Where should we go today? The Weekend Edition!

We're starting to really heat up around here, in more ways than one!

Friday: We finished our science this year with a thermal transference experiment (recipe below) and then Kotch had her Awards Night at Seton ... which meant leaving home at 5:30, heading to Chick-fil-a for dinner (a great way to celebrate our last Friday in Easter-tide), than to school. Home after 10:00!

Saturday: shopping extravaganza with Kotch to hunt for "the" graduation dress; I found shoes! Than off to the commissioning of a family friend -- now a 2nd-lieutenant in the USMarine Corps. The ceremony, held at the Marine Corps Museum, was beautiful with the commissioning directed by his dad, a Colonel (reserves) and his brothers helping (three young marines) and their pastor from Oklahoma to bless him and pray over his active-duty years. After the actual commissioning, we had a lovely party at their home and then dh and I headed to the "last semi-formal of the year" at his high school. Serving soda and snacks to hot sweaty kids was a great time! (No, really! They are mostly great kids who just want to socialize with their schoolmates!).

Sunday: after a lovely Pentecost Mass, we headed up to the District to visit the American History museum and the National Gallery of Art. After seeing Night at the Museum earlier this week, we realized we hadn't been up to the museums in a while. The kids so enjoy the Spark!Lab and other hands-on activities and we had a blast visiting the presidential exhibits and viewing some of the films they've compiled. We focused quite a bit of our American history this past semester on the first five presidents, so it was great to see them remembering those guys and then finding out more about the others. The Art museum (which has the best food on the Mall!) is always a favorite -- especially for dh. We wandered the rooms, occasionally sitting on the couches and just gazing at the pictures: BamBam's favorite is Daniel and the Lions while String Bean and I loved all the DellaRobbia's and LegoManiac prefers the bloody ones (like George and the Dragon, etc). Dh loves the art from the Netherlands/Germany/Brussels of the 1500s-1700s ....

A GREAT weekend! Tomorrow? Kotch's graduation from high school!

End of the year activities: field trip

We are winding down our "formal" home-schooling this week -- with Kotch done (graduation on June 1st), dh almost done, the weather turning hot and the pool opening, summer is upon us with a vengeance! Add to these influences, the need to sort/toss/pack/move before the end of June ... well, formal schooling needs to slow up (altho we NEVER stop living, loving and learning).

So, whenever we're nearing the "end" , I try to plan fun things that mark the end, giving a bit of "closure" ...

For instance, yesterday we went on a field trip to see the movie, Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian. We loved it! We love the first one and watch it often; that said, I think this sequel is even better in most ways. Ben Stiller's character, Larry Dailey, is not quite so pitiful and shows great loyalty and love for others (this was missing a bit in the original). There is none of the first-movie's family issues that try to seem so politically-correct and just end up looking sad from all sides. Robin Williams returns as two different Teddy Roosevelts -- but thankfully has a smaller role than in the first as a little bit of RW goes a long way. Jedediah and Octavius are back and just as well-done as in the original movie while Capuchin monkey, Dexter, has great competition from space-monkey Able!

Amy Adams is great as a young Amelia Earhart -- very moxie-filled -- altho as String Bean (an Earhart afficianado) pointed out: AE was in her 30s when she really started flying and disappeared at the age of 40, so Adams' portrayal is a bit young for the gutsy aviatrix.

Of course the plot is hokey ... and far-fetched ... and absolutely unbelievable ... but that's the fun! Having been to all the places shown in the movie -- Air & Space, Castle, even the Lincoln Memorial -- made the movie even more fun for the kids and I. We've seen those paintings and sculptures that come alive ... we've stood in front of Abe and looked down the Reflecting Pool to the Washington Monument (and he is BIGGGGGG!) ... the kids have even been on the South Lawn of the White House (altho Octavius' venture was a slightly different experience than their own).

The bad guys are led by Akmunrah's evil, older brother Kahmunrah (played really well by Hank Azaria) and include Napoleon, Ivan the Terrible (or rather, Ivan the Awesome!), and Al Capone. There is a great scene when bad-boy muppet Oscar the Grouch and Darth Vader try to join the bad guys but are summarily dismissed. The final battle scence -- good vs bad, Custer vs Napoleon -- is great fun (but a bit over the top destructive). Some of the gags the kids didn't get -- like the Archie Bunker "throne" comment (yes, I remember that show!).

