Tuesday, October 10, 2017

We managed to pack in some great things during that last week before school started!

Welcome to the Family, Penny!
That IOU Bug got for her birthday was for her very own pet hamster! She had been begging for one for months. We decided she had demonstrated enough responsibility, and she had done the research: she thought through what she wanted out of a pet (small, soft, able to be played with, easy maintenance), she talked to Daddy and I to get our opinions, she visited the pet store to see animals and get brochures, and she checked out books from the library. She decided she definitely wanted a hamster. We bought her the hamster, whom she dubbed Penny, and the basics. Bug bought a hamster ball and chew toys, and she received an additional cage and lots of tunnels and fun hamster things from Aunt A. Bug loves Penny! She's been very good about keeping her fed and watered and her cage clean, and has had great fun getting her out into the hamster ball to wander around the house. In fact, Penny developed quite a sense of adventure and so far escaped three times--once making it all the way upstairs to Potato's room before getting caught!

Local Art Museum
We discovered a real gem in our local *free* art museum! The girls were immediately impressed with how fancy it was (marble floors, balconies, big central staircase, "It even has a coat check!"). Monkey grabbed a map and with her in the lead we bee-lined for the contemporary art. (Pollock, Lichtenstein, Rothko, etc.). She loved it! Bug next requested the Renaissance art (well, she requested art with lots of detail, more realistic, and that's where we ended up). We also visited a small, hands-on kids section. We spent almost two hours there, and certainly didn't see all the art! (Home schooling win: across the exhibits the girls got references to the Bible, Shakespeare, and Greek mythology.) On our way out we also took a turn through the museum shop, and Lion added a fun flip book to her Degas collection. We'll definitely be going back!

Hello Uncle K!
We spent Labor Day weekend visiting Uncle K at his house on a small lake. We had a great time in Uncle K's tiny armada: a fishing boat, a kayak, a canoe, a sailboat (although we didn't have enough wind to try it), and a paddle boat borrowed from the neighbors. We also decided to take a couple of short hikes to explore the woods around the lake. We lost the trail on our first attempt (it's not very frequently used) but managed to return safely to the road. After finding the road, however, Lion fell in the lake and learned firsthand why we insisted on swimming lessons. She was
unhurt, but a bit shaken and quite soggy. Our second attempt at a hike was much more successful and we made it all the way around the lake. After this hike, we all jumped in the lake on purpose (wearing appropriate swimsuits and water shoes). The girls had a blast jumping off a floating dock in the middle of the lake and floating around with a couple of full-size lounger floaties. Other highlights of the weekend included visiting the local farmers market, playing several games of Clue, and attending church with Uncle K on Sunday before making our way home.

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