Did you know that the Outer Banks has its own Paul Revere? In 1775, Betsy Dowdy of Currituck, North Carolina, rode fifty miles one cold December night to warn patriots of an impending British invasion at Great Bridge (yep, that Great Bridge). Not only was Betsy's ride several times the length of Mr. Revere's but she was only in her teens when she made it!

Anouk recently got a Felicity doll and has been super interested in Revolutionary war culture, so when I saw The Ride I snapped it up thinking at least it would offer some fun historical flavor.  But it is even more than that. I love how The Ride points out that even things that seem small can be of great importance. As Betsy tells herself over and over, all she has to do is ride, but as she stumbles and falls and tackles cold and fear you realize that it isn't so simple after all. The contributions of women -- especially young women -- are missing a lot of the time especailly from Revolutionary history (a fact Anouk laments every time we listen to Hamilton), so it's nice to see Betsy take center stage.

Kitty Griffin's writing is a pleasure to read. As the story picks up the words begin to gallop over the page like Betsy's horse, Bess. The swirling Starry-Night-esque illustrations by Marjorie Priceman give a sense of urgency. Will Betsy make it by morning? Of course she does, and you know she will, but you still breathe a sigh of relief when she finally arrives.



No one really knows whether or not Betsy's ride happened like it does in the book or who Betsy herself really was, but her story is no less inspiring for lack of detail! To read more about Betsy Dowdy and what her ride might have been like, click here. And to buy a copy of The Ride, click here.  The Kindle version is only $2.99 and the audio version is even less!

We were on our way home from a weekend in Farmville when we saw a sign for the Crewe Railroad Museum off the highway. The little town of Crewe is in south-central Virginia, about two-and-a-half hours away from the Hampton Roads region, maybe a little far for a day trip but worth it for the look of joy on your tiny train lover's face when you arrive. And it's definitely worth a pit stop if you find yourself traveling out that way. 

The tour of the place starts with a look at old fashioned artifacts from the town's railroad days. Anouk had NO idea what the typewriter was, which was hilarious. Also hilarious: watching her try to dial an old school rotary phone. (The telegraph machine seemed completely obvious to her, "It's how people sent texts in the olden days.") From there, you move into the model train room, which was Gus's dream come true.

But the real amazing thing about the place are the train cars outside. You can climb up and go in them, sit in old passenger car seats, pretend to shovel coal in the engine, tour the caboose. The kids had so much fun looking at and touching everything and I have to admit that J. and I did, too.





It doesn't take long to see everything but after we had finished the official tour we found a shady place and let the kids play. I wish we'd had a picnic basket and maybe a stack of train books to complete the trip. I also kind of wish that I'd gotten a Norfolk & Western coffee mug from the tiny but well-stocked gift shop.

Did I mention that admission to the Crewe Railroad Museum is FREE? And that they do a huge holiday display every December?

There are two Jamestowns, which is a little confusing: Historic Jamestowne, the site of the original fort, where archaeological excavation is happening, and the nearby Jamestown Settlement, a recreated version of the 17th century site of the first permanent English colony in America. While down the street is colonial Williamsburg, the revolutionary city, the action of Jamestown is set almost two centuries before, in 1607, the year the colonists arrived on the shores of the James River.

The first part of the settlement is the museum. I was worried the museum wouldn't hold the attention of young ones, but it surprisingly did. They liked the recreations of the Elizabethan English town, the dioramas depicting Powhatan and African villages as they looked before white settlers/slavers came to them. They especially were drawn to the full size recreations of a Native American hut, a slave quarters, and a traditional colonist's home that they could walk through. It helps that a lot of the museum's exhibits are touchable and interactive. They could pet the furs, open and shut the under the floor storage compartments, and sit by the flickering fires in the hearth.

(I was also worried that the museum would focus more on the plight of the colonists and not the Native and African populations that also were affected by colonization. But I shouldn't have. The presentation is one of the most balanced and honest I have seen and is presented in a way that honors each culture while showing how it was affected when it came in contact with the white settlers. I especially recommend stopping and watching the video interpreters talking about how their lives changed when the settlers came.

Outside the museum, we walked the short way to the recreated Powhatan town. There, the kids ran in and out of the dwellings and ground corn, played games, and talked to the re-enactors who were weaving baskets, gardening, and building canoes. Everyone was super knowledgeable there and inside the recreated fort itself, our next stop. Have you ever tried on armor? Or played ten-pins? Or looked over a 17th century doctors tools? You can at the fort.

Point Comfort at Fort Monroe is the site where the first slaves were brought ashore from Africa in 1619. Coincidentally, Fort Monroe also happens to be the place where, over two hundred years later, the institution of slavery began to be broken. In 1861, three enslaved men -- Sheppard Mallory, James Townsend, and Frank Baker -- escaped from the Confederate Army, to which they had been leased by their masters. Walking from Yorktown in the dead of night, they approached the Union Army and requested to be given refuge in exchange for Confederate intelligence. At the time, the Fugitive Slave Act made it illegal to aid runaway slaves, and said all runaways must be returned to their owners under penalty of law.

