Colonial Williamsburg-Jamestown-Yorktown

Vacation:  9/18-9/24/2011

Kip & I like to take family vacations that relate to what the children have been studying whenever possible.   We study history, literature & geography on a four year rotation- Year 1 is the Ancients to Rome, Year 2 covers Rome to the American Revolution, Year 3 is the 1800′s and Year 4 is Modern Times.   We just finished Year 2 in June and started Year 3 in July- so we were just coming out of the colonial period and thought the Colonial Williamsburg area would be a perfect place to visit.

One of the (several) benefits of homeschooling is that we can take our vacation during “off” seasons and often save a bundle.   Colonial Williamsburg, Jamestown & Yorktown were offering reduced ticket prices to homeschoolers- we were able to get tickets for all six of us for the entire six days for only $100.    We were also able to get a 3,000 square foot, 4 bedroom condo at the Powhatan Resort for only $250 for six nights.  Cheapest family vacation ever and we really had such a great time!

September 19- Colonial Williamsburg

Outside the courthouse.

I love this picture of Mary!

Nature Study-  We came across this unusual and beautiful flower so the children sat down to observe & sketch it.

Tuesday, September 20- Colonial Williamsburg

Of course, Nathan was enthralled by this gentleman’s sword. 

Mary couldn’t get enough of all the horses!

Mary & Savannah at the Brickyard.   We also visited the cooper, blacksmith, cabinet maker, silversmith, gunsmith, carpenter & joiner, Governor’s Palace, milliner’s, apothecary, printer & bindery and the bakery.

We found this Trader’s Outpost store outside of Williamsburg- it had all the same souvnirs as in the Colonial Williamsburg shops at a fraction of the price.   Plus, it was next to Friendly’s so we took the kids for ice cream while we were at it.    Fun day. 

Wednesday, September 21- Colonial Williamsburg & the DeWitt Museum

Wednesday was a rainy day so we saved The DeWitt Wallace Museum for that day.   This was a fabulous, gorgeous museum- I wish we could have stayed longer but unfortunately Lyra was ready for a nap so we had to leave earlier than I would have liked.   Not to many pictures from this day as it is discouraged in the museum and it was pouring down rain most of the time.    We did manage to get these two pictures of the kids with a Thomas Jefferson statue and peering into the window of a toy store.

Thursday, September 22- Yorktown, Colonial Williamsburg & The Jamestown Ferry

 

 

On Thursday we headed to the The Yorktown Victory Center.   The kids were able to attend a class on Colonial Life with other homeschoolers.  The teacher did an excellent job and had many artifacts for the kids to handle, clothes to try on, etc.   They really enjoyed it.    

Yorktown also has a colonial era farm set up that is completely hands on for the kids.    They can try on the clothes, play with the chickens, sit at the table, lay on the beds, etc.   It was fabulous!

I could not believe this- it was a colonial era playpen!   It was used to help babies learn to pull up, stand and steady themselves.   I had no idea they had such a thing that long ago!

Nathan in the tobacco barn.  

I love this method of fencing- very cool.  It is sticks & branches just woven together.

 

Yorktown also had a great museum and then behind the museum is a soldier’s camp- also set up to be hands on.    Nathan loved the cannon firing and we all really enjoyed the surgeon.  I had no idea that during the colonial era a surgeon was a separate job from a doctor.  And unlike the doctor, a surgeon did not go to college- it was considered a trade and as such you apprenticed to be a surgeon.    Very interesting.

 

After we left Yorktown, we took the younger children back to the condo for afternoon naps and I took the two older kids back into Colonial Williamsburg.   We had fun riding the bus around (something we didn’t attempt with the baby, stroller, gear, etc.), we toured the Governor’s Palace and then a sword fighting display. 

 

After dinner, we loaded the kids up and headed out to ride the Jamestown Ferry.   I could hardly believe that this was FREE!   The kids loved this!   We rode the ferry across the James River and then drove about four miles through the country and stopped at a little gas station for ice cream sandwiches for the kids. 

