Visiting Lincoln's Birthplace

We're actually taking this week off from school since we had to be out of town Monday through Wednesday and then I'll be at a homeschool convention all day Friday. However, I was able to squeeze in some education in the form of a fun field trip this week.

On our way back home from the conference we were attending we made a slight detour to the birthplace of Abraham Lincoln, near Hogenville, KY.

One of our favorite things about visiting the National Parks and Historic Sites is the Jr. Ranger program. We've been participating since The Princess was in kindergarten and the kiddos have earned quite a few badges. Last summer I finally conned...er...talked my mom into sewing up these little sashes for them to pin their badges to and wear when we visit National Park sites. I think they turned out so cute--and the kiddos loved them:)

We really enjoyed the visitors center. There was a very interesting film and some nice displays of what the inside of the Lincoln cabin may have looked like. We had fun browsing around while the kiddos completed their Jr. Ranger booklets.

After their booklets were completed they received their certificates and new badges from the rangers.

This was some very interesting penny art that a collector created. It even contained a couple of the very first issue pennies (worth about $4K each now!).

After exploring the visitors center we were ready to climb the 56 steps (in honor of how many years Lincoln lived) to see the memorial to the cabin where he was born. It was a beautiful day to be out for a walk! The memorial is really so nice.

Inside the memorial is a representation of the cabin where Lincoln was born. This memorial was begun while Teddy Roosevelt was president and dedicated while Taft was in office.

We took the scenic route back to our car on the lovely nature walk they have there. It was a much-needed break from our car time!

My only regret was that we didn't have time to drive the 10 miles further to Lincoln's boyhood home at Knob Creek, but that just gives us a reason to go back now!

One Way I Refresh During the Summer as a Homeschool Mom

As our homeschool takes some time off this summer, my mind almost never stops thinking of and planning ahead for the upcoming school year. This is probably because I'm Type A and an obsessive planner...lol Whatever the reason, I do enjoy this season of planning. But I also need to be refreshed as a homeschool mom. Homeschooling can be incredibly exhausting and all-consuming. It's not easy and it's a lot of responsibility. And I take that very seriously when I am researching curriculum and planning toward the next school year. So also taking some time to rejuvenate and refocus myself is very important. How do I do this? Each summer I take some time to read something inspiring and motivating that speaks to me as a homeschool mom. Some of my fave reads from past years--that I have nearby on my shelf and refer to often--are Educating the Wholehearted Child, The Well-Trained Mind, The Charlotte Mason Companion, A T...

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My kids have had a chore chart for a while. It's one of those magnetic boards and they share it. However, it's not by their rooms and often they (and I) forget to update it. Plus it's a little bulky. When I saw the concept of a door hanger chore chart on Pinterest, I loved it! It was compact, right there were the kiddos could see it coming out and going into their rooms, and it costs almost nothing to make. I headed over to one of my favorite stores: Hobby Lobby, of course. They have these little wooden door hangers for .79. I also grabbed a couple of packets of decorative buttons for $1.99 each. I already had the clothes pins and the paint so those cost me nothing. I began by painting the door hangers (I used tempera paints because that's what I had). Then I grabbed a fine point Sharpie and the clothes pins and started writing chores on them, making sure to write them correctly so they will ...

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