The Smithsonian -- comprised of 19 museums around the Mall (and outlying areas) -- holds such wonderful delights and this movie points out many of them. The Air&Space sequences -- with the Tuskegee Airmen and bobble-headed Einsteins -- remind the kids just how much we love that particular museum. The pictures coming alive in the National Gallery of Art (not a Smithsonian museum but located right in the midst of them) remind the kids of the great art available seven days a week in the Nation's Capital.

The ending is a great twist (maybe a bit predictable but still good) and makes me wish we lived closer to the NY Natural History museum (especially if this movie was real instead of just escapist fantasy)!

This field trip was a memory-making, reminiscence-remembering, family outing that we'll chuckle over for a long time. And reminded us all that we've haven't been to the DC museums in a while -- sounds like another field trip is in store for this weekend so dh can join in our ramblings round the Mall!

College: choices and challenges

On Thursday we dropped Kotch off at the airport to fly to her "sometimes first choice, sometimes second choice" college for a college visit/scholarship competition. At the same time, I started the socks for this trip.

She came home today and definitely has placed this one as her "definite" first choice ... at least until she hears how much aid she'll be getting from this one and the other "first choice". I finished the socks tonight as she described her visit to the mid-west and this wonderful college.

Once she decides, she'll get the socks for the college -- so, either the above or these (for her other "first choice"):It's completely up to her and either college would be a wonderful experience for her; my first choice would be the one she just returned from (and this is only SLIGHTLY affected by the fact that the girls in the freshman dorm all learned to knit this year!).

While we were waiting for Kotch's flight to arrive, we took the opportunity and spent the day in D.C. Dh took StringBean to the Art Museum while I took the boys to the Air and Space. On our way to meet up with Dad and StringBean, we stopped in the Hirschhorn Sculpture Garden for a photo op on this gorgeous 70-something day in the Nation's Capitol:

Where should we go today?

Well, actually, yesterday! Since LegoManiac was scheduled to serve Mass for the Saturday vigil, we had all day Sunday to play as a family. Poor Kotch had homework, so the three littles, dh and I set off on adventures at about 9:00 a.m.

Our first stop was to our favorite bagel shop than up to the District. The really cool thing about going in so early on Sunday is the parking is easy-schmeasy -- we parked right in front of USDA, a short walk across the Mall to the newly renovated/reopened Smithsonian American History museum. Here's the new Mall-side entrance to the Museum ...

They have a small photographic exhibit within the Civil War hall ... with a classic chair and backdrop to make your very own "original family portrait". Next time we'll come a little more dressed for the era!

The dioramas that have now are really cool. Here, BamBam stands before the "Seige of Yorktown" -- a topic we've been discussing lots lately in our American History work.

Some hands-on exhibits are downstairs (1st floor) ... including the opportunity to try "wind-surfing" (definitely NOT as easy as it looks .... I'm glad I was taking pictures so just couldn't try it myself!).

The Spark Lab has great exhibits that show all kinds of physics principals and ....

the power of static electricity -- String Bean had some major hair static and when I went to take something from her hand, got a shock that was well, shocking! Shows that the guy in the white coat had a good plan ... grounding himself on the foam-rubber mat!

I do have to honestly say that I miss the "attic" feel of the old American History Museum ... where you could stand for hours in front of an exhibit and constantly be finding new things. The new look is much more focused, stream-lined and minimalist. The only "tv memorabilia" which used to include Fonz' jacket, MASH ambulance and Archie Bunker's chair ... has been replaced with a few muppets, the ruby slippers and a few other aritfacts but I miss the mish-mash!

Oh, and it looks like they've removed the old post-office on the first floor and the ice cream parlor too! But, for those who had never seen those things ... this is an amazing museum packed with fun things. I really like it and can't wait to spend more time up there!

Field Trip: International Travel the easy way

A week ago (July 2nd), we took the littles back up to our Nation's Capitol in order to get in a bit of international travel. No, we didn't fly out of IAD or BWI - instead we attended the 42nd annual Smithsonian Institute's Folklife Festival held on the Mall for two weeks in the summer.

Each year, a state and a country are chosen for the festival -- this year, the festival highlighted Texas and Bhutan. Texas, the festival shows, is much more than Texas swing, beer and barbeque -- altho you can find those too. Texas wines, technology and avant garde music are fascinating to see.