 

As we were driving through the countryside, we passed many cotton fields, which I had never seen.   Kip pulled over so we could get out & look at them.   The kids spent some time sketching the cotton plants.   I was surprised at how prickly and hard the hulls & seeds were- I can definitely see how this would be back breaking, difficult work. 

September 23- Jamestown & Colonial Williamsburg

On our last full day, we went to Jamestown.   As they did at Yorktown, the kids attended another homeschool class, this time on Indian life.  The kids made rope, ground corn, handled many different kinds of animal pelts, weapons and other artifacts of Indian life.  

 

Mary making rope with some of the other kids in the class.

 

Like Colonial Williamsburg & Yorktown, Jamestown also had a wonderful museum.   After the museum we headed outside (in the rain!) to see the recreated Powhatan village.    Everything in the village was designed for kids to interact with- we had a wonderful time despite the weather.

Mary & Savvy grinding corn.

Nathan on one of the beds.

After the village, we went down to the dock and saw the ships that brought settlers to Jamestown.    They allowed us to go all through the ships, down in the holds, lay on the (tiny!) beds, etc.
Kids in front of one of the three ships.  Love Savvy’s expression.

 

Next we headed up towards the Jamestown fort.   Outside the fort was this man, showing how the Powhatan Indians made canoes by burning logs and scraping them out.   He let the kids work on scraping out a section of the canoe, which they loved.

Nathan, wearing armor from the time.

 

Savvy, sweeping out one of the homes inside the Jamestown fort.

 

We had a wonderful time.   It was, of course, somewhat difficult dealing with an 18mo. old toddler, naps & strollers but we are so glad we went!    There were lots of things we didn’t get to see so we hope to go back when we reach this point in the history cycle again in 4 years.   By then the kids will be 11yo, 10yo, 8yo and 5yo so it will be an entirely different experience.    What a fun way to end our study of the colonial period!

Road Trip: Mount Airy, NC

 

Mount Airy, NC

7/27/2011  My Dad was here for a visit and joined us on our second road trip of the summer to Mount Airy, NC.   This was a BEAUTIFUL little town!   There was a television show- The Andy Griffith Show- that was set in Mount Airy.

 

Here’s Dad with the four children- I love this picture!  Everyone is looking at the camera & smiling- it’s a miracle!

Nathan-6yo, Lyra- 16mo, Savvanah- 3yo but almost 4yo and Mary-7yo.

 

 

 

Lovely Veteran’s Memorial- a beautiful rendition of the Marines at Iwo Jima.

 

 

Three big kids with the Andy Griffith & Opie statue.

 

At the entrance to the Andy Griffith museum.

 

Outside Floyd’s barbershop.

 

After lunch at the Barney Fife Cafe- which was perfect, we headed over to Opie’s Candy Store and then to the very fabulous Mount Airy Museum of Regional History.  This museum is a GEM and was the absolute highlight of our trip.   The exhibits were excellent- we loved this Native American home pictured below.   They had another cool exhibit- it was a small conestoga wagon with wooden blocks that were labeled with things pioneers would have taken with them- one block might be labeled black smith tools, another clothes & bedding, another potatoes, etc.    It was interesting to see how they really could NOT take everything with them- hard choices had to be made about what to take & what to leave behind.    On the third floor there was  a wonderful children’s room.  First of all, it was clearly designed by a parent because inside the room there was an attached bathroom with a changing area & a water fountain.      The space was large and open without being cluttered.   There was a beautiful play house & lots of colonial & Native American dress up clothes.   Mary spent most of her time playing in a wooden corral filled with all kinds of stuffed animals.  Nathan & Lyra played with the life size lincoln logs (made out of styrofoam).  Savvy liked the fancy dress up clothes & Lyra just crawled around a million miles an hour, happy to be released from hours of confinement in a car seat or stroller.

 

The life size styrofoam lincoln logs are in the background- very cool!