To get around this, General Benjamin Butler decided he would treat the men as contraband -- property seized from the enemy in war. As contraband, they would be entitled to remain at the fort and would not have to go back to their owners. This led to a steady stream of runaways seeking refuge at the fort and influenced President Lincoln's decision to give the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863.

Last night, Anouk and I attended the ceremony commemorating the 156th anniversary of the daring escape that started it all. It was an educating and meaningful event that celebrated the bravery of Mallory, Townsend, and Baker and the importance of the contraband decision. There were speakers that told us about the history of the times, a libation ceremony honoring African culture, historical
actors who recreated the night of May 23, 1861, and a candlelight vigil and moment of silence for all of those who toiled in slavery. Our favorite part was hearing one of the descendants of a Contraband speak about her ancestor and his contributions to Hampton history.

The commemoration ceremony was hosted by Fort Monroe Authority and the Contraband Historical Society, which puts on events throughout the year in addition to this one. Check their site for future events and also to find an awesome lesson plan for teachers and homeschoolers that focuses on the contributions of Contraband slaves.

One of the signs of spring in the Coastal Virginia area is the annual Gloucester Daffodil Festival. Anouk loves daffodils (her birthday flowers) and begged to go, and so we made the hour and a half or so drive from Norfolk this past weekend. Worth it! Besides enough flowers to make a horticulturalist (or Anouk) happy, the daffodil festival features a parade, vendors, food, crafts, music, and enough more to keep a couple of kids occupied for four or five hours, give or take a minor meltdown or two.
All three of our kids loved the dog show (so many furry friends to pet!). They also enjoyed peeking into the Gloucester Court House and History Museum, and running around the grass outside. Anouk had a blast working with the Fairfield Foundation as they did archaeological work uncovering the site of a 19th century store. Gus was pretty happy with the giant bag of kettle corn we bought.



 It would have been nice if the kids area had featured more activities that didn't involve waiting in the longest-ever lines, but we are already looking forward to coming back for the Daffodil Festival next year and spending more time in Gloucester in general. It's one of the cutest little towns in the area and there were so many local businesses we didn't get to stop by on this visit. I probably could have spent four or five hours in the used bookstore alone.

The daffodil has a long history in Gloucester County, which I didn't know until the festival, and for centuries was one of the area's biggest sources of income. Super interesting (if you're into that sort of thing, which I am). Read all about it here.

One of our best holiday memories from this past Christmas season was the Yule Log lighting at the Adam Thoroughgood House. We got roasted marshmallows, carols, crafts and all the history of colonial Williamsburg, right in the heart of Virginia Beach. So good.

The Thoroughgood House was built in the early 18th century, and belonged to the family of Adam Thoroughgood, who settled in the Lynnhaven area in the 1600s. Adam's story is one of those stories that could only have happened in America: he arrived in the Virginia colony as an indentured servant and by the time he died 17 years later was an influential landowner and member of the House of Burgesses. Interesting fact: the city of Norfolk is named after Thoroughgood's home in England. It was Thoroughgood who suggested the name of New Norfolk County (and also Lynnhaven, which comes from then name of his hometown, King's Lynn).

Thoroughgood House has become one of our favorite year round places to visit. In the spring and summer, the grounds and gardens are a beautiful place to explore or have a picnic. Thoroughgood House also puts on several awesome events throughout the year (their battle of Kings Grant that we visited in October was super fun). The house is beautiful to tour and the staff who portray the colonial-era Thoroughgood family is extremely knowledgeable and didn't break character even when Anouk tried to show them my iPhone (They were shocked and extremely interested by the camera -- er, mobile portrait device.)

All of that and admission is FREE. Hooray!

And now, marshmallows:

The weather has been getting warmer, which means we can get back into hiking, one of our favorite family pastimes. Our old go-to hiking spot ahas long been First Landing State Park, but recently our new favorite place is Newport News Park, which features 30 miles of hiking and biking trails (among many other amenities).

Our favorite kid-friendly trail at the park is definitely the Twin Forts trail, a small .7-mile loop trail that takes you over mostly flat ground by the Lee Hall Reservoir. Not only does it start with a beautiful walk down the wood bridge that takes you over the reservoir, it then leads you past some pretty amazing Civil War fortifications left over from the Battle of Yorktown.
Besides that, the trail is teeming with wildlife -- while we were there we saw swans, ducks, frogs, turtles, and what we are pretty sure was a couple of beavers splashing around in the water. And it's just a very pretty walk all around.

There are longer hikes for older kids -- and some that would be fun for parents, too -- click here for a complete map of trails.