Spring is here!

The golondrinas have arrived and with their arrival the official arrival of Spring in Lomas. Three years ago several pairs of barn swallows built their nests on our patio. Our house is evidently in the middle of their breeding grounds. They have returned every year since then to mate and raise their young. It is a joy to witness this process every year and we are really looking forward to a new batch of chicks.

Happy Birthday Tiffany!

Tiffany had her birthday party this weekend. She had a great time celebrating with her friends.

Happy Birthday, Princess!

Journey North Data

The data has been coming in for the last couple of weeks for the Journey North project. The kids have been calculating and graphing the potoperiods for each of the mystey classes. They have also been studying how the earth's rotation and the tilt of its axis causes seasonal changes.

Butter Lava

Alex is studying Venus in his astronomy class. Because Venus has many active volcanoes he "made" some lava to illustrate how rocks go from a solid to a liquid state and then back again to a solid state.

Farmer Boy

Alex had a problem; his seedlings were outgrowing the lighthut. Luckily, it is spring here and he was able to plant them outside. He began by picking a spot for his garden and preparing the soil. This was no easy task. The man who helps us with the yard lent a helping hand.

Alex, then planned out his garden.

He prepared the seedlings for planting.

He then put them into the soil.

Finally, Alex put up some chicken wire to keep out pests.

We are hoping for a lot of sunshine.

How many?!

Alex joined a football team and he loves it! They workout 2 hours a day 5 days a week. I am really impressed because they do this in the hot sun and he hasn't complained once.

Popo

Popo has been puffing today. It shot out a very large cloud this morning which has almost completely dissipated at this point. Nonetheless, it gives one pause. My theory which is based on rationalization and not science is that as long as the volcano is open and not pugged up everything will be fine. Also, according to CENAPRED (Mexico's National Center for the Prevention of Disasters), our home is located outside of the "danger" zone. Still, I am constantly reminded of nature's immense power and my need to be humble before it.

Butterfly Migration

Monarch butterflies travel from Canada and the United States each year to overwinter in central Mexico. We have wanted to see this phenomenon for several years and this year we finally got the chance. We went to Zitacuaro, Michoacan and it was amazing. We hired a guide and rode horses up to the top of the mountains where we were treated to a view of thousands of butterflies preparing for the return northern journey.

Rhinovirus

Isn't this beautiful? Looks can be decieving! You may be wondering what it is.

Well, it's the rhinovirus. We have chosen to study it this week because it has chosen to study us - all of us.
The kids put up a good fight, but as many of you may know, there isn't much one can do.

We are resting and increasing our intake of fluids.