Hamilton Invasion!

Last weekend we turned over all of our yard work to a hopefully-very-capable lawn company.  In celebration of our new found free time, we decided to go all out with a Hamilton-themed, road trip weekend.

We kicked it off with Simone's school Variety Show.  This year, Simone and her friend performed a song--Aaron Burr-- from the smash Broadway musical Hamilton.  Simone was Aaron Burr, and they were a hit! They were literally signing autographs at the end of the show!  LOL!!

OUR STAR!

Pre-show pizza party with her friends!  Lots of smiles, but nerves were running high in anticipation of their big performances.

Much more relaxed after the show!

The final, go crazy, all hands on stage dance.

A quick pose with a very proud daddy.

Add caption

We're so happy for her.  She had such a great time on this big night!  

On Saturday, we rose early to get on the road to Staunton, Virginia-- a small city that had the distinction of being the locale of the VA legislature in 1781 when British troops forced them to flee Richmond.  For our purposes, it is now home to the super cozy Anne Hathway Tea Cottage that serves an authentic British High Tea. 

We had a very relaxing tea here before we explored the historic part of Staunton for a little while. Simone chose Masala Chai, dad opted for Earl Grey, and mom stuck with the reliable London Cuppa.  

Our delicious final dessert trifle.

 A few shots in the lovely English garden out back.

So yummy that we just had to grab a few items to enjoy at home.  Can't wait  to try the Welsh Glengettie tea which is the  Tea Cottage's current best seller.

From there we did a little sightseeing and shopping in downtown Staunton.

Simone was totally captivated by the old school TYPEWRITER that she discovered in one of the  antique stores.  I was more than a little dismayed to see more than a few items from my childhood now featured as "antiques".  

By late afternoon, we headed over to nearby Charlottesville to visit Jefferson's Monticello.  Much to our delight, they offered an evening Hamilton Tour that offered a look at the historic home in the context of Jefferson's relationship with Hamilton.  It was so interesting and informative; a great way to see this place.

Tony in his element!  Should have been a professor.

The tour ended with a small group discussion on Hamiltonian versus Jeffersonian democracy which history buff daddy THOROUGHLY enjoyed.  Such a unique take on Monticello -- so glad we did it!

And last but not least, we ended the night in downtown Charlottesville

for dinner at none other than....

HAMILTON'S FIRST & MAIN Restaurant!

We grabbed some coffee, hit the road, and got back home super late, but had such a great day.  It's a little strange to think that we're raising a little Virginian. But we are very happy that she enjoys history as much as we do!

Traveling Back in Time

Simone's favorite subject this year is Virginia History, which is basically a study of early American history. They just finished their unit on the Civil War and took a very exciting field trip to Waterford, Virginia.  They visited this one room school house which was built for the local African American population just two years after the Civil War ended. Today it is maintained as a National Historic Landmark and hosts schools across from across the county to teach them about the period by experiencing a typical school day as it was in 1880. 

The whole class tries to reenact the day as closely as possible to historic traditions, and each child plays a role of one of the actual students at the school at that time.  

All of the children introduced themselves to the class in their assigned role and told the entire class about their family.  Simone was assigned to represent Edith Cleggett, and 8 year old second grader -- the only child in her family that attended school.

 They each got a turn practicing their penmanship with a quill pen.  A huge hit with all the kids!  And for what it's worth, learned that writing with a quill isn't so easy!

The kids even packed a period lunch with no modern conveniences such as tin foil, plastic wrap, or paper bags.  Simone's lunch was a boiled potato, an apple, a roll, and an oatmeal cookie -- wrapped in a cotton towel.

At lunch time they also played games -- tug of war and hoops.

The whole class had a great time, and I dare say, learned a lot.  I'm not sure any of them would trade their electronics and indoor plumbing to do this everyday, but it was a great experience for just one day!

Great fun to launch the last quarter of fourth grade!