PQ 13 and 14 and Blue Star

Wow I wish I'd finished these blog posts this summer. But better late than never :)

So PQ 13 was Gunpowder Falls. I really enjoyed the hike- but the park quest not so much. The kids were really excited about finding cool water insects but we didn't find any.  the water was super muddy and the path from the walking trail to the water was near treacherous- ok that might be an exaggeration but definitely tough for this mom carrying a baby and for at least the younger two kids. Thankfully we did safely attempt to find bugs and could enjoy the hike back. beautiful area, great weather. PQ 13 complete!

Along with all the PQs we did this summer, we also were able to go to several Blue Star Museums. The kids all love learning about history so we enjoyed them a lot. One day we went to the National Blacks in Wax Museum. It didn't look great from the outside but the inside was really well done. The kids really enjoyed seeing all Revolutionary war figures and the sports stars like Jackie Robinson.

We also went to

American Visionary Art Museum (last year)

B&O Railroad Museum every year in Baltimore for T's birthday

Baltimore Museum of Industry (last year)

James E. Lewis Museum of Art (next year)

The National Great Blacks In Wax Museum

For PQ 14 we went to Sandy Point and did a puzzle hike. The kids really enjoyed finding the puzzle boxes and did great teamwork to do the puzzles. 

We loved the view of the Bay Bridge and the lighthouse from the end of the walk. a great day!

We also went to Historic London Town and Gardens that day. This Blue Star museum was much smaller than Williamsburg or Historic St. Mary's City but still neat. This pic shows when the oldest cities in MD were established. Fun to go visit some!

The kids loved the storytime- the book was about a slave girl learning to read. It made our school time seem much less hard.

Beach!

What a great trip! We got home last night from a super end of summer trip to the beach! We love the beach- and it's especially great in September! We've gone at least the last three years to Myrtle Beach for a week in September with my parents and each trip has been super. We've usually spent most of our time in the pool, on the beach, and playing games. This time we did that the whole time- and I loved it. My Dad found a super parking spot for us on check in day and I never moved the truck after we checked in. I did go to the grocery store with my Mom once but she drove.  my parents did make some trips to the grocery store during the week but otherwise my only transportation was walks on the beach, swims in the ocean and pool, and shuttle rides to the cottages. And James was able to be with us a good part of the week! A great trip!

Most days the kids and I went on a sunrise walk on the beach. We went back to the room for breakfast and a game or two- mancala, uno, rummikub, battleship, trouble, ... Then down to the beach for fun in the sun! James found a great tent which we set up on the beach- shade for the beach and a great addition to our camping gear! After some digging and sand castle building, time for swimming. The changes in the kids in a year was amazing. T is now a real swimmer. K and C looked like little fish going over and under the waves. KG had no fear and loved the crashing waves- especially the ones with "lots of bubbles." and Baby C was a sweetie; Nana usually stayed upstairs for Baby C to nap and then she came down ready to grin and cuddle with Nana and Papa.  She did love the sand too and she's definitely a water baby! Next, the lazy river and swimming before lunch. A first for this year was my Mom brought the slow cooker which we used a lot so we had lots of soup/ chilli and salad for lunch. After lunch more games- sometimes a nap, sometimes straight to the beach or pool. Some days a shuttle ride to the cottages for shuffle board, corn hole and swimming.

Little House on the Prairie

we've been listening to lots of books on tape. mostly in the car- on the way to church, Park Pals, Ranger Kids, trips, errands, the whole 1 mile to the farmer's market, ... Little House is definitely one of my favorites. besides just a great story, I/ we've learned so much reading and listening to Little House. I'm going to be a little sad when we get to the end of the series. But we could always start over and I didn't know about all the books about Laura's ancestors and descendants. We just finished By the Shores of Silver Lake so Laura's definitely not a little girl anymore. It's been great hearing her grow.
Some things I've learned (or relearned or thought about or just thought was neat)

-Contentment with little- they didn't have much stuff, much food, many friends, ... but they really appreciated everything they had. Whether it was potatoes (again), a little fat to cook with, Pa playing the fiddle, a homemade checker game, ... they were really thankful.

-Adapted quickly to loss- I don't know that I would have done so well with grasshoppers eating every living thing, or being thrown off their land, or ... They seemed to really get the verses from Job that said that God gives and He takes away.

-Sourdough bread. My Mom made this growing up and I've thought about making it. Now after reading more about the health benefits and hearing Laura tell how to make starter, I'm all set to start (right after we get back from OBX!)

-Biblical submission- I think that Ma and Pa are a wonderful example of Biblical submission. Ma says her peace and then tells Pa to do what he thinks is best. Pa seems confident in his leadership and decisions.

-Enjoying hard work- they really had to work hard for everything they got but seemed to find joy in it.

-Focused on family- they enjoyed the times that they spent with other people and other families. But what they truly cherished was their time together. No, they weren't perfect, once Mary and Laura even argued about what spices to season their food with, but they enjoyed their time together.

I started this post a while ago but I never finished it. Tonight I found it searching for booklists.
We do love Little House. We listened to Caddie Woodlawn last week- loved it too! I'm loving reading and hearing all these great books!

Go Army!

