The Schiele Museum

I stumbled upon this little gem a few months ago and tried to plan a trip all summer.  It never happened.  So, with the school year settling in for everyone, I finally pinned down a date and invited a fellow homeschool family to go check it out.

The kiddos were happy to have friends on the trip.  Of course, who doesn't like to travel with friends?  The Schiele Museum is just about an hour from us and a very easy drive.  Definitely worth the trip if you live close by. 

A large replica of a dinosaur skeleton welcomes visitors in the main lobby.  This grabs the interest of kids as they enter.  The cost to tour the museum isn't bad.  Nine dollars for adults and six dollars for kids over four years of age.  We decided to buy tickets to the planetarium show for an extra three dollars each. 

The kids loved the large displays of taxidermed animals in the museum.  They could have spent hours looking at them.  The displays were nicely done and very informative. 

The traveling Solar System exhibit was very educational.  I loved the lights on the ceiling and the planetary displays.  The children enjoyed the MARS exhibit with the interactive hands on robotic arm.  Oh, and the self destruct button on the 'space station'. 

A delight was the live animals.  They all wanted to take home a prairie dog! 

They were amazed at the massive rock and mineral collections.  Oh, if only the gold nuggets were real and not casts! 

They were intrigued with the early human display.  Of course, this area brought up many questions.  I'm sure we will be discussing it for a while.

The outdoor area was nice.  The Catabawa village was not open, which was a disappointment.  However, we enjoyed the Stone ledge area and the Gristmill. 

We will definitely be back to see the next traveling exhibit and learn more!

Music Sandwiched In - Mary Poppins!

We kicked off our fine arts experience today with the library's Music Sandwiched In program.  The Spartanburg Little Theatre presented Mary Poppins.  I loved Mary Poppins growing up.  The children have watched it and loved it as well.

I wasn't sure if I could get past someone other than Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke playing the lead roles, but the cast today exceeded my expectations.  I didn't once think about the movie version, as I watched the performers.  Even Little Man, who was not thrilled to be at the program, enjoyed himself.  The entire cast did a terrific job and they are two and a half weeks from opening day.

This is a must see performance!  We will definitely be purchasing tickets to see the show.

Our New Travel Trailer!

We finally bit the bullet and purchased a brand new CrossRoads Zinger 28bh.  This is definitely a big step up for us and we can't wait to start the adventure! 

Now time to start making it feel like home!

Does It Ever Slow Down?

We have been on the go!  That is either a great thing or maybe not, just depends on what is going on.  So, what have we been doing?  Bunches!

I had taken a break from the blog and I'm hoping to get back to posting regularly.  It has been a wonderful way to document our unschool life.  It's just that we have been so busy unschooling that I didn't have the time or energy to sit down and blog about our happenings.  I think I am more busy with unschooling the kiddos than if we just had a set curriculum and studied from textbooks.  But studying from textbooks isn't real life, is it?

Egee has thoroughly enjoyed the dance competition world.  Her team did very well in all four competitions.  They placed high gold in two and platinum in two.  They earned a 1st place ranking in their age/division, as well.  She had try-outs for competition teams in June.  She made the next level in competition teams for clogging and stayed at the performance level for Irish.  She is working hard to make competition Irish next June. 

I have been busy driving her to dance workshops and classes.  Oh the life of a dance mom!  LOL

Little Man has taught himself magic tricks, yo-yo tricks, skate board tricks, etc.  He is always on the move.  He researches everything using Google and YouTube.  I love the fact he can learn so much through self direction.  He has been busy fishing and learning new techniques to catch different types of fish.  He was concerned with getting a hook in his hand and spent countless hours researching the best ways to remove fishing hooks from body parts.  It was a bit much for me!

We have camped and traveled this summer.  (Most of the travel revolved around dance.)  However, we always incorporate some type of learning experience.  We have spent countless hours enjoying our pool and new deck.  Now that summer is drawing to a close, we are looking forward to visiting zoos and other outdoor learning environments.

I don't forsee our lives slowing down much.  However, I will carve out time to post our adventures.