Summer Break: Weeks Six and Seven

Since we were gone for weeks four and five of summer break, I'm picking up here with the next two weeks of our summer break. It's been one of our busiest summers yet, but it's also been really good. The kids are so big and independent and we've really been enjoying the slower pace of the summer months.

Here's a peek at what we did over the last two weeks: 

Our schedules were all off-kilter when we returned from Scotland, so the boys were up well before dawn and were helping me make muffins in the dark on our first couple of days back. 

We were also up and at the Houston Arboretum at 7am one morning. The new Woodway entrance is gorgeous!

The basketflowers are in bloom everywhere!

 

We also found an enormous spider eating a fly that it had caught in its web.

Library visits are a staple of our summers. We regularly visit multiple libraries in one week (sometimes we visit two in one day!).

My mentor's library is in Alvin ISD and the boys and I have been helping out each Tuesday all summer. Playing with Rubik's cubes was a highlight!

Food is another staple. Henry was so excited about his breakfast of a fried egg over farro that he asked me to take a photo of it!

I needed to renew my driver's license this summer, so the boys and I went down to Rosenberg to take care of that. Afterward, we visited the Rosenberg Railroad Museum, which was interesting.

Soda fountain lunch at Another Time Soda Fountain & Cafe.

Last week, Will was in a coding camp at Rice University, so Henry and I did some exploring on our own. He chose to go to the zoo one day. It was really hot, so we didn't stay too long.

On another day, we visited the MFAH to see the Joris Laarman Lab: Design in the Digital Age exhibit. 

These three tables were made by a robotic arm using different sized metal blocks (voxels) to create the table. Each table is comprised of different sized blocks, and the effect is that as the blocks get smaller, the tables look less blocky or "pixelated," just as the images of Super Mario (on the wall) have become less pixelated and more realistic over time. This whole exhibit on design in the digital age was absolutely fascinating.  

On Friday afternoon, Henry and I got to attend Will's award ceremony and project display for his ID Tech coding camp. He made a Pi Top computer and designed a slot machine program, which was actually really fun. 

Will loved his camp so much that he's back doing another one this week, and Henry decided to join in the fun. The camp runs 9-5 daily, which is a really long day, but they both absolutely love it.

Finally, after years of searching, the boys have found a summer camp they enjoy!