Field Trip: Hiawatha

  This last week has been cRaZy!  Hubby and Bubby have been volunteering at an amateur archaeological dig in Council Grove, KS (more to come on that later). Then our work took us up to Hiawatha area near the Nebraska border.  Hiawatha was among one of the first stops my family took when we started taking summer trips when I was growing up. So although it is small potatoes, I was glad to go back. 
  Of course, any time we can meet up with Ducky and Grandma is a bonus and it worked for them to come along! We started out at the Brown County Historical Society so I could do a little historical research and everyone else browsed the displays.  The top floor had a ton of militaria and Bubby was in high heaven.  Although the top and first floors had displays, the basement was the most engaging for everyone in general. They had little rooms that showcased life from bygone eras. 

And other local displays like "the birds of Brown County".  The museum, like many county museums, is based solely on donations, but this museum seemed to have a knack for putting those donations to good use telling the story of everyday life in Brown County. 
  I separated from the rest of the group after the Historical Society.   Their next stop was the Ag Museum. The museum staff there did a great job engaging the kids in finding artifacts in the displays.  Shorty also got to ring the school house bell - which is always just totally cool!

The last Hiawatha stop was the Davis Memorial, which is one of the notable Kansas sights.  John Davis memorialized his and his wife's life in stone and you can see it in the local cemetery.

It has seen some vandalism, but is still rather impressive.  The big kids took notes throughout the whole excursion, which thrilled me!
  I would be amiss if I didn't mention our new favorite place to eat in Hiawatha - The Bread Bowl.

Shorty playing with one of the lunch boxes at the Bread Bowl

Croissants, wraps, and cookies - oh my!  We enjoyed it so much, we went back the next day and got lunch again (and red velvet donuts! Ooooooh, I'd make the 2 hr. trip again just for red velvet donuts).  I have decided that after this trip we are making a map of the Kansas counties where we can check off which ones we've been to.  We've covered quite a few within this last year alone with more to come :)

A Week Without Kids

  This has not happened in forever, but last week I went without seeing my kids all. week.  All week! I left them in capable hands (Ducky and Grandma).  Hubby and I were off to work on a site in NW Missouri.  It was a fascinating Antebellum homestead site and I hadn't been on a dig since before the kids were born. I'd been studying the time period and was anxious to get my hands dirty uncovering artifacts from it!
  We've been on a a high activity swing here.  The last month and a half has been run, run, run and when we do that I tend to be a little looser with the technology limitations we like to keep on ourselves.  So, when I dropped the kiddos off with Ducky and Grandma while I didn't expect them to do school I gave the kiddos a helpful list of things they could do to not be attached to a computer or tv.  Most of the things were off of Bubby's Boy Scout requirement list that really would double for schoolishness ;) I didn't have to worry though, I think that if homeschooling had been more accepted when I was young, my folks would have excelled at it because they are always coming up with interesting pursuits for the kids.
  They built contraptions out of gummy bears...

which also included color sorting and counting for Shorty.
  Hunted morel mushrooms...

they had started out hunting frogs for a Scout merit badge but got a little sidetracked ;)
  Created interesting things.  And also helped Grandma try out concoctions for vacation Bible school snacks.

They even did some technical school things like journaling and Life of Fred.

We are just trying out Life of Fred.  Bubby loves it, Mookie not so much.  But she is enjoying her Kahn Academy.
  After a long week we were all a little sad and Ducky and Grandma brought everyone out a little early for a trip to the site and then the kiddos stayed and helped - well, Bubby did and the other two played.

And we just soaked up time out in the wilds of NW Missouri together.

stomp rockets!

Field Trip: Wichita

  Work took Hubby and I to Wichita today.  One of the perks of being your own boss is getting to take family along.  So we met up with Ducky and Grandma and headed out.  Our first stop was the Old Mill Tasty Shop.  Ducky and Grandma knew that it was a popular eating place so we got there right at 11am to beat any lunch crowd - I'm glad we did.  We were easily seated and dined on yummy things like the lasagna special, chili and crab salad sandwiches and cherry limeades (made on site).  Our server, Oliver, was fantastic (he's my vote for best server we've had over the past year).  Afterward we took part in yummy carrot cake and shakes - can you say stuffed? ;)  When we left the place was packed with periods of people waiting to be seated - yay for excellent timing!

Tasty treats at the Tasty Shop

  Hubby and I dropped everyone off at the Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum to wander while we went to our meeting at WSU.  Wichita has many opportunities for field trips, but since our trips to Wichita are few and far between and our time was limited, we went for local and less expensive admission.  The kids had a blast. Although when you are with your grandparents, how can you not? ;)

There weren't as many hands on activities, but there were enough like the antique phone booth with the rotary dial and the old typewriter. 
  When they finished with their time there, they took a hike through the downtown while on their way to the Transportation Museum (which is near the Tasty Shop).  They were fascinated by the bronze statues along the way and took some fantastic pictures of them interacting with them...

