Colonial Williamsburg For Reals

When I grow up, I want to be a Living History Actress at Colonial Williamsburg!  We started out early and parked at the Visitor's Center and took the shuttle over to the Governor's Palace.  There we watched a short play about Governor Dunsmore and his wife.  The carriage house and the wheelright at the Palace are actual working shops that make the carriages and wagons used in Colonial Williamsburg.  That was also true of the Blacksmiths shop, that actually makes items used to restore and replicate the buildings and implements of the times.

 

The Governor's Palace (inside) was actually closed for the filming of HBO's special on John Adams.  We wandered down the streets and spent a lot of time in the dressmaker's shop deciding whether or not to rent costumes for Mikaela and Madeline, or buy them.  We ended up deciding to buy and were glad we did.  The girls had such a great experience and will used their costumes to dress up at home too.

 

We then went to Lady Stith's house where we watched people dance traditional country dances from the time period, plus got to sing along with some patriot songs.  They took volunteers but the girls were too shy.  We had lunch in the Kings Arms Tavern, where the waitress told us that women and children would not have been allowed to eat.  After lunch we checked out the capitol building, the gunsmith (we waited for daddy a looooong time there), the Presbyterian Meeting House and the Gaol (jail).  By then it was time for the afternoon Revolutionary themed living history experience.... I don't know how else to explain it.  Basically we just wandered up and down the street interacting with living history actors who were moving in and out of more "organized" sketches.  We got to talk to slaves and indentured servants, rich people, regular folk, continental soldiers and local business people and elected officials.  We got to see the progression and response from the Virginians to the Boston Tea Party and the English's response of closing Boston Harbor.  The Governor of Virginia responded to the local response of support of Boston by disbanding the legislature.  In the end, the ousted officials declare that they will vote with the other colonies for independence should there be a call to vote.  It was all very exciting and really made us feel like a part of the whole process.  Mikaela and Madeline talked about English oppression and shouted "Huzzah!" with the rest when Patrick Henry spoke about Independence.

 

We -loved- Colonial Williamsburg... the costumes and the history and the way we felt like we took a part in supporting the "rebels" and calling for Independence.

Colonial Williamsburg

I owe a description of Colonial Williamsburg, but I'm plum tuckered out and going to bed... I posted pictures though!

Yorktown

After lunch we drove over to Yorktown and moved from the colonial period to the revolutionary period.  The most exciting thing was the cannon demonstration!  We got to look through the encampment and through the soldier's tents and talk to the camp surgeon (all I can say about the surgeon and doctoring in general during the war was EEWWWW!).  The kitchen was dug down into a trench in the dirt to keep the wind from the flames, and keep the flames from the tents.  A hole was dug into the side of the trench, and a chimney was dug from the top.  The pot was set over the chimney to cook whatever food there was (there often was none).

 

While sometimes errant soldiers were punished by being made to wear signs that advertised their offense, most often they were just lashed with a whip if they committed offenses.  We didn't test that out.

 

We then got to check out the Yorktown Tobacco farm, were the living history people actually work the farm and tend the flocks of chickens, turkeys, ducks and guineas.  If the farm was profitable enough, they had a separate kitchen and store house, where the food was kept and smoked, stored and prepared.  It was also where the female slaves slept.  The male slaves would have slept in the tobacco house. The lady farmer told us that if our girls lived on that farm, one of their jobs would have been picking the worms off the tobacco crop... they were the only pesticide.

 

Before heading back to camp, we drove down to where the York River meets Chesapeake Bay, and the Atlantic... we actually made it to the East Coast!

 

Tomorrow we will spend the day back in the colonial period in Colonial Williamsburg!

Jamestown

After Daddy cooked a fabulous pancake breakfast, we had to wait until the office opened at 10 to register (we got in too late last night). Then we drove down to Jamestown on the James River. The Vistors Center had all 50 state flags out front and the girls were excited to see the familiar California flag.

