6th Grade Egyptian Project

The current period of time Izzy's 6th grade class is studying is ancient Egypt.  The students were given two choices for their social studies project for this section; recreate a Egyptian tomb or novel Egyptian god.  Izzy tried the create an Egyptian god but was quickly dismayed by the level of details she needed to write about.  Therefore she quickly turned her attention towards creating a tomb.  Victoria was game to allow Ken to be mummified but paced around while he was wrapped up like a nervous mother.

Izzy then spend her week painting, cutting, sculpting, and writing.  We stopped by Michael's and were tickled that there was one, and only one, tube of Egyptian trinkets which she readily used.  My job was to orchestrate a pyramid top without obscuring what was inside her tomb.  Lots of tape and spray paint later, Izzy had her Egyptian tomb done just in time for the project deadline.  She came home ecstatic as no one else created a pyramid and that she received many complements from teachers and classmates.  Now we simply wait to see how her project is graded.  She's hoping that she receives the maximum points (100) as her grade in social studies is not the strongest.  Her social studies class is reported to be the hardest class for the entire 6th grade.

 

Pandemic Igloo Dining

Once the weather turned cold, we saw a few restaurants pop up with a variety of outdoor dining options.  Some were igloos, some were heated tents, and some were greenhouses.  I thought this would be a fun experience in a year+ of disappointments.  When I started to look for options, I quickly discovered that many igloos required a minimum of $300-$500 food order.  Since the four of us never have eaten anywhere near this cost, I thought there might not be a place within our budget.  A bit more searching and we found Charlies Kitchen in Cambridge.  

Not only were were cozy and warm on the inside, the food was most excellent.  This was a proverbial hole-in-the-wall restaurant with some mighty good fried chicken.  A game of Uno and Barrel of Monkeys topped off the mid-day outting.

 

Happy St. Patrick's Day

St. Patrick's Day similar to last year was spent at home.  The kids were a bit disappointed that this didn't fall on one of their in person learning days.  But that didn't stop them from getting into the Irish spirit.  I had to include a full length picture of Victoria and Izzy as, what you could see from waste up, didn't do their ensembles justice.

 

February School Vacation.... COVID style, Day #3

Day #3 - Micah's choice

The Patriots Hall of Fame

The girls were not super thrilled with Micah's choice but never complained as he went along with their choices without grumbling.  They however became more enthralled with the place, especially when we entered where the Lombardi trophies and Super Bowl rings were on display.  

The rings became progressively bigger each year the Patriots won to accommodate the trophies displayed on them.  At this point I'm not quire sure they can be called a ring given their size.

There were many interactive exhibits which allowed all the kids to enjoy our time there.  One take away that I noticed was the size of the players.  On TV they look small but up close they are giants.

 

February School Vacation.... COVID style, Day #2

Day #2 - Victoria's choice

Build-A-Bear Worship

Victoria was in heaven.  She has been looking forward to this and knew exactly that this was what she wanted to do on her day from the beginning.  The lady who helped us was the same one who was in charge of Victoria's birthday party that was held here two years ago.  All four of us made stuffed animals including mom which turned several heads while we were there.  Nonetheless, it was delightful to be in the moment with my children.  My stuffed bunny, Dottie, now resides on Victoria's bed.  I think she knew my stuffie would end up being her charge moving forward.

In order... Micah's, Victoria's, Izzy's and mine

The end of the day was treated with something sweet.

 

February School Vacation.... COVID style

 After returning from the Ice Castles, we brainstormed on how to spend the rest of our school vacation.  Izzy came up with an idea she titled "3 Days of Fun".  Her proposal was that each of them picked a day and decided on what we would do.  All three of the kids agreed which then lead to brainstorming on what would their pick be.  The pressure was on as, at times, they couldn't decide between options.  Combined with options that either weren't open or no available tickets, decisions were made much easier.

Day #1 - Izzy's choice

Dave and Buster's

We have determined that this is the best indoor arcade based off of tickets won and prize choices.

The Ice Castles

 

In another time, February school vacation would mean heading to some place warm.  However the pandemic required us to look at more local options to spend time together as a family.  The Ice Castles fit the bill as we were able to social distance appropriately while staying outside.  The Ice Castles are located in four places throughout the US; New Hampshire, Colorado, Utah, and Wisconsin.  It is a whimsical winter wonderland created out of thousands of icicles and 25,000 tons of ice.  We had no clue what we were going to see.  The excitement of a novel experience was wonderful by itself alone.

Changing lights was a backdrop at any turn creating an alluring experience while strolling amongst the sculpture.

Once inside the castle, there were tunnels to go exploring.  Some we could walk upright.  Others required crawling.  But no matter where you went, the view was pleasing from any angle including looking up.

Hands down the most favorite part was the ice slide to get out of the castle.  And, similarly to the rest of the castle, was a cascade of rainbow colors.

Just like any other castle, the Ice Castle came complete with a throne.

Outside the castle, an illuminated nature trail awaited us before we headed home.

Izzy dubbed this "Victoria's world" which she promptly agreed.