually tired.
Smiles at the Trailhead
The summit hikers’ report from the resident Captain
Great climb with the kiddos up Mt. Timpanogos, Utah elevation 11,752 ft. above sea level. This was a deceptively difficult climb, but we made it safely. The views were spectacular, and this ranks as the most scenic climb I have done. We hiked about 16 miles round trip and it took us about 14 hours.
First waterfallWe stopped at Emerald Lake where Pumpkin Pie and Peach Pie decided to stay at the lake while we continued. After looking up at what was still left to climb, I didn’t blame them. This mountain teases and tricks you. If you look at the top center, you can see a small white speck which is the shed at the summit.4 made it to the summit
This was the most difficult climb and tallest mountain that Cherry Pie and Key Lime Pie had attempted. Both of them did great.
Key Lime Pie was an amazing climber. She kept up with her uncles and made it all the way to the top. “I guess I inherited your climbing ability, Dad.”Cherry Pie adds her name to the list of summit champions.Going back down what is left of the glacier.
We decided to glissade down the snow field instead of hiking back down the trail. You can see the scale of the mountain by how small we look.
21 years ago he won my heart because he was personally kempt. All the other college boys were so slovenly in their personal dress, often grimy, and complained loudly if they had to dress up for anything. My guy was alway neat and clean, shirt always tucked in. He took pride in dressing well, and I knew I needed someone who would without complaint put on a sports coat and a tie and take me to concerts.
He valued education generally, and literature particularly, especially poetry and Shakespeare. It is really from him that I learned to love Shakespeare. Until then, I had liked Shakespeare on principle because smart people valued it, and I was smug about it because I didn’t struggle to read it the way my fellow high school classmates had.
But this guy had memorized Richard the V’s speech on St Crispin’s Day. We watched Kenneth Braunaugh Shakespeare films and every Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet movie available. I began to like Shakespeare because it was funny and real and insightful.
This guy read e e cumings and William Carlos Williams to me and wrote poetry to me in emails. I wrote poetry back to him, and he liked it.
He cared about astronomy.
We have been married for 21 years, and he is still kempt. If we are going out on a date—even if it’s just to get sushi at the sushi truck and sit at the park to eat it, he irons his shirt.
I have come to respect his integrity and honesty. He is honest even when it is inconvenient.
He quietly goes to work each day to provide for our family and encourages me to stay home with the children. He has 100% supported me in project homeschool, even talking me back into confidence when I have days when I’m convinced I failing and should just quit. When I’m worried and full of anxiety, he is great at asking me questions until I can calm down and discover a solution or realize that nothing is really wrong after all.
As requested by me so I can implement them in homeschool.
Ten reasoning abilities and habits of mind necessary for critical thinking:
Consciously raising the questions: what, how do we know?, why do we accept or believe?, what is the evidence for?
Being clearly or explicitly aware of gaps in available information.
Discriminating between observation and inference, between established fact and subsequent conjecture.
Recognizing that words are symbols for ideas no the ideas themselves.
Probing for assumptions (particularly the implicit, unarticulated) assumptions behind a line of reasoning.
Drawing inferences from data, observations, or other evidence and recognizing when firm inferences cannot be drawn.
Performing hypothetico-deductive reasoning; that is given a particular situation, applying relevant knowledge of principles and constraints and visualizing, in the abstract, the plausible outcomes that might result from various changes one can imagine to be imposed on the system.
Discriminating between inductive and deductive reasoning; that is, being aware when an argument is being made from the particular to the general or from the general to the particular.
Testing one’s own line of reasoning and conclusions for internal consistency and thus developing intellectual self-reliance.
Developing self-consciousness concerning one’s own thinking and reasoning processes
Monett Cub Run results: Blueberry Pie placed 3rd in his age division with a time of 25:06
The Man of the House won his age group with a time of 25:25!
(Blueberry Pie called his age group the “Neanderthal” age.)
In other news, Judging by the pile of butter knives on the counter this morning, my kids must have used a new knife for each peanut butter sandwich they made while I was gone.
At least they fed themselves. That’s a win for me.
Marvelous Pigs in Satin 