We walked through the museum galleries and learned more about English colonies and about Pocahontas. We also learned about the African slave trade. The real fun was outdoors in the Living History areas. We explored the Powhattan indian village and got to walk through their huts and touch just about everything, from cooking implements to beds, fishing equipment, and animal skins. The girls took turns grinding corn into meal, and helping to scrape the fur off an animal skin in preparation to make clothes.

Then we went down to the dock to walk through replica English ships, just like the ones that brought the colonists. The colonists were brought as "cargo" and therefore where not allowed on deck, much. They were crammed into the cargo hold most of the time, during the 4 month trip across the Atlantic. Even the captain's "spacious" cabin was cramped.

The girls got to take a turn making a canoe, the powhattan way that the colonists had to learn (the little boats that came with the ship soon returned with the ship back to England. They felled a tree and burned one side flat. Then they turned it over and, using mud on the rims to keep the fire on the inside, burn out the center. After burning it for a while, they used oyster shells to scrape out the charred wood.

Then we went into the Jamestown Fort. We got to try on armour and help with the laundry. Doing laundry meant boiling the clothes with lye soap and rubbing them on a rock to get stains out. We climbed up into the pulpit in the church, and Kristian did a great Kuiper impression. We had trouble getting Kristian out of the armory where all the weapons were stored. We got to see a musket demostration; it was very exciting and loud!

We had lunch in the cafe in the vistor's center and then headed off to Yorktown!

After Daddy cooked a fabulous pancake breakfast, we had to wait until the office opened at 10 to register (we got in too late last night). Then we drove down to Jamestown on the James River. The Vistors Center had all 50 state flags out front and the girls were excited to see the familiar California flag.

We walked through the museum galleries and learned more about English colonies and about Pocahontas. We also learned about the African slave trade. The real fun was outdoors in the Living History areas. We explored the Powhattan indian village and got to walk through their huts and touch just about everything, from cooking implements to beds, fishing equipment, and animal skins. The girls took turns grinding corn into meal, and helping to scrape the fur off an animal skin in preparation to make clothes.

Then we went down to the dock to walk through replica English ships, just like the ones that brought the colonists. The colonists were brought as "cargo" and therefore where not allowed on deck, much. They were crammed into the cargo hold most of the time, during the 4 month trip across the Atlantic. Even the captain's "spacious" cabin was cramped.

The girls got to take a turn making a canoe, the powhattan way that the colonists had to learn (the little boats that came with the ship soon returned with the ship back to England. They felled a tree and burned one side flat. Then they turned it over and, using mud on the rims to keep the fire on the inside, burn out the center. After burning it for a while, they used oyster shells to scrape out the charred wood.

Then we went into the Jamestown Fort. We got to try on armour and help with the laundry. Doing laundry meant boiling the clothes with lye soap and rubbing them on a rock to get stains out. We climbed up into the pulpit in the church, and Kristian did a great Kuiper impression. We had trouble getting Kristian out of the armory where all the weapons were stored. We got to see a musket demostration; it was very exciting and loud!

We had lunch in the cafe in the vistor's center and then headed off to Yorktown!

After Daddy cooked a fabulous pancake breakfast, we had to wait until the office opened at 10 to register (we got in too late last night). Then we drove down to Jamestown on the James River. The Vistors Center had all 50 state flags out front and the girls were excited to see the familiar California flag.

Driving To Virginia

On Monday we set out up the Natchez Trace at about 5:30am on our way to Virginia.  We had heard how gorgeous the Dogwood trees were up the Trace, but not at 5:30am in the pitch black dark!  Who planned this leg anyway....

