Onward! (10/180)

We embarked on a 2 week road trip at the very end of June.  I managed to make this road trip include a field trip for everything but mathematics.   There aren't a whole lot of mathematical field trips ....

First, we drove - quickly - to Austin, Texas.  There we stayed with family.  We did lots of swimming!  It was hot!

We went to the Blanton Museum of Art:

and then stopped by a historical fountain (recently relieved of Confederate statuary) and a UT@Austin collection featuring a Guttenberg Bible and the oldest known photograph:

We went bowling:

And took a side-trip to The Alamo, where we especially enjoyed the history talk and the demonstration where they fired period guns.

We climbed to the highest point in Austin City Limits (it was hot!  Still!):

Then we drove out to the tiny town of Roby, Texas.  On the way we stopped at Dinosaur Valley State Park, where we saw fossilized dinosaur footprints:

In Roby we visited the town graveyard, where the kids' paternal grandmother's family is buried:

We headed home more slowly to allow some sight-seeing (and swimming in hotel pools) along the way.  Highlight of the trip for me was stopping at Laura Ingalls Wilder's Springfield, MO home:

We also stopped at a VFW with a real (decommissioned) tank!

After our return, R went to Parkour.

We went to a performance of The Complete History of America (Abridged).  This was hilarious and well received by all:

D and J attended their religious education class.

They also did lots of crafting and raised over $25 for charity running an orange juice stand on our street:

We listened to audio books and podcasts on the road trip, and I read to the girls:

Best Friend Trouble by Frances Itani


Thirteenth Child by Patricia C. Wrede


Betsy-Tacy by Maud Hart Lovelace


Little Ballet Star by Adèle Geras


Weeds Find a Way by Cindy Jenson-Elliott


Across the Great Barrier by Patricia C. Wrede

These weeks included 10 days of instruction.

Cousins (180 + 14 weeks)

R went to parkour.

All the kids attended their last day of MAHC classes, closing with field day games!

We had family visiting from out of town so we visited a working hobby farm in Central PA.

W attended his final day of Teen Coop classes, completing a final project for Evolution.

We scattered the kids' great-grandparents ashes at their church:

And did lots of swimming, sand-building, and kayaking at the beach:

The girls made Father's Day cards, with some help on spelling from W:

W, R, and D worked with LOF.

W read independently.  R read with support.  D and J practiced reading.

D worked with Handwriting Without Tears, and J worked with Explode the Code.

I read to the girls:

Gregor Mendel: The Friar Who Grew Peas by Cheryl Bardoe


Puppy! by Keith Graves

Showcase (180 +13 weeks)

R went to parkour.

The kids all attended their MAHC classes.

W attended his Teen Program classes.  D went to circus class, J went to ballet.  W went to D and D.

J danced in a ballet Showcase!

Here she is on stage:

D attended her religious education class.

W, R and D worked with LOF.

W read independently.  R read with support:Trouble River by Betsy Byars.  D and J practiced reading.

D worked with Handwriting Without Tears.

J worked with Explode the Code.

I read to the girls:

Lili at Ballet by Rachel Isadora

New Shoes for Silvia by Johanna Hurwitz

Triangle and Circle: How Embracing Each Others Differences Can Lead to Beautiful Friendship by Sarah Claxton

Mucumber McGee and the Lunch Lady's Liver by Patrick Loehr


Pocket Full of Colors: The Magical World of Mary Blair, Disney Artist Extraordinaire by Amy Guglielmo

Balance beam (180 + 12 weeks)

R went to parkour.

All the kids attended their MAHC classes.

W attended his teen program classes.  D went to circus and J went to ballet (twice).

W played D and D.

The girls made themselves a balance beam:

W and R attended a sleepover with the junior youth group.  D and J attended their religious education classes.

W, R and D worked with LOF.

W read independently:A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle.  R read with support.  D practiced reading.  J mastered
Peg And Ted by Bobby Lynn Maslen.

D worked with Handwriting Without Tears.  J worked with Explode the Code.

I read to the girls:
The Secret Life of Walter Kitty by Barbara Jean Hicks


Leopardpox! by Orna Landau


Who Wants to Be a Princess?: What It Was Really Like to Be a Medieval Princess by Bridget Heos


Swimming with Sharks: The Daring Discoveries of Eugenie Clark by Heather Lang.