Capitol Trip

It's field trip season apparently. I seem to be easily convinced to chaperone, my kiddos still love their mama enough to have me along on school outings.

Here is a peek at Oregon's Capitol building in Salem (but you knew that, right?).

We climbed 121 steps up an iron spiral staircase to see the infamous 'gold man' who lives on top of the dome. He's a big guy, if you stood on his foot, your head would barely reach his knee! It cost $70,000 (completely raised by 4th graders) to gold leaf him most recently.

I fell in love with the ancient carpeting, circa 1936, on the senate and house floors. One side was a repeating pattern of Oregon's state tree, the Doug Fir. The other side was all golds and yellows with a pattern of a salmon and bundle of wheat to represent Oregonian's livelihood back then.

Everywhere you went, the building was constructed with a deeper meaning in mind. Doorknobs had the state seal pressed into their brass surfaces. Names and murals were painted on walls even the type of woods used in each chamber held a certain meaning.

The only downside to the trip was the hour plus bus ride packed to the brim with over 60 10 yr olds. I had headphones, thank god, and MyGirl to share them with. :)

Visit the Portland Japanese Garden

Last week I got to chaperone MyBoy's trip to the Portland Japanese Gardens, the best field trip ever!

The Japanese Garden was like M.C. Escher meets Nature.  It is built on five acres at the top of a forested hill.  You have to hike up quite a ways to even get to the front gate.

Then you enter and are surrounded by intentional but subtle gardenscapes, a tea house, a wisteria arbor, hundred year old japanese maples, and koi ponds.  Each stone is placed for a purpose; flat ones for the tortoise and longevity, tall pointy ones for the heron.  Stone steps and narrow stone bridges meander up and downhill across trickling brooks.

Being there, even with a huge group of sixth graders, was so serene.  I cannot wait to go back again, just the four of us.

Field Tripping, Portland Art Gallery

The fourth grade really outdid themselves on this field trip!  They have some seriously ambitious teachers to take on such a big adventure.  Lucky for them there were quite a few of us parents tagging along to lead smaller groups.

Here was the itinerary:

>Take bus to the Max station (8:05am)
>Ride the Max Line into downtown Portland (40 min.)
>Tour the Art Gallery
>Take small groups to Historical Museum
>Sack lunch time
>Complete scavenger hunt walk about around downtown
>Back on the Max
>Back on the bus
>Return to school (2:00pm)

Crazy, right!?!?

My group ended up being really well behaved so I took them to Starbucks for cake pops, which was kind of a forced issue since the other group leaders were feeding their groups McDonalds fries....eww.

Anyway, I needed a coffee.

On the way to get coffee with my little group, I was asked to sign a petition.  I looked down at the guy's poster and realized he was wanting to legalize marijuana.  I declined, as it wasn't the most field trip appropriate topic!  Funny.

The art gallery was just amazing; we saw native american artifacts and I found myself enamored with every mask in the gallery...but especially the transformation masks.  These are masks within masks that  "transform" through the pull of a string, hinges, and some very innovative design.  As the dancer wearing the mask tells his story in dance, he is able to change the mask to accentuate the story.

Via

Via

I felt like a mama duck in charge of my group, adventuring around the big city.  Back at home, I needed a big long rest.