 

It was light by the time we got to Alabama, and the Trace was indeed beautiful all the way into Tennessee.  We even saw two turkeys!  Once up into Nashville, we headed east, finally stopping for the night in Baileyton, TN, a very small town.  We visited a little grocery store where we bought fresh homemade jam and homemade black licorice for Grampa.  We ate dinner at Baileyton Restaurant, the only place in town besides the truck stop.  We met a retired Greene County Sheriff's Deputy and Kristian exchanged police uniform arm patches with him.  On our way back to the campground, we passed Baileyton Bar & Grill.  There were two old pick-up trucks, and a saddled horse tied to the hitching post.  I wish I'd snapped a picture!  After all, its bad to drink and drive, and the horse probably knows his way home! 

 

We started (not as early) the next day towards Virginia.  Once at the border, we stopped at the welcome center to take a break.  They had a big map of the US and encouraged people to put a pin on your hometown... we were the only lonely pin on the west coast!

 

We stopped in Christiansburg to meet a friend for lunch who lives not far from there.  We had a great time at Cracker Barrel.  It was the second time that we had eaten at Cracker Barrel, but we still forgot to take home the cute little syrup bottles... oh well.

 

After driving all afternoon, with a sketchy Richmond bypass (no one merges well in VA, and the freeway was worse than freeways in LA!  We need to see a Chiropractor after bouncing around so much, whew) we finally arrived in Williamsburg.  We were exhausted, so I found a grocery store to shop for the next few days, and also a pizza place called DaddyO's and brought back pizza for dinner.  We were all in bed early, we were so tired!

Our last few Tupelo days

On Saturday, we all went to Elvis Presley Lake for a fun afternoon.  Mark took people out in the boat a few at a time to fish, and some fished from a nearby dock.  The rest of the kids played in the sand and had a grand time.  Once again, Mikaela caught the most fish, and was dubbed forever after "Bass Girl."

 

Aislinn had a big afternoon, not only did she find a tiny baby turtle, but she nearly drowned... mom and dad are eternally grateful to Jordan for his quick sprint to rescue her.  The lake bottom drops off steeply not far from shore and she took one step too many.  She shook it off though and wasn't even upset, it took Tammy and I a little longer to recover.

 

After spending too much time trying to get a good picture of all 11 of us, it was our pleasure on Sunday morning to attend Lawndale Pres and meet so many people that have made the Kuipers feel welcome.  Its clear they are truly valued and loved and that was quite a joy to see.  We even went to "night church" as Jordan calls it and thoroughly enjoyed it all.  We spent the afternoon drinking lime tea and visiting with some friends from church that also have four girls, including a set of twins as their youngest.  The adults thought the second story might collapse with the sound of 9 little girls playing up there, they were having such a great time.

 

We are sorry to leave the Kuipers, but we had such a great visit and are grateful for their hospitality.  It was great to see them all settled in and enjoying their new home and this new season of their lives!

 

Haircuts, Buffalo & Catfish

Tammy had a hair cut appt and was able to add in the girls and so we all went off to the salon.  I had meant to get the girls' hair cut before we left but there was never time.   Aislinn had cut her own hair a month or so ago, and so we opted to shorten her and Abby's hair to their shoulders... much easier for summer.  Mikaela and Maddie got their long hair trimmed.  Incidentally, the salon was across the street from Tupelo Hardware... where Elvis bought his first guitar.  Thrilling.

 

Kristian was off shooting things with Mark, so I took the girls to Tupelo Buffalo Park and Zoo.  We had a great time getting up close to lots of animals.  We got to feed goats, ponies, donkeys and llamas, but the highlight was feeding Tall Boy, the tallest giraffe in captivity.  While the other animals prefer to nibble the feed out of your palm, Tall Boy prefers to wrap his tongue around your entire arm.  We also took the trolley tour through the fields to see the herd of buffalo, yaks, zebras, camels and donkeys.  We also saw one of the 5 white buffalos in the US.

 

Before we headed off to dinner we celebrated with Jordan whose report card came yesterday with a GPA high enough to earn the right the take his driver's test.  With his new license in hand he drove off alone for the first time to pick up his brother from football practice (yes football in the spring in Mississippi, of course).  In CA, parents take away football (not driving) if your grades aren't high enough, but taking away football in the south is an offense that can get you lynched in the south!

