Besides soaking up the sunshine...

...we are continually learning, albeit at a more leisurely pace! This past week we:

:: found mosquito larvae in our backyard sand table left open unintentionally

:: visited the library just for fun (as opposed to a change of scenery for school work). Carli was thrilled to use the big kid's computers, since she was only 37 days away from turning 8. There is a kaleidoscope art program on the those particular computers, and she has fun creating new designs.

:: discovered Dance Mat Typing, hosted by a funny goat with an accent and sunglasses. Did I mention it's free? Carli practiced the home row this week.

:: watched "Alaskan Wild." The kids are fascinated by all things Alaska, probably because they have beloved cousins there. Anything with Alaskan wildlife and they're glued. Carli never fails to say, "Mom, remember when we saw the whale tail when we were on the boat in Alaska?" This particular documentary had footage of seals, salmon, whales (oh dear, I don't remember which ones), Kodiak bears, wolves, foxes, and more.

:: started learning the books of the Bible with this really incredible set my mom has had for years. Story goes that in children's meeting in our church in Ashville, New York, the entire row of 2-year-olds, including my dear brother Jordan, learned the books of the Bible, both reciting them and putting them on the board in the correct order. Evidently those few minutes Mom took every week, supposedly just for the older kids, did abundantly more than she could have imagined for the young kids too. I know I would have only been four or five, but I never had to learn them again!

:: Played ABSeas (Olivia) and Unjumbled (Carli) and Life

:: Played at Cool Creek Park and visited the Nature Center there. Definitely want to go back to walk the trails!

:: Discovered a beautiful (HUGE) moth outside of our window of our hotel. Gene Stratton Porter would have been proud of Carli's enthusiasm. Alas, when I reviewed Carli's pictures of it, she didn't get any of it with its wings flat, so we haven't been able to classify it.

:: Watched a groundhog waddle across our yard and climb the fence to head on down to the creek.

:: Lots of bike-riding this summer, playing with neighborhood friends, and splashing about in a kiddie pool

::Taken bike rides and walks. Carli came up with a game during one of our walks, called "Guess My Number." She had no idea that I would be able to come up with her number so quickly by using greater than, less than; place value; even and odd numbers; and rounding. She did pretty well herself when the tables were turned.

:: Swimming at a hotel pool. Carli and Livy are newly-minted self-taught swimmers, getting braver by the swim.

Some of the books we enjoyed are:
::Night Running by Elisa Carbone (This was a hold over from our Underground Railroad study)
::Red Wagon by Renata Liwska
::Abe Lincoln Crosses the Creek: A Tall Thin Tale Introducing His Forgotten Frontier Friend
by Deborah Hopkinson
::Pinkalicious and Purplicious by Victoria and Elizabeth Kann (Two of Olivia's favorites)
::The Clown of God by Tomie dePaola (a new favorite author of ours)
::Roxaboxen by Barbara Cooney
::My Pony by Susan Jeffers
::The Art Lesson by Tomie dePaola
::The Birdhouse by Cynthia Rylant (another favorite author)
::Skylark, sequel to Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia McLaughlin
::Started Ginger Pye by Eleanor Estes. The chapters are kind of long, but the girls are begging me to continue at the end of each chapter! I'd never read this book, but I have seen it on so many reading lists, and we have found it absolutely delightful!