The Joys of Being Your Own Boss

In the past few years I have learned the joys of self employment far outweigh the pains... sleeping late, working in my pajamas and pouring a glass of wine before sitting down to my desk... the value of these things does not go lost on me! But having the freedom to take a couple days away from the computer to join Asher and his class on a school field trip without having to ask *anyone* for the day off- now that is priceless.

Last week I spent two days with Asher's six grade class at the Bellingham School District's Environmental Learning Center and I had an absolute blast! A couple days of fresh forest air, running on trails and exploring the natural world with my kid and his classmates was completely restorative. Of course I brought my camera along to document the kids' experiences as well as the flora & fauna of the forest. My eyes were wide open for two days straight with so many amazing species to document! I thought I'd share some of the natural wonders I saw with you...

Over the course of the two days we learned all about the biodiversity of the forest... how to identify different kinds of ferns and rocks, which plants are edible and how to tell by its macroinvertebrates whether or not a stream's water is clean among many other fascinating lessons. Our group's final activity of the two day adventure was the infamous "mud walk." We'd been hearing kids in other groups talk about it since lunch time on the first day and were very anxious for our turn in the big pit of mud. We started the activity by losing our shoes & socks, donning blind folds and lining up single file, arms on each others' shoulders to guide each other over the trail. The purpose of the activity was to show us how reliant upon our vision we humans are by forcing us to use our other senses as guides. I found it very curious how much more it hurts to step on a rock or stub your toe on a root when you can't anticipate doing so by seeing it first! Our final destination was a 12 inch deep mud pit through which we took turns wading... even me! I've not walked barefoot in the mud since I was Asher's age and found the experience surprisingly satisfying : ) That's Asher, encouraging his classmate on his turn through the infamous mud pit!Mmmmm I never thought I'd include mud between my toes as one of the joys of being your own boss : )