 

For dinner we headed to Malone's Catfish and Steak.  This was a very popular catfish house up a small road in what seemed like the middle of nowhere.  Since we had 10 people (Jordan was allowed to celebrate his new license with friends) they put us in a "party room."  When you get there, you sign the book with your name and number in your party in order to get a table.  The place wasn't fancy, folding tables and chairs, but it was filled to capacity.  There were mounts all over the walls... turkeys, ducks, deer, and caribou.  We all had catfish, including the twins, but not Mikaela and Madeline.  Sweet tea, catfish, hushpuppies and pie made a perfect meal.  Fish are usually safe from me, but that catfish was really good!

Fishing in Mississippi

After spending this morning catching up on laundry and washing the bugs off the car and trailer, we head over to Taylor Lake (private) to let the girls try some fishing.  Well it was a warm afternoon and the fish (large mouth bass) were definitely biting, the girls caught so many they never lost interest until we finally left for dinner 4 hours later.  The lake was gorgeous and had a beaver dam at one end, (though we never caught sight of the beavers) and a pair of Canadian geese.  We stopped counting fish since the girls caught something just about every time they threw in a line.  We had a fabulous time and I got a great picture of the sunset over the lake.

The Little Missouri River & Driving to Mississippi

The Little Missouri River

Before we left Crater of Diamonds State Park in Arkansas, we hiked (1.6 mile round trip) to see the Little Missouri River.  It was a gorgeous hike through the Arkansas forest along a creek that ran into the river.

Driving to Mississippi

We got up early on day 7 and head to the interstate on our way to Mississippi.  Our route took us through some more of rural Arkansas before finding the interstate and passing through Memphis to get to Mississippi.  We stopped to get gas in a little town called Delight, AR where the attendant commented that we were “pretty durn far from home.”

Once on the interstate, we popped in an audio book, this time, Huckleberry Finn.  We were listening to Huck and Jim float down the Mississippi River as we crossed the mighty river itself.  We stopped for lunch in Memphis, where the gal serving our lunch had such a heavy drawl that I had to translate for Kristian, and she regularly referred to him as “baby.”  Then we headed southeast from Tennessee into Mississippi and down into Tupelo and arrived at our friends’ house by mid afternoon.

 

Crater of Diamonds State Park, AR

We decided on Monday to go north into Oklahoma and then to Arkansas instead of continuing through Texas.  The route from Oklahoma into Arkansas had bigger roads and since we felt we had done small-town Texas, we thought we'd check out small-town Oklahoma.

One of the first things we saw in Oklahoma was a convention center that was advertising the "Purina Coon Hunt."  I snapped a blurry picture out the window at Kristian's insistence.  We also passed a Wherehauser factory, several lumber factories and a Remington factory.  Much to his disappointment, Kristian drove past the Remington factory.

We stopped in Bokchito, OK for breakfast at Frank's Grocery, Gas & Cafe.  The girls wanted to know why their breakfast was served with biscuits and gravy.  The only other customers was a table of 6 farmers... who had to leave pretty soon to help Bobby Joe get his tractor out of the ditch.  After breakfast, we pulled up to the gas pump to fill the tank.  Kristian went inside to give the attendant (an older man who was wearing only overalls) our credit card.  "I'd like to fill up on pump 1..."  "Well go ahead then son..."  Apparently in rural OK, you pump FIRST and then pay... a novel idea for us poor city folk.

We arrived at the Crater of Diamonds State Park in Arkansas just after lunch.  We were able to set up camp and then check out the visitor's center and the Diamond field.  I even drove back up into Murfreesboro to do some grocery shopping.  When I got to the store, the only town police officer was chewing tobacco outside the door.  Kristian grilled some steaks and we had a great dinner.  The girls were playing with some boys from the next campsite over in the surrounding woods and having a great time.  Eventually they heard we were from California and so came over to talk to Kristian.  They asked questions about how far we had come and where we were going next and living near the beach.  Then the 9 yo announced "We have 177 acres, how many acres yall got?"  Kristian just looked at him, and so he said "What? 1 acre?  Do yall know what an acre is?"  Kristian tried to explain that property in California isn’t really measured by the acre, but we don't think he understood. 

