Final Field Trips

 Final Field Trips:
 Even though we finished school by May 15, we had some fun field trips a week later to really wrap things up in a fun way.  We were able to join the Classical Conversations group for a "Meet the Orchestra" (FREE) event at Heinz Hall.  Naturally, since the weather had been a cozy 86+ degrees  two days before our excursion (and of course since we planned to picnic and enjoy some games on the lawn after meeting the Orchestra), the weather plummeted to a chilly 45 degrees the morning of our event.

 I did not plan well for cold weather.  I packed salads and cold sandwiches in our lunches that morning.  I did not bring us jackets since it was forcast to warm up throughout the day.  But...it did not warm up throughout the day.  The kids and I were freezing that morning waiting for Heinz Hall to open.  So I treated them to some hot chocolate at Starbucks.

 After that we walked across the street to Heinz Hall to meet with our group.  Inside was absolutely gorgeous.

 Ryan was pretty amazed at all the sights and sounds.

 They had a neat program for the kids and it was PACKED with students from all across the area.  The conductor introduced each instrument family individually so the kids could hear what each type of instrument sounded like in isolation and then as a group in the Orchestra.  

 After being snug and entertained at Heinz Hall, we made our way to the point, where we had our chilly picnic.  Then we had field trip round TWO at the Ft. Pitt Museum later that afternoon.  We learned a lot about the founding of Pittsburgh and the native american's who used to live in this area.   The kids favorite part was learning how to fire a cannon, playing in the little tent and with the wooden guns, and visiting the "trading post." I'm not entirely sure how much the kids learned at the point, because it seemed like their most favorite thing to do was simply race through the museum chasing each other, but I learned a lot.