And trains!  The railroad passes right through downtown, much to Shorty's joy.

But, the Transportation Museum was closed, poor planning on my part.  I had neglected to double check the hours.  However, a wonderful man who was gearing up for a display there this coming weekend heard them rattle the doors and gave them some railroading magazines and pamphlets.
  Since it was chilly they went in search of hot chocolate at Expresso To Go Go which was a little coffee shop we had seen close to the Tasty Shop with a huge disco ball hanging from the ceiling.  Mookie declared the hot chocolate the best she had ever had.

Waiting on hot chocolate

We joined the fam there for our own treat before we hit the road. Those gals at Expresso To Go Go took really good care of us, and it will definitely be a place that is worth a repeat visit. 
  One place that is on our list for a possible future trip is the Great Plains Nature Center, but that will have to wait for an even warmer day ;)

Field Trip: Museum of the Great Plains

  We reached our primary destination near the Wichita Mountains.  Hubby and I were going to be deeply entrenched in research so we had a variety of trips for the family to go and visit.  It turns out we only needed one ;)   The Museum of the Great Plains was not open when we had visited this area a couple of months ago, and it had actually just re-opened after renovations just a couple of weeks prior to this trip, so we were among the first to experience all that it had to offer. 
  All I can say is wow!  Now, that's me speaking as one who did not set foot in the museum galleries.  The kids spent approximately 8 hours over two days in the museum and really only stopped when they had to eat something.  They went on and on in the evenings about all the activities they did, what they saw, and what they wanted to do again.
   From the printing press...

printing press

where they could make signs for the mock town that was set up for them.  The town featured actual historical figures from the area and told their stories.

The kids with one of their store signs

Each area had a docent which was on hand to assist the kiddos and give them more details.

Shorty getting some help with a wind tunnel from one of the docents

One of the areas they went back to several times was the buffalo that you could dissect.  Shorty dubbed him "Buffy" and gave him a hug before they left :)

The kids removing Buffy's organs

They even had fun things like a huge LiteBrite...

I could go on and on about the animatronic dinosaurs to the tornado shelter that made you feel like you were going through a tornadic storm.  I. am. jealous.  I have resolved to go into the museum the next time we're down south.
  I asked the kids which they liked better, this museum or the Illinois State Museum which we visited earlier this year and is the closest in comparison for hands on learning.  They refused to choose, but they did say that this one was way more hands on. 
  Just as a comparison, our local history museum (the Kansas State Historical Museum) charges $6 per child, and the Museum of the Great Plains charges $8, the Illinois State Museum was free.  All do fantastic jobs of telling the story of their state and areas.  All have a majority of permanent exhibits.  The Illinois State Museum and the Kansas Historical Museum have some age to their exhibits, the Kansas one being the older.  The big difference between these museums and why the Kansas Museum doesn't even come close is the interaction.  The other two make you an active participant in history all through your museum experience.  Want to make what most consider to be the most boring subject in school come alive to a child?  Have them feel it! Draw them in to the story, don't just tell them it.  My most favorite teacher in school was my junior high history teacher, and I give him a huge credit for my love of history.  He would "preach" history to us and give us a "hallelujah" when we gave him the right answer.  He would take one of the students, lay him on a table and reenact Meso-American Indian sacrifices (this happened one time when a group of Kindergarteners was walking by our classroom door - you should have seen their eyes get big! But I digress...).   I am so thankful for museums like the Museum of the Great Plains.  We'll end up there again, and it might be hard for the kids to branch out to the other sights in the area now ;)    

Field Trip: University of Oklahoma Art Museum

    Hubby and I had another round of research in Oklahoma this week, so we loaded up the family along with Ducky and Grandma and took off.  I have to say I was a little jealous.  Hubby, Mookie and I did this...

Hubby was sneaking pics

at the University of Oklahoma Western History Collections.  And the rest of the gang went to OU's art museum where they had an exhibition called Immortales: The Hall of Emperors of the Capitoline Museums, Rome.  There were about 20 busts from early to late Rome.  This fit perfectly for our history studies which have been focusing on ancient history.

Bubby was in heaven.  Went through and took a picture of each bust with his camera and regaled us with details when we met up later in the evening.  To be honest, I was a little worried about Shorty on this one.  He's a busy guy, and while he has excellent behavior long trips contribute to unpredictable outcomes for little ones.  He did wonderfully though.  Grandma had him keeping his hands to himself...

following Bubby's example.  And there were hands on things to do too like blowing into a pipe and making digital art move.