We got up early to be at the Diamond field when it opened.  The "crater" is really just a plowed field that contains limestone and volcanic ash from a long dormant volcano.  It also contains quartz, barite, jasper, amethyst and diamonds.  The trick is sifting through the dirt and finding the valuable stones.  The diamonds are supposed to shine in the sunlight.  People find about 5-7 diamonds a day, but only 4-5 diamonds a year are of a valuable weight.

We dug and sifted and sluiced (sluicing in basically washing the dirt off small bits of gravel and rock) and examined and dug and sifted and sluiced and ended up with some pretty jasper, and bits of quartz and barite and so around 4pm we gave up and went back to camp to get cleaned up.  One guy did find a 1.3 carat pink diamond that day though, but, no diamonds for us :(

 

Days 3 & 4

On Saturday morning, we left Williams Arizona bright and early and headed for New Mexico.  We intended to stay in Albuquerque, but the girls were all asleep when we drove through, so we kept on going.  We ended up staying in a tiny town called Santa Rosa, at the Santa Rosa Campground.  It was a lovely little place and we were glad to find it after driving over 470 miles from Arizona.  While trekking through New Mexico, we learned that some things are different than home… for instance; one can buy guns, knives and fireworks at the Dairy Queen off I40 near Grants, NM.  We also saw several billboards promoting abstinence, and several billboards advertising microsurgical vasectomy reversals.

On Sunday, we again started very early and headed for Texas.  We stopped in Amarillo for Breakfast, and then headed southeast to Wichita Falls.  We learned that in Texas, every small town has at least three steakhouses.  We even saw “Mary’s Book Shop & Steakhouse.”  So then we started a game in every little town:  Dad would call out “Hedley Muffler” and the girls would chorus “and Steakhouse.”  “Childress First Baptist Church… and Steakhouse,”  “Rolling Prairie Taxidermy… and Steakhouse.”

We arrived in Wichita Falls mid afternoon, and the campground host told us about a nearby park next to the Wichita River, with a short walk to see “Wichita Falls.”  The “Falls” turned out to be a man-made cascade of water falling into the Wichita River, but it was lovely.  Apparently the actual “Wichita Falls” was only about 5 feet and was washed away in a storm over 100 years ago.  We stopped at the playground and flew our kite for a while until dinner time.  Also on the campground host’s recommendation, we had dinner at Don Jose’s, a tex-mex place.  Everyone there knew each other, and while everyone was friendly, we had a hard time understanding their Texas Drawls and we had to keep asking them to repeat themselves. 

Tomorrow we head for Crater of Diamonds State Park in Arkansas!

Day 1 & 2

Day 1 Driving to Arizona

Yes we actually did leave at (nearly) 4am!  We were actually on the road at about 4:15.  We had hoped the girls would sleep for a while to make the day's 8 hour drive a little easier, but they were too excited.  They did nap later though.  We Drove to Ludlow where we made a pit stop and had breakfast in the Ludlow Cafe.  Then we pressed on to the Arizona border and got our first glance of the Colorado River.  We snapped a quick picture of the "Welcome to Arizona" sign and were on our way.  We arrived in Williams, AZ at about 1:30pm and set up camp at the Grand Canyon Railway RV Park.  After a dip in the indoor heated pool, we went grocery shopping and BBQ'd hamburgers at the trailer for a tasty dinner.  After getting up so early, we were pretty tired and all went to bed early.

