This was our third week of summer break — though the weather has still not been very cooperative to make it feel really like “summer.” We also started adding in just a light amount of “summer school” into our schedule.
Monday, we headed to the Minnesota Zoo for a short visit after running an errand to a friend’s house nearby:
We especially enjoyed the special exhibit of African animals, the outdoor Bird Show, and the baby prairie dogs. Baby prairie dogs are really adorable!
In other highlights this week:
1. Miss M (age 9) built new Lego Friends set she received as a belated birthday gift
2-3. The two older boys (ages 4 and 6) practiced making scrambled eggs
4. Though we don’t own a cat of our own, Miss M really loves cats a lot. So much so that she spent some of her birthday money on jar of catnip to make homemade cat toys as gifts for friends with cats, and for herself to use while playing with the many friendly cats on the block. Thanks to Family Fun magazine for a great idea (I continue to get this magazine not because I ever take the time to read it…but because Miss M loves the crafts and other fun ideas!).
5.-6. Speaking of fun ideas, Miss M really wanted to make this travel art case she saw on one of my Pinterest boards. It was a total fail (my fault — I couldn’t figure out how to properly cut the case). She made a small cardboard-and-duct-tape small crayon box instead with inspiration from daddy.
7. With continued less-than-ideal weather much of the week, Mr. E created art work as well. I really liked this one he is holding up in the picture. I think he said it was a “Red Guard with a Double Bladed Lightsaber.” Or something like that!
8. We finally planted a garden. The kids and I took advantage of a short break between rain storms and planted a few veggies on Wednesday afternoon. We’ll see if the weather is favorable the rest of the summer for actually growing any vegetables!
9. Miss M and Mr. E continued typing practice with Dance Mat Typing this week, and everyone played educational games on the iPad. “Summer School”-wise, Miss M started learning about Minnesota History by reading two “Studies Weekly” newspapers, and I played math games with the two older kids. And of course we did plenty of our usual reading aloud. Like I said, a nice, light start to a bit of planned summer learning. 🙂
I’m linking up with Collage Friday and The Weekly Wrap-Up
Homeschool Discoveries 
What a wonderful week. Thanks for sharing.
Blessings, Dawn