Day one ended with success and then the real fun began the next day...

>to be continued< 

Field Trip: Are you prepared?

Bubby a few years ago

   The Royals won the World Series this week.  It's been 30 years since that goal has been attained.  Our family has thoroughly enjoyed attending a few Royals' games over the years.  Hubby suggested that we see if Union Station was open on the day of the parade and then hang out until the parade ended there for the rally.  Sounded like a good idea, and Union Station (which houses Science City, a children's museum) was discounted on account of being closed when the parade started, so we made it a date with Ducky and Grandma.
  We headed out bright and early this morning so we could arrive at Union Station at 9.  The exhibits opened at 8 but we figured we had a nice balance by leaving the house at 7:30.  Well, traffic was really awful when we hit downtown Kansas City and Hubby and Ducky dumped us out about 4 blocks from our destination and went to find a parking space at about 10:30. People were already parking on any green space that was available and even in the medians, so we knew finding that place would be hard!

People were bailing out of their cars on the highway to go in advance and hold places for family

Hoofin' it

We had no plan other than the Station to meet - this turned out to be a problem!  The kids, Grandma and I got to the area in front of the Station and I texted Hubby a general text that we had gotten there and were by the music.  We had a bathroom emergency so went in search of a bathroom.  The porta-potty lines were horrendous so we went into the station (I'd rather wait in a huge line for an inside bathroom anyway).  All thoughts of actually going to the exhibits were out of mind now.  The crowd was growing by the second.  I went to send a text to Hubby and my other message was still sending - cell service was overwhelmed!  So I shot him another note and we waited in line.  By the time we exited the building, Hubby had told me they were at the station, so we still had no clue where each other was.  Out into the sea of humanity we went.

Looking for the guys

We found a place and stayed with it.  Calling was out of the question, so I sent another text with our specific location.  When that one failed, we set out in a search for the boys.  Amazingly we found them!  Hubby had sent numerous texts as well that had failed.  I am seriously amazed we actually found each other.
  We didn't last the whole time, but we made the most of our time and made some memories.  Here is what I learned from our experiences:
  1) Make a specific plan if you are going to be separated from your group.  Normally our general plan would have worked, but this day proved to be unprecedented on so many levels that a specific plan would have saved a bunch of time! We needed to pretend that we were living in 1985 (the last time the Royals won the Series) and not rely on those silly cell phones so heavily!
  2) In a crowd situation - take a backpack instead of a purse.  I had and boy was I so glad I did!  I stuffed our jackets in it and other supplies too!  Much easier to carry!
  3) Identifying clothing.  You're saying, "yeah, yeah" but today most everyone was wearing royal blue with something Royals on it.  After I thought about it for a while I was scared Shorty would take off on me without his jacket on and I wouldn't be able to see his blue Superman shirt for the sea of Royals shirts.  I wish I'd dressed the kids in florescents no matter how much they would have protested.
  4) Carry food and water.  I had the water, but neglected to switch the granola bars over from my purse to the backpack and we could have used them.
  5) Carry change.  When we attempted to buy some extra snacks, the snack machines was only accepting coins.  My extra quarters came in real handy!
  6) Don't get stressed!  We went into this day to expect the unexpected and I'm so glad we did!  It greatly decreased the stress level for all of us.  There were a lot of things that we could have reacted strongly to when they weren't going right, but it helped that we were going with the flow.  The kids benefited too because when we get stressed they pick up on that too.  

Letting the 500,000 other people have their fun

Today was definitely a day we will never forget :) I am so grateful for the time we were able to spend together and the lessons we learned along the way :)

Field Trip: Sam Noble Museum

  This is a weird blog for me to write.  I get to tell you about one of the most fantastic museums we have ever been to, but this time around I didn't get to go with the kiddos.  Hubby and I had some work in Oklahoma so we packed up the kids and Ducky and Grandma for a working vacation.  Our first stop took us through Norman, Oklahoma where Hubby and I did some research on the University of Oklahoma campus and Ducky and Grandma took the kids to the Sam Noble museum.  The last time we had taken the older kids was when they were about 4 & 2 (they are now 12 and 11).  If I had one sadness on this trip it was that I didn't get to go to the Sam Noble museum too - it is that fun :)

A dino lover's dream.  Now this being said, I have not been to any of the "big city" natural history museums, but this satisfies just fine ;)

The real fun is the "dinovator" which is an elevator that takes you eye to eye with one of the big plant eaters (ha, can you tell I'm not the dino expert?  I'd want to say apatosaurus, but we'll just play it general...). 
  They also have a wonderful diorama area which has all the flora and fauna of Oklahoma, even down to caves where bats are lurking...

