Celebrating St. Valentine

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February 5, 2019 By Jennifer Leave a Comment

Valentine’s Day is a huge holiday, but there’s a rich religious history and interesting legends behind it.

My husband and I don’t really celebrate Valentine’s Day. We’ve never been without kids. I don’t like to eat out. We don’t like crowds. We often just stay home, quiet, and maybe make a special family meal and set out some pretty spring decorations.

I try to make holidays special for the kids and often do theme homeschool activities. We’ve gone to homeschool Valentine parties so they can exchange traditional cards like school kids.

Now that they’re older, we read books about the legend and history and feast day and just have fun, eat yummy food, and await springtime.

Legends of St. Valentine

How We Celebrate St. Valentine’s Day:

Valentine Resources:

How do you celebrate Valentine’s day as a family?

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Michelangelo Unit Study

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October 11, 2016 By Jennifer 6 Comments

We’ve traveled to Rome and Florence and studied Michelangelo’s art extensively.

Michelangelo was a true Renaissance man: sculptor, painter, poet, engineer, architect.

His memorial is in Santa Croce church in Florence:

Some of our favorites:

The Doni Tondo at the Uffizi Museum in Florence.

Tondo means “in the round.” Michelangelo designed the frame, but didn’t create this one. Michelangelo hated painting, especially portrait painting.

Funny story has it that the minor nobleman who commissioned this piece for his bride’s wedding gift disliked the peasant look of the Holy Family and the nudes in the background, so refused to pay. Michelangelo had a fit and doubled the price. They went back and forth, even shouting in the streets, and all of Florence watched it like a tennis match until he finally agreed to pay.

Michelangelo’s 4 Slaves or Prisoners at the Accademia Gallery in Florence:

He designed these (and the Moses) for the tomb of Pope Julius II, that was never completed.

Also, St. Matthew at the Accademia Gallery in Florence:

He was commissioned to complete all 12 apostles for the city of Florence, but they were not completed after the Republic government fell.

Palestrina Pietà at the Accademia Gallery in Florence:

May or may not be Michelangelo. There’s very little info about it.

The David, of course! At Accademia Gallery.

He won a contest to create a statue for the city of Florence from a damaged block of marble that had been lying open to the elements for almost 50 years.

The Deposition, also called the Florence Pietà, the Bandini Pietà or The Lamentation over the Dead Christ, and thought to be a self-portrait as the face of Nicodemus. At the Duomo Museum.

Giorgio Vasari noted that Michelangelo began to work on the sculpture around the age of 72. Without commission, Michelangelo worked tirelessly into the night with just a single candle to illuminate his work. Vasari wrote that he began to work on this piece to amuse his mind and to keep his body healthy. After 8 years of working on the piece, Michelangelo would go on and attempt to destroy the work in a fit of frustration. Vasari gave several reasons why Michelangelo destroyed his Florentine pieta:

“…Either because of defects in the marble, or because the stone was so hard | that the chisel often struck sparks, or because he was too severe a judge J of his own work and could never be content with anything he did. It is | true that few of his mature works were ever completed and that those entirely finished were productions of his youth. Such were the Bacchus, the Pieta of the Madonna della F^ebbre [in Saint Peter’s], il Gigante [the David], at Florence, and the Christ Risen of the Minerva [Santa Maria sopra Minerva], which are finished to such perfection that a single grain could not be taken from them without injury. Michelangelo often said that, if he were compelled to satisfy himself, he should show little or nothing. The reason is obvious: he had attained such knowledge in art that the slightest error could not exist without his immediate dis- covery of it. But once it had been seen in public, he would never attempt to correct it, but would begin a new work, for he believed that a similar failure would not happen again. He often declared that this was the reason that the number of his finished works was so small.”

In Rome, we stood in awe of The Pietà, in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.

Also, we kept putting in a Euro to light up the chapel with the statue of Moses, in St. Peter Vincoli:

Shhh…we snuck a picture of the Sistine Chapel ceiling at the Vatican:

We love traveling to see art and history come alive!

Activities:

Notebooking with famous art and artists printable pages from NotebookingPages.
We made our own paints from natural materials when we reviewed Michelangelo for Kids. There are 21 educational activities in that book!
We made little frescoes of our own and realized how difficult it is!

Alex painted a beach scene.

Katie painted a river with flowers on the bank.

Tori painted a fruit basket.

In the morning, they were dry and the colors were faded. We realize how precise and complicated making the perfect consistency of plaster is for the colors to stay true. We used liquid watercolors, which probably aren’t the best for fresco-painting.

Michelangelo is one of our favorite artists of all time!

Resources:

I also like this art website.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Agony and the Ecstasy: A Biographical Novel of Michelangelo by Irving Stone.

Recommended Books:

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Bernini Unit Study

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October 6, 2016 By Jennifer 1 Comment

We fell in love with Bernini’s sculpture in Rome.

Gian Lorenzo Bernini is considered the founder of Baroque art.

