Nashville, TN.

We had the opportunity to go to Nashville, TN. with Dh this week--we stayed 3 days.  We visited Andrew Jackson's place- The Hermitage and we also went to see the Parthenon.  The Parthenon is an exact replica of the original in Athens, Greece.

http://www.nashville.gov/Parks-and-Recreation/Parthenon.aspx

Here are a few pix of our adventure: (When I first posted this posting I didn't know that I needed to compress my photo's, so I've had to edit out many of the pictures I first shared, but there are still a few of the best pictures we took, just small!)

The Parthenon:

We went to the Parthenon twice--once at night to see how it looked at the park and then the next day so we could go inside.  The park itself was big and very full of life.  There were tons of people and different groups meeting to exercise and play.  Inside the building, there are many things to see and do.  There is a nice gift shop; a museum, and 2 different art galleries.  There is also a whole section dedicated to the 1849 (or about then) Nashville, TN. Exhibition that the Parthenon was actually built for.  This Exhibition was a HUGE deal.  The whole park was chock full of buildings and exhibits...it was a really big deal!!!( understatement)

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The Parthenon was first made out of plaster and was only suppose to be a temporary building like the other many buildings surrounding it; but for some reason that I don't know about they decided to remake this building out of concrete and sand/gravel and make it permanent. 

Inside the Parthenon was a ton of cool sculptures; including this gigantic one of the goddess Athena.  The wings of the building were full of beautiful sculptures like the one posted below.

There was one art gallery (or two?), one exhibit on the history of the Parthenon building, built for a World's Fair back in the early 1900's, and a nice gift shop....Dd and I got matching necklaces to remember our special visit...the building has a lot to see and the grounds the building is on is also a lovely park.

Andrew Jackson's: The Hermitage:

Rachel Jackson's favorite place was her gardens; and Andrew buried her (and everyone who followed) out in her garden area.  While living, he visited there daily to be close to her spiritually.

The pictures do not do justice to these very English gardens.  The gardens were very nice and simple.  There were a lot of different varieties; yet staying true to what grows in this region.  There were lots of Crepe Myrtle--as seen in this picture.

The red flowers are "scarlet zinnia's" and they were awesome in person...I would love some in my garden!

Yes, we picked up a new staw hat here!  Isn't it a nice one?!  Dd got a postcard of Rachel Jackson and a candy too.

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August 20th-24th 2012 -Week 3- Core E Lessons

This was a busy week b/c Dd and I went with Dh to Nashville, TN.  He had a seminar to attend and we had never been to Nashville....so off we went (easier said than done, though!).

I will post pix of the 2 places we went to seperate from this posting.  We went to Andrew Jackson's home; which he called "The Hermitage".  We also went to the Parthenon; which is an exact replica of the one in Athens, Greece.  Both places were fantastic and wonderful!!!!


WEEK 3: Core E
We managed to get some of our lessons in during our down time.  Here is what we accomplished this week, regarding our book learning--

Bible:
exerps from: Luke, Mark, John, and Matthew
"Starting Strong" bible devotion book--chapters 2 and 3

History/Geography:
William Wilberforce by John Holzmann
Landmark History of the American People, Vol. 1 (Yay!  we haven't read from this book in a few months and I had been missing it...glad it is back!)
Sounding Forth the Trumpet

RA's
Moccasin Trail
We are really liking this book.  It is an exceptionally fun one to read aloud due to the great 'voice' of the characters..."By Gore!"  I think I am going to advise my Dh to read this one after we are done with it.  It is such a good read!
Oxforsd Illustrated Book of American Children's Poems
I also checked out a PBS dvd from our library on Walt Whitman to watch this week with Dd. WW was from this exact time period, and I thought it would be good to get to know him and his work a little better to add to our history knowledge.  I am not sure this was such a good pick for my Dd's age though.  This dvd focused a little too much on WW personal life and was probably intended for adults not children.  I'll keep trying to bring in more poets though...
Thee, Hannah
What a book, fun book!  We are enjoying this one too!

Readers
Freedom Train
Dd really is slagging on this one.  The first 2 chapters were very harsh.  I've offered to make this a Read Aloud; but Dd doesn't want that.  She says she wants to read this alone and she is 'fine'.  But, she usually goes through books so quickly and definitely isn't going quickly with this one.

Math
Dd is still avoiding long division a bit longer, so she finished her TT4 this week.  She did lessons 113-119 and a quiz to finish up.  She earned herself a new Star Wars figurine--for those of you that know Star Wars this is a Clone Wars character--"Ahsoka Tano".  She has 3 different Ahsoka's and this one is the oldest version.  She is taller and her 'tails' are longer.  Dd is loving her!!!

Because we went to the Parthenon, Dd has been very much interested in the Greek myths...again. We go through phases of loving the Greeks.  We are very much Percy Jackson fans here and have read the series.  We studied them in history prior to that; so we just keep circling back to them every few months.

Here are the books Dd read this week--or perused through--as she is still reading this group:

Goddesses, Heroes, and Shamans: The Young People's Guide to World Mythology by David Bellingham 

 

 

DK Classics: The Odyssey (DK Classics) by Homer

 

  

Favorite Greek Myths by Mary Pope Osborne and Troy Howell

  

 

Medusa by Deborah Nourse Lattimore

  

 

 

Greek Myths by Jacqueline Morley and Giovanni Caselli

  

 

 

Orchard Book of Greek Myths by Geraldine McCaughrean

 

some fun books Dd's read this week:

Geronimo Stilton--Surf's Up, Geronimo!

 

Cat and Mouse in a Haunted House--Geronimo Stilton

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