Bhutan, a small Buddhist country situated between India and China, is just being "discovered" through eco-tourism and the recent opening of air-routes to this unique world whose name translates as "Land of the Thunder Dragon". An authentic traditional Bhutanese Buddhist Lhakhang (temple), a gift to the US from the people of Bhutan, has been built on the Mall -- the paintings and carvings on this building are amazing. Within the temple, Buddhist monks chant while English-speaking interpreters explain the prayers, rituals and symbolism. LegoManiac was a little put-off by this -- "it would be like people walking thru a Catholic Church and talking while Father is saying Mass. That's not right."

Bhutan crafts and industry are highlighted -- woodcarving, textile weaving, painting, sand-art, string-art, basket-making, wood-turning, homeopathic medicines and cooking -- giving the kids and dh and I a wonderful look at this country and how they live in the Himilayas.

Bhutan goes from steamy jungles at sea-level to over 24000 feet in the space of West Virginia! No roads led into Bhutan until the 1960s and air travel started about 10 years ago. This is a country I'd never even heard of -- and one that was a very closed society from Western eyes until quite recently!

NASA is also highlighted at the festival (which goes until July 6th) as it's NASA's 50th birthday!

The Mall -- out and about on a Sunday

With Washington, D.C. so close now (unless you're stuck in I-95 traffic -- OY!), we decided to head up on Sunday (June 22nd), using public transport, and show the littles some of their Nation's Capitol! The last time LegoManiac and String Bean were in DC, they were 27 months and 15 months -- and, go figure, they don't remember much! Dh and I knew that this was going to be an exploratory mission and wanted to make it as relaxed as possible ... so we opted for the shotgun-approach hopping through different museums and not worrying about seeing everything -- after all, the Smithsonian and National museums are all FREE and we live here now!

Parking the car at the "park and ride" at Springfield (as opposed to the kiss-and-ride -- a name I think it too cute!), we gave the kids their first taste of Northern Virginia culture: riding the Blue line Metro from Franconia-Springfield right to the Smithsonian! They're eyes got big when we told them we were traveling UNDER the Pentagon, then they got even bigger when we told them when we were traveling THROUGH the Potomac ... it's so fun to see the wonder in their eyes even at such small, everyday things!

Getting off at the Smithsonian station drops you just in front of the "Castle" -- THE starting point for exploring the Smithsonian museums. It's so cool to come up out of the station and see the Washington Monument on your left and the Capitol Building on your right! What a country!

Since the boys outnumbered the girls -- I'm including dh here, of course -- we started our wanderings at the Air & Space Museum. This museum gets better EVERYTIME I go visit (I used to work in the District and my brothers made me go to A&S all the time). The exhibits are fantastic and I was even able to track down the "aircraft carrier simulator" exhibit for the boys to try. Bam-bam had to keep "peeling off" while LegoManiac "almost" landed perfectly. He was a bit embarrassed as the girl in front of him landed her plane effortlessly.

After a bit more than an hour of tottling around the A&S (with me making mental notes the whole time about where/when to come back during our next two-year study of American history), then we decided the hunger pangs could no longer be staved off -- we headed to the best spot on the Mall: the National Gallery of Art's "garden cafe" with it's indoor/outdoor waterfall, great food and reasonable prices. Seriously -- you can get a really good lunch for three kids and two adults for a bit less than McD's! And the ambience is wonderful.

Next stop (after checking out the Sculpture Garden where the pond in the center is turned into a skating rink during the winter) was a quick tour of the Natural History museum -- with it's elephant exhibit right in the rotunda (where if you look closely you can see the entire habitat of a jungle elephant including the dung beetles, rattle snakes, and the birds that eat the local grasshoppers). String Bean and I wanted to see the Hope Diamond (a girl can dream, can't she?) and it's even more glorious in real-life than in the pictures! A beautiful blue stone, with diamonds surrounding and diamonds on the chain .... what a gift that would be.

The IceAge exhibit and the Western Cultures (with it's overview of the societal progression of man from cave-dweller to organized community) are amazing and created so that the kids really enjoy seeing ... and experiencing different cultures and ages. Marvelous!

A quick snack downstairs in the "atrium" and we were ready to head back on the Metro ... after noting that this weekend (and next) the Smithsonian is hosting the Folklife Festival -- with special emphasis on Bhutan, Texas and NASA's 50th anniversary .... I guess I know where we'll be later this week.