Last week we went on a major field trip to
Shoshone Base Camp for their homeschool program. We spent two days and nights learning about the great outdoors with several
members from our co-op. The schedule included survival, hiking, rock climbing, stream wading, playing games, and lots of songs around the
campfire. They fed us really well - too
well! I think I gained a few pounds. Overall, it was a great experience, and Kylen says he'd like to go again.
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| They started off making nametags by writing on tree slices. Our cabin is in the background. |
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| Rec time: pool was most popular with ping pong a close second. |
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| I wonder how old this thing is! |
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| The Stream |
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| Wading |
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| The Sky |
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| Time to learn about trees! |
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| Board Game |
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| Campfire |
It's a fun tradition having Kylen make one of these every year. I asked several people what this one looks like. A couple of people saw a bird. No one said what I saw: a volcano (sideways). There's an explosion, magma chamber and everything!
Well, that concludes my fair posts. :-)
I figure playing one of the game booths at the fair can be an educational experience. Besides, I had my eye on the minions. It totally wasn't worth the money we spent to play, but like I said, it's an educational experience, right?
I remember getting a wax version of my hand at the fair when I was in college. It turned out surprisingly well, and I kept it in my room until graduation. I thought Kylen would enjoy making one. He seemed good with it until his hand started feeling like it was going to "burn off." I'm pretty sure they had me alternate dipping in cold water and wax, but the lady dipped his hand in the hot wax several times in a row. Then he tried to pull his hand out too fast and made a few cracks. It's sitting in his room, although I have a feeling he won't cherish it the way I did mine.
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| Chilling his hand in cold water |
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| Dunking |
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| Removing drips from the fingertips |
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| After several layers of wax |
Kylen got some REALLY funky pictures of Greg and me on this ride. We have no idea what was going on with the camera, but they turned out pretty cool. The last one of Greg's face cracks us up. He did NOT like this ride and made several comments about never going again. We had thought it looked rather calm, but halfway through it started pulling serious g's. So yes, he's being very real in that pic. In fact, I live with two big wimps. Can't tell you how many times I asked, "How about this one?" and both of them answered, "No thank you." Guess next year I'll have to go with my brother!
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| Taken for Rebecca: is this a "fluffy" chicken . . . ? |
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| They said he'd gotten out of his cage about twelve times that day. Lol. |
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| A horse named after me! Same spelling even, which is rare to see. |
Greg always has to get the cube of fries, Kylen varies, I usually make it a point to eat something deep fat fried. My favorite dessert so far has been the deep fried Twinkie. Here was my lunch: baked potato, corn on the cob, and a turkey leg. Some of the best corn anywhere, but the whole meal was fab. I couldn't believe how much meat was on that turkey leg! I wrapped up the leftovers, brought it home, and got enough off the bone to provide meat for all of us another meal.
The blacksmith demo was the most interesting partly because we'd just finished reading about metal working in The Golden Goblet. It was also more involved than the others. He did a great job explaining the steps while making a leaf. I think it would be a neat educational experience to take one of his classes.
Last week was the Spokane Fair! We've always gone on family day, but that meant skipping piano and Bible study, so we decided to try Thursday. It was perfect! The day crowd was small, and we were done by the time the evening mobs arrived.
We always start in the steam and gas area where they have demonstrations from the good old days. This year we observed a saw in action, wool weaving, and my favorite: a blacksmith demo. I'll do a separate post on that, since I took lots of pics!
Most kids have probably seen the mentos and pop geyser long before they finish grade school, and I've been wanting to do it with Kylen forever. I even purchased a little kit summer before last. We just never got around to it . . . until recently. I even took a video, but I rotated the camcorder vertically without thinking. Yeah. I'm not playing it sideways, so we'll just go with a few pics!
I'm thankful we managed a second trip to Riverfront Park, since my camera ran out of batteries last time! I wanted to get some shots of Kylen on the Looff Carrousel. I remember riding this historic carrousel when I was a child and how exciting it was to get a gold ring. During most of the ride, they have a dispenser from which outside riders can grab a ring as they fly by. You have to be tall enough to reach and brave enough to lean out. Oh, and quick! Plus, newbies must be able to get past nipping their fingers and the humiliation of missing. There's always that nudging fear, "What if I can't do it?"
I knew Kylen COULD do it, since he surpassed my height during the winter, one of many changes that marked a transition toward adulthood. In a way, I guess this was a sort of "coming of age" test. His first trip around was disappointing. He was reaching out but staying firmly planted on the horse. I told him he needed to stand up and do more leaning. The next ride, we were thrilled when he not only got a ring, but the GOLD ring! There is just one gold ring dispensed each time that entitles the winner to a free ride. I was so proud of him! Fast-forward to our second visit last weekend: he got TWO gold rings, two rides in a row! We could hardly believe it! Twas the summer of the gold rings!
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| Kylen Grabs a Ring |
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| Greg Grabbing for a Ring |
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| Stretched Pennies! |
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| Brings Back Childhood Memories |
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| The Gold Ring!! |