 

First Road Trip

First Road Trip- Lexington, NC

(6/22/2011) Lexington is a little town about 40 minutes from where we live.   It’s the Barbecue Capital of North Carolina.    It has such a cute little downtown area- lots of cute shops with wooden floors and quirky things.  The people were very friendly!    We had such a great time on our first road trip- I think we’d like to come back when have more time!  Unfortunately, Nathan ended up with a fever, sore throat and an ear infection.   There was no help for it once we were there other than to stop into a WalGreens and get him some ibuprofin.

First Stop:   The Candy Factory.    Love this store- creaky wooden floors, lots of antiques and quilts and old books and funky little toys.

Some of the displays inside the candy store.

Mary thinks it all looks good!

So hard to choose…

There were so many books here that I wanted!

I settled on this book since we are getting our first piano soon.

I love these old coolers!

   

Aren’t these candy peas & carrots cute?

                  

There are pigs all over Lexington that are painted by local artists.  We saw this ballerina pig in a local store window.

Window Shopping.

The old courthouse has been turned into the Davidson County Historical Museum.  We had a wonderful time at this museum.   The tour guides were very nice & informative.   We were the only people there so we had them all to ourselves.  The kids especially liked the displays on local Native Americans.

Another pig…

Roo, ready to be OUT of her stroller!

After a full morning of lunch out, window shopping, the candy store & museum we were tired!   We stopped at a very nice little coffee shop to buy milk for Lyra.   The kids and I had some ice water, used the bathroom & visited with the locals for a while.  Everyone was so friendly and thrilled that we came for a day trip- they even offered to take our picture.  

Family Vacation- Emerald Isle, 2011

Family Vacation- May, 2011

We studied the explorers earlier this year so when I saw that Christopher Columbus’ ships were coming to our favorite beach, I scheduled our annual beach trip to coincide.   We stayed at a condo in the Ocean Club Resort this year- the kids really enjoyed fishing from the pier and swimming in the pools.

Mary & Nathan fishing off the pier. 

Mary, Nathan & Savvy ready to head to the beach.

Nathan, Lyra, Mary & Savvy aboard the Nina.  I absolutely could not believe how *small* these ships were- they were tiny!   I can’t imagine 30 men living on the deck for months and months on end.  It is mind boggling when you really see how small these ships are and think about the number of people on board, out in the ocean, for such extended lengths of time.   Amazing.

The Nina and The Pinta behind the three big kids.

This picture makes me laugh.   Lyra HATED the ocean- there was nothing she liked about it- not the sand, the water, the wind & sound of the waves.  She cried every time we tried to put her down.     She spent the entire time we were at the ocean either in Kip’s arms or mine or sitting in a beach chair. 

Love this picture of the big girls!

Nathan, Lyra with Kip, Mary & Savvy- walking along the ocean at sunset…

Initially Savvy was not much interested in the ocean- she’d run away & say “I skeered of de ocean”.    She spent the majority of the first two times we went to the ocean up near the dunes, playing by herself, as far away from the water as possible.   She did eventually warm up & come down & play closer to the water.

NC Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores.   We go here every year- one of our favorite places.

Because we went to the Aquarium on a school day, it was largely empty.  Mary & Nathan got to spend lots of one-on-one time with the instructors in the hands-on water lab area.    Nathan had about 1 billion and 1 questions.

Cross-section of a shell- very interesting to see the inside.

This star fish killed itself trying to eat this shell.

What would a trip to Emerald Isle be without a stop at our favorite local ice cream store, The Sweet Spot?  

Making drip castles…

If you know Lyra at all, you know she crawls a million miles a minute and never sits still.   At 14 months old she’s very much into the busy, exploring stage.   No lie, she spent probably 2 hours sitting on this little beach chair.   She was not, no way, getting off it or letting her feet touch the sand.   She sat, ate her cheerios and drank her water & watched everyone else.  I don’t think I have EVER seen her sit still for so long.   

The view from the back deck of our condo- sunset on the sound.   Beautiful!