So far so good.

Chiara in her Steiner gym clothes

The first week of school went very well for Nick, Laura and Chiara. On Thursday I went to a curriculum meeting at Steiner. Chiara’s teachers seam very nice. Nick and Laura are enjoying school, they are going into the classroom without any problems. Let’s hope it continues.

First day of school

Chiara on the first day of school

Nick, Laura and Ella

Yesterday was Chiara’s first day of school. It went well. She likes her new teacher and her fellow students. I think she will be quite happy.
Today was the twins first day. They had no problems going in and saying goodbye to me and when I picked them up they were both quite cheerful.

3rd Goat post--I really loved that trip

This is another view of the cliffs above the camp.



Here we are searching for artifacts. We found a lot of stone that had been chipped. Shawn once found an arrowhead in that spot.



This is another view of the canyon on the second day.



This is Stubbs' pack. We brushed the goats so the packs wouldn't rub.




This is the arch you can see in the top picture.

This post should follow the next one.

Here we have:

Hiking into the canyon the first day



A piece of sandstone showing how fine the layers are



Ashwani and Shawn loading the goats on the second morning



The remain of an ancient dwelling



The canyon from below

Back to the trip west

This post is about our goat trip.
We met Shawn Miller and his goats, Klassy, Tex, Stubbs and Nubes at Escalante Outfitters in Utah. He drove us to the beginning of our hike. Shawn walked in the front with three of the goats, then us, then Nubes, then Ashwani and whoever else was in the back. If anyone got too far behind, Nubes would stop and bleat at them motivationally. We hiked down into Escalante canyon to Shawn's camp by the river. It was rustic, as no permanent structures are allowed in the monument. It's federal land. We stopped a lot to rest and look at the view. Shawn knew a lot about the history of the area. Of particular interest were the mule trains that traveled there (insane) and the early Pueblo people whose buildings and petroglyphs are still all over the place. They were there between 800 and 1300 AD.
After we set up the camp, we went for a walk to look at some of the sites. We took the goats with us, as they pine if they are left behind. We saw some pottery and tools and a lot of stone that had been worked. There are stones around there that were brought from enormous distances. The rocks were really beautiful, but of course one wouldn't collect on a national monument, so we left it all there.
Shawn made tortellinis and we went hunting scorpions with flashlights after dark. Apparently they glow, but they didn't. I didn't sleep very well, but I didn't care, because I was comfortable, and there was so much light just from stars that I could look out the tent door at this remarkable sandstone cliff right opposite. It would be difficult to exaggerate the beauty of that place. And there was no one else anywhere near.
In the morning we hiked down the river through the canyon. The cliffs were really strange and beautiful. We actually met another human--he had dayhiked in, and was very startled to see us wading through the river with pack goats. We forded the river many times. Shawn's wife had left his truck at the other end, so there was no uphill hiking.
The pictures are as follows: (I will include more as another post.)
Ashwani with Nubes, the cliffs by the camp, the camp, the Escalante river

Volunteer

This pumpkin seems to have sprouted from last year's seeds. (I tossed them over the edge of the deck.) When we got back from CA, there it was growing through the deck steps and onto the lawn. I mowed around it. Now, how to keep it from rotting before Halloween? You can see that the leaves are already a bit moldy. It's a big one.

A new look

I have added the lake photos to my Flckr.