A few months ago, James called me very excited that Morgan State University was going to play USMA in football at West Point. He really wanted to take his cadets and our family. He was able to get that approved for his cadets. I was glad for him until the night before I trip when I realized that a lot of the day at West Point would be me and five kids- the drive, the parking, the hills, the hills, ... I was a little worried but instead of dwelling on my worries i listened to part of Manna church's series on blessings and curses.  I spoke blessings over our trip and am so thankful that we had a terrific trip. Everything turned out super- the drive, the kids, parking, shuttles, game, linking up with James, ... 

I am so thankful to God for such a super trip!

James left Thursday night with his cadets. The kids and I left Friday morning and made great time. We got to West Point by 1130 and went to the tennis center. Coach Peck was out of town but gave us a parking pass and more good stuff! We were watching some of the guys practice when the assistant coach walked in with a recruit. She explained to the parents how involved Coach is with the girls on the team and said that very weekend he was in Texas attending the wedding of a player who graduated last year. So I introduced myself as Coach's first team captain from way back when and he'd been in my wedding 17 years ago. 

 Next we headed to the Visitor Center. The kids loved seeing the cadet room set up and more about cadet life and then we went to the Museum. I really didn't remember the museum but it was really neat. The kids especially loved the tanks and other big guns in the basement.

 We drove around West Point some to see the sights- such a beautiful post! We got to see the new Prep School. The only thing I would have done differently about our trip was go to the PX first for shirts since their prices were by far the best. But like I told C a few days ago, if that's the worst thing that happened to do, you're doing pretty good!

 We parked back at the tennis center and enjoyed the shuttle ride back down to the plain. The kids loved seeing (and climbing) the cannons. I loved the view- Trophy Point is one of the prettiest places I've seen. (Garden of the Gods and Sherwood Gardens two of my other favorites.) But I think the kids were most excited to see was their Daddy teaching a class down by Trophy Point. They kept wanting to go wave to Daddy.

 James finished his class in time for the parade. And we all got to see the parachute team jump in. The kids were so excited! To see parachutists jump onto the plain is pretty amazing! My other "regret" was we didn't get to go on the library roof because it closed early that day. I guess we'll have to make another trip. After the parade, we went to a cookout. A super nice family invited all the Morgan State cadets over for a cookout. Then we rode the shuttle up to the football game. We got to see the parachute team jump in again!

 The kids (especially the boys) loved the game.

 C was so excited about football he didn't want to go see the Army Mule mascot.

 And how cool to hear the cannons lots since Army won 28-12.

 Top if off with a half-time fireworks show! A super day! We went to the hotel after half time- tired but blessed! And how fun to wake up to a nice Homewood Suites breakfast. We finished up our super weekend with a trip to Sandy Hook, CT to see Jena, Earl, and the girls.

 we even came home with goodies- clothes, toys, and squash!

So thankful for such a terrific weekend! And besides the fun for our family, the trip to USMA for James' cadets was such a great opportunity. The cadets got something out of the weekend plus now they've begun an ongoing relationship between the cadets and the two schools! So proud of James!

Nana and Papa Visit and PQ 11 and 12

I was so thankful with how super our whole summer turned out and I continued to be thankful when my parents came to visit. I was very happy to see them and spend time together- I was also thankful that  they could help with the kids while I went to several dr visits. I don't usually have many dr visits but had knee pain I needed to get checked out right before they got here. (I was also thankful for my big boy helpers when I was having trouble going up and down the stairs.)

My parents got here Sunday and we enjoyed several fun days (when I wasn't at the doctor- well, the kids definitely enjoyed that too- time with Nana and Papa and extra Wii/ movie time).  Monday we celebrated my Dad's birthday with hamburgers. The kids are excited for Papa to do the work they gave him for a birthday gift.

 On Tuesday we went to the Star Spangled Banner House which was really neat. I thought I learned that Mary Pickersgill sewed the first US flag but after googling it I'm not sure.

 We did a few science experiments from K's science book- making ice cream in a bag was a definite favorite.

On Wednesday we rode the water taxi- it was really fun to be out on the harbor.

 We rode all the way to the Ft McHenry which we always enjoy.

 we got back to the inner harbor with 7 minutes to spare for our parking spot and then enjoyed a yummy seafood lunch.

On Thursday my parents took K to DC with them. They got a timeshare for the week and the boys took turns having special time with them. I've been hearing lots of stories of their fun- late nights, few vegetables, fun museums, double decker buses, climbing in a/c shafts, ... great memories!

On Sunday we met my parents at Chapman State Park for PQ 11. We were so excited to see a pair of red foxes and it was good to have a compass refresher course. We have been blessed with wonderful weather all summer.

 After the PQ, we drove to the National Colonial Farm for a picnic lunch. We got a personal tour of the house/ fields area and learned tons about tobacco growing and life mid 1700s. And this super view of Mt Vernon from across the Potomac.

 C was next for the fun with Nana and Papa. "We had camping cereal!" "The bus didn't have seat belts on the bottom" "would you believe how late I stayed up?"... Fun!
T is so close to 6 that we decided to do one last swap for him to have special time with Nana and Papa. This time we met at the National Wildlife Visitors Center. We rode the tram and saw all the neat exhibits- very neat!

T had a quick but super visit with Nana and Papa- when he got home, he said the trip was his favorite memory. Nana and Papa knew the way to his heart- a boat ride and seafood dinner. Nana and Papa left that night to fly up to Canada for the weekend and we did PQ 12- Martinak. Ahoy Matey! We found Blackbeard's Treasure.