Getty Villa, Sea World and Grandparents!

Over the course of three days, we visited Grandma and Grandpa in Southern California, Sea World, and the Getty Villa.  We also got to squeeze in visits with friends and relatives.  Quite the homeschooling field trip!

After driving 500 miles, we got to swim in the pool, identify plants in Grandma's yard...

See polar bears, penguins, fish, otters, dolphins in San Diego...

See Ancient Greek, Etruscan, Roman architecture, sculpture and more in Pacific Palisades...

Have dinner at Pepperdine University overlooking the Pacific Ocean and Malibu...

As much as we love to travel, there's no place like home!

Mystery Trip!

This year, we started a new homeschooling tradition...going on a Mystery Trip! 

Mommy plans the trip with 3 destinations.  At least 2 of them are places that none of us have been to before.  Locations are selected so that they are not far from each other, and something about them relate to what we are currently learning (in parentheses, below).

The kids are told how to dress in the morning, but not where they are going!  We have a Mystery Trip song that we sing while we drive, too.

Our first Mystery Trip included:
* Eating a snack at a European Bakery. Yum! (German, French, Spanish, Italian)

* Visit to American River College and lunch on campus.  (We like to visit college campuses and eat there!)

* A stroll through the Jensen Botanical Gardens, including the new scented herb garden for the blind.  (Botany)

Our second Mystery Trip included:


* Attending the play "Much Ado about Nothing" (Reading Shakespeare).

* A walk through the downtown Cathedral in Sacramento (Ancient Greek, architecture, geometry and rose windows).

* Visit to University Art store -- what fun! (Picked up some citrus oil for wax painting project)

We plan to continue taking Mystery Trips this summer.