Before the month totally gets away from me, I want to get the photos posted from our trip. So here we go....
Statue of Juan Ponce de Leon at his original landing site.
Donated cannon, not an original, but still exciting to my kids.
Unfortunately not the real thing. We got to take a sip, and it was that lovely sulfur taste...just like our well water in MD!
Visiting a replica of a Timucuan settlement. The blonde woman dressed as an Timucuan didn't really lend an air of authenticity, but she was informative. We learned that they used Spanish moss to make clothing. It had to be smoked over a fire first to kill parasites, then it was woven into garments. It could also be dyed and hung about (as you can see in the photo) for decorations for weddings.
Merrilee and Jacob got to talk to a Spanish soldier (red uniform for artillery, and blue for infantry, we learned), and afterwards they marched with the soldiers out of the castle on their way to a musket demonstration.
Finally, the kids went up on top of the castle to see all the cannons and the view from up there. They loved it!
In the evening we enjoyed the hospitality of friends who were in China with us on our first trip. Their daughter is from the same place Merrilee is from, and it was such a joy to have this reunion with them. The next day we met them at the Museum of Science and History and had a wonderful time. The museum was very interesting and afterwards we were blessed with lovely weather for a picnic on the river.
We went back to the beach at the Navy Lodge next day, and the kids got their kites out. It was a bit chilly with the wind blowing off the water, but that didn't deter them!
Merrilee really got into her kite flying and I got some beautiful photos of her. She's growing up too fast!
Katie Mei took a turn flying her kite, but she wasn't that thrilled with it. She was more interested in the beach. I let her take her shoes off, despite the chilly sand and water, just so she could have the experience.
We left for Jacksonville, FL after church on Sunday and arrived in the evening just in time for dinner. Jay took us to the Crab Shack, and for dessert we got a "Shack Attack". It was a delicious monstrosity in chocolate. Katie Mei was riveted and eagerly took a big bite out of it sans fork.
Since the desserts were so big, we all shared. Even with three of us (myself included) working on the Shack Attack, we didn't finish the whole thing. Merrilee and Jay were more interested in the Apple Cobbler.
We stayed at the Navy Lodge in Mayport. I love staying there because it's right on the beach. Waking up to the ocean view of the sunrise is my idea of heaven! This is the view from our room.
One of the priorities of the trip was to visit sights we had just read about in history. Merrilee had studied colonial America last year, and her history book covered it again this year. I was getting tired of talking about Christopher Columbus (who didn't discover American anyway), the Mayflower and the Pilgrims, so I shifted gears backwards a bit and we headed into the 1500s to study some Spanish explorers. Since I knew we were heading to northeastern Florida anyway, I decided we'd concentrate on the Native Americans and explorers in that region. So it was very enjoyable to Merrilee to cover the tracks of Juan Ponce de Leon and his search for the Fountain of Youth, and Timucuan Indians who inhabited the area at that time. It was interesting and wonderful to be able to see her excitement at seeing what she had only read about.
Statue of Juan Ponce de Leon at his original landing site.
Donated cannon, not an original, but still exciting to my kids.
Unfortunately not the real thing. We got to take a sip, and it was that lovely sulfur taste...just like our well water in MD!
Visiting a replica of a Timucuan settlement. The blonde woman dressed as an Timucuan didn't really lend an air of authenticity, but she was informative. We learned that they used Spanish moss to make clothing. It had to be smoked over a fire first to kill parasites, then it was woven into garments. It could also be dyed and hung about (as you can see in the photo) for decorations for weddings.
Jacob took a short-lived turn trying to grind some grain corn by hand.
After our visit to the Fountain of Youth, we headed a little further down the road to the Castillo de San Marcos, a fortress to built to protect the city of St. Augustine from the French and British. St. Augustine was burned and destroyed on several occasions and the Castillo served as a place of protection for the citizens.
View of the castle from the road.
Merrilee and Jacob got to talk to a Spanish soldier (red uniform for artillery, and blue for infantry, we learned), and afterwards they marched with the soldiers out of the castle on their way to a musket demonstration.
Finally, the kids went up on top of the castle to see all the cannons and the view from up there. They loved it!
In the evening we enjoyed the hospitality of friends who were in China with us on our first trip. Their daughter is from the same place Merrilee is from, and it was such a joy to have this reunion with them. The next day we met them at the Museum of Science and History and had a wonderful time. The museum was very interesting and afterwards we were blessed with lovely weather for a picnic on the river.
We went back to the beach at the Navy Lodge next day, and the kids got their kites out. It was a bit chilly with the wind blowing off the water, but that didn't deter them!
Jacob lost his kite string and had to wait until Merrilee was done with her kite flying so he could use her string.
Merrilee really got into her kite flying and I got some beautiful photos of her. She's growing up too fast!
Katie Mei took a turn flying her kite, but she wasn't that thrilled with it. She was more interested in the beach. I let her take her shoes off, despite the chilly sand and water, just so she could have the experience.
One of my favorite times was watching the incoming ships. I am always amazed at how much larger they are when they get in close! They move fast, too. The kids and I had no idea how quickly one could come in when we were running toward the other end of the beach to see it.
It was a lovely little edu-vacation, and despite being in a hotel room for four nights with the kids, it was a nice break. One of the things I have learned with having kids is that there's really no true vacation for me. I still have to get them up, dressed, fed, and continue to train, educate and discipline them. I was weary by the second night. But I am truly thankful we got to go with Jay on the trip, and I look forward to the next time I can get a little road time. I think we're going to plan a little trip to visit Grandma and Grandpa real soon! G & G kick in a little with the parenting so I have a bit more time to relax and enjoy myself. Hope they don't mind some company in the near future!
