Part four of highlights from some weeks of our living and learning lifestyle!

China. Every week or two we pick a country to learn about. Last week was China. We don’t have a structured approach to picking a country – often times it is looking at a world map and Brigit pointing to one. Other times there is something going on in a particular country and Brigit asks questions about it, leading to more in-depth investigations. The great part about this approach is it covers so many aspects and subjects, including government, sociology, geography, invention, cuisine, culture, conflict, and everyday life. This time it had three interesting deviations: carrier pigeons, the Great Wall of China and enchiladas. Believe it or not, carrier pigeons were first used in China. YouTube helped tremendously in how it worked, for I had not a clue. Considering Brigit’s recent interest in architecture and construction I was not surprised about her interest in the wall. Thousands of miles of wall taking thousands of years to build was not lost on her. She was interested in the pretty, lit sections as well as the crumbling, old sections that are no longer maintained. As for the enchiladas, she had a craving for them instead of the ‘authentic’ Chinese fare at a local restaurant I found. There was rice, just the Spanish version. Maybe we will have dim sum some other day. There was also discussion about the type of government currently in place in China and how it differs (and does not differ) from here in the United States. She definitely wants China on her list of places to visit.

Road trip. Brigit is an awesome road tripper. Since she was an infant we have taken long, multiple day road trips. As a baby there was a need for more ‘stuff’ during the trip. Lots of the time she would be the only one in the back seat, so we would fill a large bucket with toys and books. She would pull one out, use it until it bored her or got dropped, then pick another one. It meant a collection period when we stopped for the night – very much worth it for the peaceful traveling. There was some singing of songs and such too, but the giggles and laughing and showing of things to us from the bucket were most effective. Fast forward a few years. Now, as a five year old, she is used to entertaining herself, we still have the joy of signing songs, and there is the addition of amazing conversations. After living in Alaska she is hard pressed to be impressed by scenery sometimes, but we try by pointing things out. The Rocky Mountains are actually pretty, ya know.

Fine Art.  Long story short, she loved the impressionists but could care less about about Picasso. We visited the McNay Art Institute – a place I spent many hours growing up and after growing up. Walking through the rooms, experiencing a plethora of internationally famous artists and their work. The Institute has expanded significantly from the single building it was when I first started visiting in the 1980s. It has bigger buildings, more outreach and more activities now, compared to when it use to be a small but lively museum open free to the public. Brigit was most attentive in the section with Impressionists, and enjoyed the sculptures both inside and out. She also loved the koi pond in the beautiful gardens that make up the atrium in the middle of the original building. My mom and I were much bigger fans compared to Brigit when it came to about 80% of the exhibits. Maybe we will stick with the hands on museums set up for kids a bit longer.

Website. For the past six months Brigit has scowled at the fact she does not have her own website. Daddy has one, Mommy has one, Daddy and Mommy share one, why can’t she have one? Why not? We are still working in setting it up, but soon it will be all Brigit all the time on her own domain. Stay tuned!