Science Fairs, Fine Art Festivals and Field Trips

Wowsa. What a week it has been!!  Monday began with Pi (3.14) day at school - (mental note, send pies to school).  Monday evening was the Science Fair for Punkin at the Upper School.  She and her buddy Madison worked together on the project "The Mystery of Handwarmers".  Very interesting....




They worked really hard on it - and CONGRATULATIONS - they won First Place Overall!!


Tuesday we were off to Lancaster Bible College for the ACSI Fine Arts Festival.  Our high schoolers did a great job and all received ribbons. Punkin submitted a colored pencil sketch.   What a talented group of kids all together in one place.




This is one crazy talented, intelligent, impressive group of young men and women.  I can't wait to see what their futures hold. Pardon my Punkin's sweatpants under her skirt...she was cold.....and apparently would rather be comfortable than worry about her appearance.  I just don't know where she gets THAT from!


Thursday we were off with Banana's class on a field trip to Philadelphia, PA.  I remember going with Punkin's class five years ago when she was in fifth grade.  It's one of my favorite field trips.   We visited the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, the Betsy Ross house, Benjamin Franklin's home site and museum, Christ Church and more!




So cool to think about how old these cobblestone streets are and the great  men that walked upon them.

The highlight of the trip is always visiting Independence Hall to see the exact place where the Declaration of Independence was signed.   The students recite parts of Declaration - it's something I never forget!!  If you look in the video back behind our tour guide, the chair in the back against the wall, is the one George Washington sat in.  Everything else in their is mostly replica, but that chair is an original.  It's the famous one with the rising sun on the back that Benjamin Franklin wrote about.

We had an absolutely beautiful day to walk around Philadelphia. We were able to visit Christ Church - Known as "The Nation's Church" because of the famous Revolutionary-era leaders who worshiped here, Christ Church was founded in 1695. It was the first parish of the Church of England (Anglican) in Pennsylvania. It is also the birthplace of the American Episcopal Church.  
The original church structure was a small brick and wooden structure that fit into its Quaker-dominated surroundings in the late 1600s. The current church was started in 1727, and has long been considered one of the finest Georgian structures in America. The steeple, financed by a lottery organized by Benjamin Franklin, was the tallest structure in the colonies for 56 years.  The interior of the church is as impressive as the exterior. It includes the baptismal font from the 1300s donated by All Hallows Church London in which William Penn was baptized, a pulpit from 1769 built by Thomas Folwell and a chandelier still in use since its installation in 1740. Those who worshiped regularly at Christ Church include George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Betsy Ross, Robert Morris, Absalom Jones, Benjamin Rush, John Penn (William Penn's grandson), Francis Hopkinson and many others.  The church today is still an active Episcopal parish.



We stopped by the famous Betsy Ross House.



Our week also included a Daddy Daughter Dance on Friday, a birthday party for Banana on Saturday, as well as lacrosse (Banana), and soccer (Kirsten) that have just started.  Not to mention the normal youth group, ballet, bible study, homeschool co-op, others birthday parties, etc. etc.   WOW, starting to miss that homeschooling lifestyle a bit. Dance and birthday party pictures to come soon!

PS) All of the pictures on this post were taken with my I-phone.  Not too bad, huh??