Blue Springs Park in High Springs Florida

Yesterday, my kids, and some of our homeschool friends took a trip to Blue Springs Park. Blue Springs, is in Gilchrist County, and about 20 min from our home. It lies on the Santa Fe River, just up the road from Poe Springs that we visited last week. There is another Blue Springs in Levy County, but it is not nearly as beautiful as this one. There are actually three springs in this one park. Big Blue Springs, Little Blue Springs, and Naked Springs. They are all able to be swam in, but we steered clear of Lil Blue Springs. It looked icky. This is now my new favorite place to visit. Unfortunately it is not super affordable, like the state parks, but still a nice treat. We will be taking my fil here in just a few weeks. The kids just absolutely loved it. For the first hour we were the only ones there. Public school is back in session, that explains that, lol. Gilchrist County is actually home to 60 springs, some unnamed, and some only accessible by canoe or boat. It is amazing because Gilchrist County is the youngest county in FL, and the smallest. Below are some links to read up on the springs, and where they are located. I learned something new. I always wondered why most of the springs have such clear, and often blue waters. The limestone that forms them acts as a filter for the water as it comes into the spring. It is an amazing, and beautiful natural wonder to see. We decided next week we would go to Fanning Springs, for one last spring trip before we start back to homeschool lessons for the year.

http://www.floridasprings.org/

http://gilchristcounty.com/map/index.html

Happy Wednesday!

OK, well Blogger has changed yet again the way in which I upload pictures, grrrrr!!!!!! Anyway now that I have that off my chest, on to the real good stuff. Yesterday, was our first painting class, with my mom, since before the holidays. Neither one of us had the time to do it. Even though Caitlin and I still paint, DJ doesn't do much, so it is nice when we all do it. He doesn't paint, he draws,and for some reason his fish he drew managed to not get in the pictures. He drew a pretty mandarin fish. Everyone got to do their own thing yesterday. My mom painted a huge pickle jar, that she will be putting homemade dog treats in to sell at the Farmer's Market. I have been cleaning and then upcycling old salsa jars into candles. First I clean them, paint them and then add the candle. They make cute gifts and reduce waste. I am hoping they will be popular in my Etsy store. I have done two Easter theme ones. One has a brown bunny, and the other this sable colored bunny. On the opposite side of the jar is a cross with a wreath of flowers. To see all the pictures be sure to visit Melissas Jewelry and Gems. Caitlin painted a picture of her very own bunny.

Then, later in the afternoon, we had our Earth Kids meeting. This was our second nature walk, and this time we went to Manatee Springs. They were supposed to be looking for specific leaves, but unfortunately there are not a ton of them out yet. However, we did see Manatees in the spring inlet, look you will see it. And a ton of deer, which are quite smaller than the deer I am used to in NY. They blend in so well with the drab surroundings, you could easily miss them if they were not moving around. Manatee Springs is one of the more dangerous springs to swim at. There are signs everywhere that say no swimming, and swim at your own risk. Yet, people still do it. There are a lot of snakes and even some gators at this particular spring. Last year, because there are diving caves under the springs, a diver got lost and died. We don't swim there.

All in all a good week so far. And tomorrow, which is Thursday, seems to be my day to relax from here on out. The only day we don't have something planned for the rest of the school year, or at least right now, lol! Kids of course continue with their book and course work, and the third semester ends in just a few weeks. Almost over, already!  Oh the first painting is my very first attempt at an abstract painting.  I kind of like it!

Field Trip To Hart Springs

Today would be a scheduled play date for us, with our play group. But since some members were still unable to attend, we took a field trip to Hart Springs. DJ took some wonderful pictures of his own, and will share them on his blog on his Friday blog post. The picture with the two of them is actually looking up the Suwannee River, which feeds into Hart Springs. We saw a lot of fish and squirrels, and a few birds, but no turtles or manatees. This particular spring is considered a hot spring with a water temp of 72 degrees all year. The very first picture was actually taken by DJ and shows one part of the Spring where the actual water that feeds the spring comes in. Hart Springs also has underwater caves that you can dive in. You must be a certified diver, and be accompanied by a certified diver familiar with cave diving. It is a quite lovely park and I would recommend anyone visit it if given the chance. You can rent cabins, plus camping and RV campgrounds. Prior to leaving for the springs we did our lessons on Head of the Class. Tomorrow will resume regular lessons and classes.