 My favorite picture from their experience there is with the big mammoth statue. 

  Mookie and Bubby are proudly posing with the mammoth, but do you see Shorty?  He's getting ready to kill the mammoth with the ancient Native American family. 

  We had the biggest discussion about what the family was doing, why the mom was hiding behind the dad, what the dog was doing, etc... With field trips, you don't need to "do" anything, kiddos soak up more than you realize, but you reinforce what they learn with a good discussion and make it all applicable to their lives right now it just encourages them to seek out learning later on. 
  If you get down to Norman, Ok you should definitely check the Sam Noble out.  Our family got in for around $15 which was well worth the trip!

Field Trip: Hannibal

   Another trip out to see Hubby and some more stops on the way.  Right now Hannibal is a great place to stop and stretch our legs and wait for Hubby to get off of work.  This time we did a little more exploring of the town.  Our travels took us out to Lover's Leap which has an amazing view of the landscape.  We saw train tracks, barges, the steamboat, and speedboats.  When we told Ducky and Grandma where we had been they sent pictures of when I had gone to the same spot when I was Bubby and Mookie's age.

Mookie, Shorty and Bubby at Lover's Leap

Me & Ducky at Lover's Leap

  While we were there we compared the story of the two Native American "lovers" to the story of Romeo and Juliet that the kids had been reading over the past week - edged in a little literature discussion there ;)
  One of our favorite, and cheap, places to go is the local library wherever we are visiting.  So far both the ones we've been too have been great historic buildings.  Hannibal's was really neat because of all the fun things to play with, and Bubby discovered they had every single Hank the Cowdog book and maybe each Boxcar Children - that's important you know! 

  The day ending up with seeing Hubby and some treasures he found for us - a coral or crinoid fossil and coal, which leads into a science/art study just because - I love homeschooling!

Bubby drawing his new fossil

Field Trip: Mahaffie Farm

  We were going to make it to Mahaffie Stage Coach Stop and Farm this spring, that's all there was to it.  I'd passed it too many times on the way to other places, my sweet cousin sent me a note highly recommending it, and then came the announcement about "homeschool days" and that settled it!  We registered and were ready to go!
  Mookie was rather blasé about the whole thing.  In fact, she's been in a little bit of a funk lately.  This was just the thing to get her out of it. Really, the whole family needed it.  It had been a crazy and stressful week and we needed a treat!  We grabbed Ducky and Grandma and headed out!
  When we arrived, we didn't stop in the little interpretive center at the main building.  Shorty was dying to "play!" so we were on the move.  The first thing we saw was an opportunity to plant corn - there were plenty of hands on activities for the kids.

  There was even a wheat planting demonstration with a horse drawn planter going on.  The big draw was the animals - baby pigs, sheep, goats.  My little farmer wanna be's were in heaven :)
  The next stop was the stage coach.  The kids' rides were free, but the adults had to buy tokens. We had debated on whether or not we should all ride, but I am sure glad we did!

The ride lasted over 5 minutes and thrilled young and old tremendously!
  The house that the Mahaffies had owned as a stage station was open.  In the basement they had cooking demonstrations going on.  The gals were cooking corn cakes on the wood stove and churning butter, both activities were ones that the kids could help with - and mine didn't have to be asked twice ;)

  The part they had the most fun with though were the old time outdoor games like Game of Graces and hitting the hoop.  Mookie excelled at the Game of Graces and was a pro.  What can I say, I think the kid was born 150 years too late.  In fact, she had so much fun, she smiled like she hasn't smiled in quite a while.

While the big kids played games, Shorty just wanted to run up the big hill...

King of the hill!!!

Of course, there were other things like grinding corn for chicken feed and then actually feeding the chickens!

Then we were tiredly and happily making our way out the door.  Posing with the Olathe boot, waving, "thanks for coming" (yep, that was Shorty).

Can you tell who I spent most of my time with?  Yep, the little guy.  Our unspoken deal is I will chase him and the older kids get to spend time at the things they want to.  Bubby is so meticulous, wanting to make sure he gets to see every. little. thing. on. the. map. and Mookie just wants to take her time at the hands on stuff.  When we get to take Ducky and Grandma along it makes it even more special because the older ones get to hang out with them for more one on one time while I ride herd on the little guy.
  We are definitely going back to Mahaffie someday.  While we were at Mahaffie we picked up this most awesome kids' passport (free) with places in the surrounding areas that you could gather stamps from.  Some of the places were ones we'd been to like Missouri Town and the Ernie Miller Nature center, but there were also so many more that now we need to go to!  Yay!