Tapestry Catch-Up: Weeks 16-22

I'm such a slacker.  But this adoption has OVERTAKEN my brain the past couple of months, getting ready for court, going to Ethiopia, and now waiting to be submitted to the Embassy.  Don't worry, we've still been learning and educating around here just like we're supposed to... I just haven't had any room left in my brain to write about it.  I'm really working hard at continuing to live my life right now, instead of simply WAITING for the next phase with Meryn to start.  So.  We're catching up. I opted for one big catch-up post, rather than an individual post for each week, because honestly, I can't remember week by week at this point...

So, weeks 16-18 (end of Unit 2), we learned all about the establishment of Israel and Jerusalem. We read stories of the Judges of Israel, Samuel being called by God, and about the neighboring cultures, like the Philistines.  (Did you know the Philistines were famous for their blown glass?  We learned all about how to make glass....)  We read stories of David, and learned about the Phoenicians briefly.  We attempted to make a sling like David used to kill Goliath.  We used fuzz balls as our stones: much safer, not nearly as projectile, which was disappointing...

Kiryn made big strides in her phonics book.  I love the way she illustrates these words: 

She told me the picture for "rang" was someone's finger that rang the doorbell.  Awesome.  I think this is just spectacular for a five year old. 

We learned all about David, the Shepherd of Israel, and how he had a heart after God's own heart. And how his son, Solomon, was the wisest of all men, and built God's temple, a beautiful, grand place for the Israelites to worship their Most High God.  We learned the stories of the succeeding kings, and how they tore the nation apart, dividing the tribes into two nations, and how most of the kings continued to disobey God and grieve his heart, not keep his commands.  We read about the Assyrian's conquering Israel and taking captive the people and leading them out of their land. We studied the Babylonians and their deportation of the Israelites, how they were scattered all over Babylon and Egypt, working and living as slaves again, and the walls of Jerusalem were destroyed.  We learned about the great city of Babylon, it's rise and fall, and it's kings.  We attempted to make a section of the Isthar Gate, famous blue gate to the city of Babylon, decorated with dragons and lions.  This is what we ended up with: 

Meanwhile, we keep Levi busy as best we can...

We've studied making portraits in our art lessons.  Here's Luke making a portrait of Rapunzel and Flynn Rider. 

We discovered a fantastic nature park in our city, that we will return to again and again.  We found peacock feathers, and all kinds of great leaves. The kids loved running in wide open spaces, on trails, just being in nature. So relaxing.

Luke got a chance to show off his memory work. He recited "Caterpillar", a poem he's memorized this year.  I was so proud!

We've also learned about how artists do "still life". We set this up to do a still life titled "Breakfast." Here's what we ended up with: 

Luke's Masterpiece

Kiryn's Masterpiece

This homeschooling thing is sure fun.  Some days, it doesn't feel like a lot of fun, but when I look back at these pictures, I'm so proud of what they've accomplished, and the joy of doing it with them! I love my kids.