Week 4 - Swimming, Office Work and Ancient Egyptian studies

So we headed back to the DC area this week.  I should say we are near DC, but have no intention on visiting there this trip.  We plan on exploring Annapolis next weekend though.

I am trying hard to stay on task and catch up on all the office work I am behind on.  It has been a challenge.  But I know I can get caught up.

I had a few down days as we had some autism issues that emphasize to me how different the kids are currently from other.  Not all the kids were having issues, it was mainly the boys.  They are growing into men's bodies and yet are really just young boys.  Some days it is hard to watch.  So we do celebrate accomplishments, no matter how small they are.

We are trying a different branch of the Marriott chain this week.  They have a nice pool.  It was so warm this past week, that I even swam a couple days!!

Our hotel is right by two very large city parks.  Need to get everyone out exercising.  So one day we took a long walk around the pond and to a play area.  It was very hot this week.

Brayden even swam...after two years of refusing to swim anywhere!  This was such a major accomplishment!!  I could not believe it.  He has been making some huge strides.

Daddy and Lydia working on her DK Computer lessons.

Brayden working on his schoolwork.  Yes, he does do word searches for schoolwork.  They are great hand-eye-brain therapy.

This week we started learning about Ancient Egypt.  We have started the Homeschool in the Woods Unit study (watch for our review in August for this product).

This week we learned about clothing and food, as well as started our timelines and map work.

The girls mad Egyptian princess wigs.

We have an Egyptian feast of cucumber slices, homemade pita bread, kofta, figs, hummus, cucumber yogurt sauce, and melon

The kids and I explored the mall across the street from the hotel.  We love book stores, and of course went to Barnes and Noble.  The kids had finished their Summer Reading Program and all picked out their free book.

On Friday we visited the Goddard Space Flight Center NASA.  We were not overly impressed.  The whole visit took roughly 45 minutes and that included picking out a magnet for our collection.  I was also upset by the volunteer at the desk that day.  She must have been having a bad day, but she irritated me and got our visit off on a bad start.

We learned a little more about the Hubble Telescope though.  I would not making a special trip to this area though if you have been to any other science museums.  You will be terribly disappointed like our kids were.
 

All the kids started some new books this week.  Some started next level spelling, others started new Geography books.  It was a start back for us using textbooks again.  Everyday is a new experience seeing what will work and what will not.

On Saturday, I spent the day uploading a new class and making our class list for the fall.  We were chilling since we planned on visiting Six Flags on Sunday to redeem our Read to Succeed tickets that the kids earned.

Hope everyone had a great week!!  See you next weekend!!!