Bernini designed and created the Chair of Saint Peter, also known as the Throne of Saint Peter, AND St. Peter’s Baldachin, a large Baroque sculpted bronze canopy, technically called a ciborium or baldachin, over the high altar of St. Peter’s Basilica.

We got to witness The Pope give Christmas morning Mass and saw the Chair and Baldachin up close!

We got to quickly explore the area near the altar after the Pope and Cardinals left the floor of St. Peter’s Basilica to prepare for the Christmas Benediction from the balcony.

Bernini also designed the piazza and colonnade in front of St. Peter’s Basilica. Also, at the Vatican, he is responsible for the Scala Regia (1663–66), the monumental grand stairway entrance to the Vatican Palace, along with the Cathedra Petri, the Chair of Saint Peter, in the apse of St. Peter’s, and the Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament in the nave.

Around Rome:

The Turtle Fountain in the Jewish district is a favorite with Tori, love of all turtles and tortoises!

Fountain of the Moor in Piazza Navona

Fountain of the Four Rivers in Piazza Navona

Fountain of the Old Boat by Pietro Bernini, father of Gian. This is near the Spanish Steps.

We visited the Borghese Gallery in Rome, which houses so many Bernini sculptures:

I have to say that I really, really, really love Bernini’s David.

Hades and Persephone are so lifelike. The fingers pressing into her thigh!

Apollo and Daphne. Her fingers are turning into leaves.

We also saw the statue of Aeneas, Anchises, and Ascanius from the Aeneid and the unfinished Truth Unveiled by Time. Spectacular.

Bernini’s family tomb is in the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome.

We’re on our way to see more Bernini sculpture at The Louvre and Versailles. Stay tuned for photos. Follow us on Instagram!

The Sleeping Hermaphroditus in The Louvre:

The Bust of Louis XIV in the Salon of Diana at Versailles:

We carved our own statues from soap!

It was really hard. Tori and Alex just made reliefs. Katie cut out a PokeBall. We can imagine how difficult sculpting from marble must be.

Love this:

I also like this art site.

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Rome with Kids

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July 28, 2016 By Jennifer 2 Comments

We went to Rome for Christmas.

This was our family gift. We didn’t have presents under the tree. Experiences over stuff.

Then my son asked afterwards if we can stay home next year and do presents. Sigh.

We flew on Alitalia from Frankfurt to Rome Ciampino. I know Ryanair often has really cheap tickets, but I couldn’t find any when I was planning our trip, and honestly, it was so nice to fly and check bags and get free snacks.

A driver was waiting for us. It was so much easier than worrying about how to get to our apartment. Worth every penny. We asked for a return to the airport since we left early.

We stayed at Peter’s Nest in Vatican + St. Peter, about a block over from the entrance to the Vatican Museum.

We got fresh cornetti every morning from our hostess and she kept us stocked in fresh milk and juice too! A little Carrefour Express grocery store was right beside our building, so if I had known that, I wouldn’t have paid for the pastry delivery, but it was still nice.

The courtyard to the apartment building had a lovely floral fountain.

Day 1

After we got settled and freshened up, we walked over to St. Peter’s Square.

We loved seeing the huge lifesize nativity scene.

Then, we went through security to go into St. Peter’s Basilica.

And I got to see Michelangelo’s Pietà.

We walked down to Ponte Vittorio Emanuele II to see Castel Sant’Angelo.

We love the statues lining the bridge.

I highly recommend L’Isola della Pizza for incredible food. Glad we got there early for dinner – it was soon packed with locals!

The waiters brought out a medley of appetizers and salads and the kids all ordered pizza.

I love all the salads and breads and prosciutto. They brought arancini (fried rice balls) for the kids but Aaron and I loved it too! The fried artichokes were amazing.

It was too much food, but so amazingly delicious.

Day 2

We were at the Vatican Museum before they opened and we were ushered right on in.

I’m so glad I ordered basic tickets online. I had also ordered 4 audio guides for the kids and 2 adult audio guides for Aaron and me. The kids got great little scavenger hunt maps. We loved the guides!

We began in the Pinacoteca – the Picture Gallery.

It was completely empty.

We were following our audio guides and the kids’ scavenger hunts.

If I had known, we’d have scooted on down to view the Antiquities and Sistine Chapel and left the Picture Gallery for last.

We got to stare at Raphael’s tapestries and study paintings undisturbed.

I especially liked Leonardo’s St. Jerome in the Wilderness.

Then we went to the Egyptian and Etruscan Museums.

This was especially exciting for the kids since we didn’t get to experience anything or travel for those units.

Alex and Katie really loved seeing the mummy.

Love the colors here!

They save the best for last: The Sistine Chapel.

No pictures and they have guards to hush people.

But by that time, we were hot and almost exhausted. We stayed a while, getting a crick in our necks and trying to sneak pictures with our phones.

We got takeout pizza at Forno Feliziani for lunch.

