Blast from the past

Field Trip to Jefferson, Texas




This weekend we headed to Jefferson.
The town has a Civil War reenactment the first weekend in May and we decided to head over for Living History day.
We are about to begin our studies on the Civil War and I thought this would be a good way for Amanda to see some things up close.
Tents were set up and people dressed up in period outfits. We saw how things were done during that time...I know I would not want to have lived during that time.



The town of Jefferson is great and the people are so friendly!! You have to check out the General store while you are there. We also toured some of the homes. We went through one named "Homestead". The lady who lives there is 97 years old, she moved into the house when she was 7. Everything in the house was orginal. It reminded me of my great grandmothers house in Missouri.




We were also able to tour the GWTW musuem! The woman who owns it has a magnificent collection. She has things in English, German, Spanish, Dutch. It was amazing! I have a pretty good GWTW collection myself but not enough to warrant having a house to place it all !







During the Civil War, the women made the clothes for their family. If you were lucky you had a sewing machine. The children would be the ones who turned the crank so that the needle would go up and down while Mom guided the material through. Can you imagine having to do that? We are so spoiled!! I like being spoiled!!!

Not to mention if you were

wounded during a battle the doctors would seperate you according to your wounds. You didnt' have much of a chance if you were shot anywhere on the torso.

If you were hit in the arm or leg, doctors might use such tools as spoons, knitting needles, their fingers to remove bullets. Many times they had to just amputate your limb with a saw! Yesterday that doctor may have been using it to cut down a tree then turn around a have to use it on a patient.

We had a wonderful time and Amanda got a chance to see some of what people of those times did.
While we were at the battlefield site, some of the men fired the cannon. Have you ever heard anything like that? Oh my goodness!! It totally freaked everyone out! We saw have they washed clothes by boiling them and using lye soap and the scrub board. I am so glad we are spoiled!!!! Women backed then worked extremely hard! I am such a wimp!
There's a woman at church that has 2 boys. The oldest has been diagnosed with dylexsia and the youngest whose in Kindergarten was been having problems. She has been praying and researching Homeschooling. I have sent her websites that I have run across and magazines. I did the same thing she is doing. I told her the praying was the most important first step.
I took her to a friends bookstore here in town. She has a coffee shop, christian bookstore and she sells homeschool curriculum. Hopefully, Julie will make the right decision for them.

Just a few more weeks of school and until graduation. Michael got an acceptance letter from Criswell College in Dallas. He's still waiting for Gospel for Asia. So we will see what he chooses. This week should be pretty stress free...except for the weather. I am praying for the weather around here to calm down. The tornadoes that went through Kansas and Oklahoma destroyed towns and people's lives. They will need our prayers!!!

Have a blessed week!!
Dreama