Day 2 The Grand Canyon

We caught a Wild West Show before boarding the Grand Canyon Railway for our 2 hour ride to the Grand Canyon.  The train was a lot of fun for the girls... there were traveling musicians that made the ride a lot of fun.  Mikaela announced that this was “the best train ride of (her) life!” 

Once at Grand Canyon Village we walked up from the train depot for our first real glimpse of the canyon.  It was really a great sight, we were all amazed at the colors and the depth of the canyon.  We could see hikers down on the Bright Angel Trail.  After eating lunch at the Bright Angel Lodge, we boarded the shuttle bus to take us to the Yavapai Observation Station.  From there, we hiked .75 miles along the Rim Trail to Mather Point.  The vistas were amazing and the weather was beautiful (about 75 and clear with a pleasant breeze), I feel sorry for all the folks who have to come in the summer heat!  Along the trail we saw bighorn sheep perched precariously on the edge.  We had wanted to spend time at the Visitor’s Center at Mather Point, but we had to catch the shuttle back to train depot to catch our 4pm train back to Williams.  

The train ride home was enough more fun:  A violin player let Aislinn play a tune (he helped a lot) and then after a visit to the café car, our train was robbed!  Cowboys on horseback boarded the train and held us all up!  One of them says they were also looking for a bride among the crowd… preferably one who could cook, so I was safe!  We also saw antelope and deer on the ride home which made it extra special.   

In all, we had a great time on the train and at the rim, and we all decided that when the girls are old enough we want to come back and ride burros down the canyon! 

We’re on the road again tomorrow, heading towards New Mexico, Texas and the Diamond Mine in Arkansas… stay tuned!

36 Hours To Go!

 

We have 36 hours to go!  Things are crazy here while we try to get everything ready.  The good news is we got our tax return done and our refund is on its way... the budget is officially back on track!  That's a good thing, considering gas prices have spiked to over $3 a gallon here.

 

The girls are REALLY excited and Mikaela and Madeline are already finished packing.  We've all been working to get the house scrubbed so when we come back everything won't be chaotic.  Daddy has a new pair of glasses, so he's ready to drive the over 6000 miles we have planned.  I finished the girl's notebooks.  I included maps of our route, pages on our destination, and information about geology and the geography we will be seeing.  Also, there are lots of activity pages and road trip games.  Mom has a notebook of her own filled with directions, maps, reservations, etc etc, heretofore after referred to as the Road Trip Bible.

 

What is the most important thing thats happened to you in the last year?

 

We decided to do our own mini sociology (anthropology?) report while we are on the road.  Mikaela and I came up with the idea to ask local people in all the places we stop the same question and then record their answers.  After much discussion and after asking just about everyone we know, we decided our question will be "What is the most important thing thats happened to you in the last year?"  We are hoping that the answers we receive will vary depending on where we are at, and we'll gain some insight into how life is different outside of Southern California.  Mikaela has agreed to ask the questions, while I diligently record the answers.  We are excited to see what this particular project brings!

 

See you on Day 1!

10 Days and Counting!

10 days to go!  We are excited and a little frenzied trying to get everything ready.  I've been making lists... lists for take along items, things to do before we leave, loose ends to tie up.  How soon is too soon to pack???  One more trip to Walmart, to the grocery store, to the bank... hahaha!  I've honed the itinerary until it can be honed no more.  Reservations are all set in our destination spots. 

 

I've been preparing notebooks for the girls to take along.  They have maps and activity pages, and pockets for saving things.  The older girls also have research information about geology, geography and our living history destinations.  They can earn money for souvenirs by reading extra books.

 

Well, we took the plunge and bought an Atwood 3500 Heavy Duty Power Jack!  It is really great and makes a huge difference in hitching and leveling the trailer.  There are a few more things I still need to figure out, trailer wise.  What, oh what shall we do with our laundry?  We anticipate having to do laundry every 3rd day or so. But in the meantime, where shall we put it?  Also, we'd like to get some stable tv tray type tables to add some surface area inside the trailer.

 

Overall, we cannot wait to hit the road!