September school days

Wow, how are we into September already?!  We just completed our sixth week of school and are very much enjoying our days full of learning.  In history, we are studying the early-mid 1800s, so for a hands-on project, the kids built log cabins like the pioneers...

 

...and in some not-so-pleasant history, we have also been learning about the Trail of Tears.  The county we live in here in Georgia is named Cherokee County; about 15,000 Cherokee Indians were removed from this area back in 1838 and thereabouts.  This week, we visited a small local museum to learn some more 'personal' history from that time period.  Although the subject matter was solemn, we enjoyed the museum and the time together.

 On Mondays we always have a special clothing assignment.  The kids love to check the school table all weekend long, waiting to see what they're supposed to wear to school on Monday morning.  This week was a special treat -- it was "wear your pajamas to school" day!  The rule is that we come to school dressed and ready to go, so for my pj-loving kids, this was cause for celebration.  It came in handy for some unexpected lounging around we had to do Monday afternoon when Tropical Storm Lee hurled off some tornadoes in our area!  We headed down to the basement, where we laid around playing cards, cutting up old wallpaper sample books, eating treats, and sharing laughs.

We started the week off with weather-related excitement, and we ended the week with excitement of a much more positive sort -- both kids and I started violin lessons!  We are super-excited about this new adventure.  The kids have asked for years (and I have wanted to try for as long as I can remember), so when this great opportunity came up right down the road from us, we jumped on it.  Hopefully we will be playing well enough to share a video in the next few months!

 The days, as always, are flying by!