A Life Transformed: Family at home

This week we took Rosie out of school for a day to spend with family at home. In our life at the moment there aren't many days when all four of us have a whole day together. Either Ian is working, or I'm working, or there is a race or some training session that is important for Ian to participate in. Thursday happened to be a day when neither of us was required at work and training was short and early - a perfect day for Rosie to spend with us.
We also believe that a day spend in nature, with family, leads to greater holistic learning than a day spent as school. That's not to say that we don't want her at school at all. There are definite positives for her being there too. Its just that our balance lies in a bit of both.
So we began our day with a trip to the mountain bike park across the road where we set up our play tepee (sown by yours truly), listened to the Kookaburras laughing at us, watched kangaroos and Crimson Rosellas through our binoculars and did some painting. It was overcast and cool, but the girls enjoyed exploring the grass, hills, forest and mud. One great thing about living in Mount Beauty is the proximity of bushland to our home - with only a 5 minute walk we were in the bush, with lovely views, wild native animals and flora.
After a play back at home, we had lunch, Rosie practiced her violin and the words she's working on at school at the moment, then we spent the afternoon in the garden pruning and fertilising fruit trees and veggies and improving the chicken pen (for our adventurous chooks). Sometimes the girls helped, sometimes they played in the sandpit or in Rosie's 'outdoor circus' that she's constructed, or in the fairy garden. It was free, unstructured time in the garden - so worthwhile to the development of creativity and identity.