Everyone’s first question for us when it comes to us doing this trip during the school year is “Are you homeschooling?”

I explained before we left on the trip that this is the one area that caused me a bit of anxiety about taking off around the US for 7 months and pulling the kids from 6th and 7th grade. I wanted to do a relaxed curriculum focusing on obviously geography and history through our travels. Here is how we are learning at our Gettysburg, PA KOA.

Starting off our day with a home-cooked breakfast outdoors while watching our History Channel DVD on Gettysburg. I purchased many History Channel movies for the trip so we could brief the kids on areas and events that we would be experiencing.

After breakfast and the movie, it’s time to drive to the Battlefields of Gettysburg to experience them firsthand. The kids had a wonderful 5th-grade teacher who interactively taught them a lot of Civil War history so it was fun for them to see in person many of the things they had studied.

Here at Round Top, General Porter tells a story of his daughter and a famous pencil, before giving our daughter a replica herself. The kids all did the Junior Ranger books here and earned another badge as well.

One of the kids had made this box up awhile ago and I brought it with us in the RV so that we could use it for something fun along the road. The kids had enough change to rent banana bikes, play mini-golf, and do some mining at the KOA when we returned from the battlefields.

Hands down this is the best part of staying at the KOA… the time to decompress after a long day of touring historical sites!

The kids can run around while Keith and I take a walk and just breathe in the fresh air or sit with a glass of wine. You can’t compare staying at a hotel at times like this. At most hotels, there are very limited activities for kids to do, possibly an indoor pool. At the campground, there is an abundance of outdoor fun. This is also when we can grab our moments of solitude! Back to the curriculum…

Physical Education- Never worry about the kids getting in their physical education! You know it’s most kids’ favorite class all throughout school anyway. And pictures of kids having fun outdoors are priceless anyway!

Science- This is the first KOA that the kids have done any gem mining. They had a lot of fun just messing in the sand and water and seeing what gems they could find. Then they were able to read on the poster what elements they had acquired.

Math- We are doing daily math on Khan Academy right now. It is easy to do from the iPads and the kids enjoy the challenges. Most KOA’s have good wifi which enables the kids to do some work from the campsite. Otherwise, we do most of it while we are on the road driving. Not a bad environment to learn a little math before dinner!

Homework-  The kids had to read the directions to this new game and work together to figure out how to play Carpetball while we were making dinner. They loved it and it was the first one we’ve seen at a KOA.

I think we’re all going to miss this relaxed way of learning! Any questions on how we are road schooling throw them my way!

It is extremely easy for me to remember exactly how many years ago the tragedies of 9-11 happened. I laid in the hospital after just giving birth to our triplet sons a few days prior. The devastation has always honestly been too much for me to fathom, so I don’t think I have ever let myself feel it’s affects fully…… until yesterday.

We have spent the past few days in New York City celebrating our boys 13th birthday and soaking in the energy of this bustling city. We planned to be here for their special day and to stay through Sept. 11 so that we could pay our respects as a family on this 13th anniversary . The Museum is not open today, so we chose to go yesterday. It is a tough, tough place to visit. I found myself suppressing my feelings most of the time as I just wanted to fall to my knees and bawl. I went between feelings of deep anger and hatred, to pride and love for our country, as I walked through the Museum and Memorials.

I’ll be honest. It was difficult having the kids there. It was tough having to answer all of their questions while wanting to be alone with my own thoughts and feelings. I hate that this stuff even has to be explained to them. It’s so not right. I hate that they stood and watched videos of the terrorists going through security lines at our US airports and watched people jumping out of the burning buildings to their death. I hate the word hate, but I have to tell you it’s exactly what I was feeling when I was in the exhibit about al-Qaeda and the Terrorists. Sickening.

I also felt sad that I hadn’t been here until now. It almost felt like I was cheating and just coming when everything was nice and pretty again. I actually had gone up in the Twin Towers during a high school trip to NYC. It was very surreal seeing this area without them. You definitely need to get here, if you haven’t yet. It is powerful beyond words. This day will never feel the same to me after experiencing this in person.

May we never forget the victims and the heroes of 9-11. You will forever be a part of all of us and we lift you up in honor today.

My good friend, Judy, had spoken of her Amish friend many times to me.  She knew her when she used to live in northern Ohio before moving to Arizona. When our family was planning this trip around the US, Judy said we really should stop and meet her. She wrote Ella a letter (since they don’t believe in cell phones or computers) and asked  if we could stop by on our way through. We decided why not? It was only a little off our path from Mackinaw, Michigan to Erie, Pennsylvania. On the backroads we went to Burton, Ohio and we are so happy we took the time to do so!

I tried to be respectful of Ella and her family members, as the Amish do not believe in taking photos of people! But, this was so cute I couldn’t help myself! She was walking us back to see her brother and all the local men and boys working on the farm. We happened to be visiting on the one day a year called Threshing Day. During threshing, neighbors gather together to help each other bring the harvested grain from the fields and mechanically separate the edible kernels from the stems and husks. Threshing oats is important, because horses provide the power for farm work all year long and they eat the oats. Straw, separated from the oats, is used as bedding for the horses, cows and other farm animals. It was really interesting, not to mention quite dirty, to watch the boys and men at work.

The Amish communities are such a part of our American culture. I feel so blessed that Ella opened up her home to us and answered all of our questions, while we snacked on lemonade, coffee and homemade chocolate chip cookies! Travel ultimately is an avenue to open your mind and broaden your horizons. On the way here the kids were nervous about what we were about to embark on. I have to admit that Keith and I were a little too. In her own words, the Amish “freaked out” our youngest. I think any unknown group of people can feel intimidating, especially to children. It is awesome that through travel, we can learn and grow to respect a culture of people different than ourselves!

What we learned:

– This is the neighborhood telephone that everyone uses.

– Homes have no electricity, so the Amish rely on wood stoves for heat and gas lamps for lighting.

– Children do not go to formal school after the 8th grade.

– They do not ride bicycles, but children have scooters that look similar to bikes!

-All personal transportation is done by a horse drawn buggy.

-The Amish are allowed to ride along with anyone driving them though. They hire drivers as well as depend on their English/Yankee friends (as they call us) to get to further away destinations. They can travel for vacation by train but no airplanes!

-Church services are held in rotating homes every other week. The service and Bible are both in German.

-Their clothing is all handmade and of very simple style and colors. There are no zippers, only buttons and pins allowed!

-The women wear caps (I originally called them bonnets) all of the time.

-A black cap is worn when venturing out in public. Otherwise the Amish women wear a white one.

These signs along the way made me smile. I guess sharing with a big motorhome is a rarity along their country roads! This man got run off the road when his horses freaked out at the sight of our big rig heading toward them. Our family had some good laughs at this poor guys expense. What a great day we had!