The best gelato is at Old Bridge. We got some every single day. Super great prices and large portions.

We went to the Colosseum in the afternoon.

I ordered our tickets online and they were good on any day.

I don’t know that I’d recommend doing quite so much in one day, but we thought we could handle it. We realized our tickets included the Roman Forum and the tickets are only good for two days and we didn’t think we’d have time to go back down there the next day.

We got to look down upon Circus Maximus.

The Forum must’ve been very crowded. There was so much in such a small space!

It about did me in. We barely got through it before the loudspeaker announcement that they were closing. We rushed up the stairs.

I was about ready to collapse, so I begged to take a taxi back since we had no idea where the nearest subway was and I couldn’t walk anymore. The 6-seater taxi van from Piazza Venezia to St. Peter’s Square was only €8,00!

We got takeout pizza at Forno Feliziani (yes, again) for the kids for dinner. I love that place.

Aaron and I went to The Angry Pig for gorgeous sandwiches. Our contact recommended it and the eggplant pork tenderloin sandwich was divine.

Day 3

This was Christmas Eve.

We walked to the Galleria Borghese.

Again, I bought tickets online. I super recommend that.

On the way, we stopped by Santa Maria del Popolo.

We got kicked out because they were about to start Mass. But I got a picture of the Chigi Chapel first.

The Borghese Gardens are peaceful and lovely, even in winter.

We checked our backpack, used the toilets, got the audio guides and waited for our entrance time. The tour main entrance is outside and up the steps.

There wasn’t really any instructions for that, but I followed the crowds who seemed to know.

I was really there just to see the Bernini sculptures.

The Rape of Proserpina is amazing with its emotions and realism.

The detail of the finger impressions:

Apollo and Daphne

Bernini’s David in mid-action (and a self-portrait)

We walked to the Spanish Steps. They were closed for repair.

But we love this fun fountain by Bernini – The Ugly Boat.

We walked to the Trevi Fountain. Super crowded and noisy. We threw our coins in and went to find lunch.

Nowhere on my list was open for lunch. We finally walked back to this place that smelled good when we walked by.

We got gnocchi, salad, pizza, pasta (carbonara and Bolognese), fried cod, and broiled fish.

It was delicious.

Locanda Giulietta e Romeo on Via del Lavatore:

We walked to the Pantheon. Right at dusk. Super crowded. Lighting is terrible for photos.

We walked through Piazza Navona on the way back. We really weren’t that impressed.

More Bernini fountains though!

We rushed back to the Carrefour Express next to our apartment building to buy some food to prepare for Christmas Day. We knew everything would be closed for the holiday.

Then we got overly expensive takeout from the only open cafe a couple blocks over. It was just ok.

Day 4

Christmas Day.

We went to St. Peter’s Square to wait for the Pope’s Christmas address.

It didn’t seem so crowded, so I wanted to wander around inside the Basilica to look at the chapels again.

We got to witness the Pope’s Christmas morning mass.

Above the Chair are two angels bearing the tiara and keys and then a gorgeous window of Bohemian glass, divided into twelve sections as a tribute to the Twelve Apostles, and in the center, a brilliant dove.

On the left, Sts. Ambrose and Athanasius and on the right, Sts. John Chrysostom and Augustine.

St. Peter’s Chair and Canopy were both designed by Bernini.

I asked a guard if we could view the The Altar of the Crucifixion of St. Peter. He led us around the velvet ropes to a little side chapel.

Ancient tradition claims that St. Peter suffered martyrdom precisely where this altar stands. Part of the basilica is actually built on the site of Nero’s Circus.

Then we heard the Pope’s Christmas address.

We went back to the apartment for lunch.

We walked through the Jewish district and found Bernini’s Turtle Fountain. Tori loves turtles.

We kept noticing these little plaques in the street. Later, we learned about Stoplerstein.

We walked along the river, crossed over at the island, and just leisurely walked back.

Surprisingly, several restaurants were open, but we made the pasta and sauteed chicken we’d bought for dinner and it was great.

Day 5

St. Stephen’s Day. Most shops and restaurants are closed.

We visited some churches in the morning.

All the walking had been killing me, so we took the subway and it was great. Only €4,50 for our whole family one way.

Our first stop was the Basilica di San Giovanni in Laterano.

Across the street is the Triclinium of Leo III, the apse mosaic of the former papal dining hall of remains of the old Lateran Palace.

The mosaics depicts Christ with the Apostles in the center, Christ with Constantine and Pope Sylvester I on the left, and St Peter, Pope Leo III, and Charlemagne on the right. Pope Leo III has a square nimbus, showing that he was alive when it was made. The mosaic has been dated to the year 800, when Charlemagne was crowned in Rome.

The Scala Santa are inside that building, but can only be viewed on guided tours.

We ate lunch at Hosteria La Vacca M’briaca.

We looked a couple more churches.

Aaron wanted to see the Basilica di San Pietro in Vincoli.