Unschooling James and Adam

    It's already our fifth day and we were really hoping for a waterfalls! So here we were in Gloria, Oriental Mindoro, after quite a ride along the scenic rough roads with views of vegetable farms, native huts, and rice fields with balatong/mung beans planted this summer season as an alternate crop.      We finally found the right place to park our car and arranged a good deal (only P100) with our guide. The boys did not even ask the question "Matagal pa ba?", which is the Filipino counterpart of  "Are we there yet?" during our hike of around 45 minutes. We took it as a sign that they were enjoying the breath-taking trail as much as we did. We cannot believe this experience, walking deep in the mountains, deep enough that we were between roots of giant trees. It was cold and we felt small and vulnerable, and honestly, that's when I convinced myself that we are an adventurous family. I liked that! But the best part was of course, the waterfall itself! ...

     Our two-day stay in Bulalacao can be described with two words, peace and quiet. Simple, but just the right things and the right amount we needed.       On our fourth day, we had a little walk just outside the resort to have a good view of the sea with our breakfast. We saw some goats, feasting on leaves from the trees by the shore, crabs walking sideways, and beautiful sand patterns left by the ripples of last night's quiet waves. My husband and I had a few peaceful moments under the mango trees where we enjoyed some reading while the boys enjoyed floating on the silent waters.          It was an added bonus when we discovered that there were clams, edible ones, so we started digging for our dinner's clam soup!

     While enjoying our ride, Daddy saw a port and was curious, so we stopped to explore like we usually do and it was just the perfect time to enjoy some snacks so we bought some chips at the local sari-sari store as well. As we were licking our salty fingers, we saw some mangroves or bakawan, lining up a portion of the shore. Here are some pictures of what we discovered and enjoyed next.      We walked along the white shore, soaking in the unbelievable sight composed of mangroves, white dead corals mixed in the sand, and clean and clear water. It was definitely a stop worth taking!      When we reached a certain point, we found out that there are sea guards who are more than willing to take us to a cave. The tide was high, so we had to walk in knee-deep water, which made the experience quite relaxing and memorable.      We learned that the Mangyan Burial Cave is the resting place of some skulls and bone...

     Sleeping was a challenge, with our tent's broken zipper, mosquitoes bugged us even after generously applying citronella repellent on our skin. It was also uncomfortable sleeping on a mat (banig) with a bumpy surface underneath. So our first missions on our list today were having our tent repaired and raking the sand under our tents. Daddy took care of both errands as I cook and look after the kids swimming with their new friends. After a while, I noticed that James and Adam were left alone and later found out that the other boys went to the rock formation at the end of the shore. I am amazed that my kids were able to decide for themselves and say no when they are not interested and they know how to listen to their intuition when something might be dangerous for them.      In the afternoon, James had his first diving lesson. He loves swimming and has tried snorkeling before, but this was his first formal diving class with a licensed instructor, Kuya...

     People from different cultures celebrate Easter for different reasons and in different ways. However, for our family, this Easter Sunday happened to be Daddy's birthday and the first day embarking on our adventures in Oriental Mindoro.      Everyone was excited for this trip, I guess too excited that we had forgotten breakfast at home! We made a stop to look at Naujan Lake from the town of Socorro, giving us an amazing view from the top of the mountain. It was just a perfect place to have our first meal and then pfff! We realized noone picked up the pot of rice with some hard-boiled eggs. My hubby asked me if we're going to bring the pot and I assumed that he picked it up on the way out after I said yes. We were so frustrated with this setback early on our trip, especially because we were already hungry and we had already imagined having a warm bowl of rice with our weird favorite, mashed eggs mixed with cane vinegar. Plus, we had to cook rice for...

     I read an article online about a unique lifestyle of a family raising a daughter on a boat and how it made an impact. I shared a few lines from the article to my husband and he asked me something in the line of "how can we do the same for the boys?" Apparently, we don't own a boat or have the necessary skills to live that way but I think I understood what he meant when he asked the question. I think he wanted to know more about the ways we can provide risky yet meaningful experiences for our children, how we can foster the same enthusiasm for adventures, or how we can explore more and discover new things. We have been trying our best to provide a variety of activities for our boys where they can have first hand experiences with unfamiliar places, people, things, and events, but my husband and I felt an urge to push ourselves, as parents, further and with a small budget, challenged ourselves on a spontaneous road trip for a week, to explore Oriental Mindoro.   ...

     These photos are tangible evidences that children are capable to naturally create magic.  Give a couple of balloons and plenty of water to these fun-loving, weird-enough, kids and you'll witness how they can transform gray clouds into a perfect stage for a spectacular afternoon. Without even saying abracadabra, they did it effortlessly! In fact even without balloons or water they would do wonders just fine, it's a fantastic trait we have as living creatures, but what happened to our built-in magic machine as we become adults?      I was inspired to take pictures of splashes, goofy faces, movements, and the kind of play only children can do. Just watching them made me wonder about how I used to be as a child. I remembered being so worried about exams and school rankings. I remembered making more competitions than friends. I remembered not being present at an early age and not having as much fun as my kids do now.    ...

James played with Cogo pieces, photographed them, and made his first photoessay. And here is a picture of a child who enjoyed the process and was happy with the result. As a parent, I feel fortunate to be able to choose unschooling for my kids and allow them the freedom for their creative pursuits. We have limitations (funds, patience, knowledge, etc.) but we try our best to provide them with plenty of time, stimulating and supportive environment, and materials to work with to discover and nurture their own talents and capabilities.

     About a minute after I started researching about the things we can do in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro, I received an electronic notice that informed us that we missed paying our internet bill and then the connection was cut immediately. Usually I would panic, but we resorted to our original plan instead: to explore and be surprised by the things we will find on our own, to be lost and ask about places we can visit, instead of having a list of "things to do". Actually, not-knowing adds a distinct flavor to adventures, which offers a thrill factor when you navigate through places you have not seen an online preview of.  This free-style travel plan also help us take our time and just enjoy the experiences instead of rushing from one destination to another.      So here are some of our new discoveries: The municipality of Naujan boasts a good collection of ancestral homes that took us to another era in our history. For only P100, yes one hundred ...

      It's been quite some time since I wrote my last entry. Our family took the most daring adventure by far and bought a tiny farm. This latest project involved packing, moving, and unpacking all our belongings, having a new house built, attending to the needs of our developing organic farm, and trying to do them all while having fun and making the experiences (both ups and downs) meaningful for the whole family.      In a span of several months, we've gained and lost friends, moved away and have visited our dearest families in the city, learn new skills and unlearn old habits, and we grow more each day as we take in the values found in these duality that life has been presenting. It may be a roller coaster of emotions, from feeling grateful for having found the home we fit in to having doubts when things don't work as planned. But being together, all four of us, no matter what, and looking at the little things that bring us joy have helped us during th...