Happy Birthday America

Since Duncan was born, we have had rather lackluster Independence Day celebrations. Until this summer he was napping, which impeded our ability to go anywhere interesting. Fireworks happen long after his bed time. We have stayed at home, pretending to celebrate with a cookout and some sparklers, but it wasn't the same. I enjoyed a childhood of military 4th's (and THEY can do it up) as well as a lot of great adult times with friends and family. We just hadn't come up with a good way to celebrate with Duncan.

This year, we decided to return to the Clermont Historic Site, where they were having an historical celebration. We toured the house, and a few costumed characters discussed their role in the Livingston family's history and the Revolutionary War. For the children, there were games (cherry pit spitting contest, three legged race, ugliest face), crafts, and a story hour. Other entertainment included a fife and drum band, musket firing demonstrations, a lecture about period undergarments (would I lie to you?), and free ice cream and watermelon sponsored by Stewart's. The Clermont offered a good view of the site where the fireworks were set to go off, but we didn't stay.  Maybe next year.

It turned out to be a perfect way for us to spend Independence Day (which we explained to Duncan was America's birthday). He was entranced by the fife and drum band and sat watching them for nearly an hour. We watched the children's games; the finish of the three-legged race was quite controversial as one child alleged that another's father and pushed her over. The man who did the story hour turned out to be "Tom the Music Man" who does a program with the kids at Duncan's preschool once a month. We ate ice cream and every manner of fried and disgusting food. And then it was time to go home. We enjoyed a little history, good music, and some food that was bad for us and made it home in time for bedtime.

Happy Birthday America.

Wanted: New Barbecue Tongs

The day before we went camping, Jamie and Duncan were packing the camping equipment in the car. Jamie opened his glove compartment to get the key for the car top carrier only to find...a field mouse. He tried to catch him, but the mouse got away. He appeared to have chewed up some Kleenex as well as the car iPod adapter cords. We assumed we had scared him away and continued getting ready for our trip.

The morning we left, Jamie went back into the glove compartment, and there was the mouse again! After failing to catch him again, Jamie went out for traps, and we set sticky traps in the glove compartment.

We left for our trip. I was a little uncomfortable for the obvious reasons: who knows what a mouse could chew up in there; who knows what he could ruin if he nested in there; would he get into our camping food, which we usually store in the car? We checked the glove compartment frequently throughout the trip but saw no further trace of the mouse. We were free.

On Thursday, two days after we returned, Jamie was out running errands and noticed a slightly familiar, offensive smell when he turned on the air conditioner. When he returned home to investigate, he found a mouse corpse nestled into a small space between the glove compartment and the engine. He had already tried a number different tools to remove the mouse, but to no avail. Finally, he gave in and used the only thing long enough that had a pincer grip to grasp the rodent body; our barbecue tongs.

Mickey is gone, but we could use some new barbecue tongs.

Into the Woods

Camping was unexpectedly successful. Jamie may have expected it to go as well as it did, but I was trepidatious. Duncan appears to be relatively well adjusted, resilient, and open to new things, but he has his moments, and in those moments, he literally digs in his heels and refuses to participate. Camping could either have gone well or horribly wrong; in my worst case scenario, we would have been forced to return at 9 p.m. on the first day.  Happily, I was wrong.

For the most part, Duncan reveled in being in the woods. He enjoyed all the new and different things; tents, air mattresses, sleeping bags, camp fires, camp stove. It turned out that Lake Taghkanic has great rest rooms, at least where our camp site was. Each unisex lavatory had its own shower and toilet, which proved to be the perfect set-up for a three-year old's burgeoning potty training skills and bathing. The camp ground was relatively uncrowded on the Sunday through Tuesday before Independence Day so we didn't have to feel we had a captive audience for any family drama that erupted. Sleeping proved to be a bit tricky, as it always is when Duncan is involved. Given the novelty of the scene and the impossibility of light-proofing a tent, Duncan went to sleep after nine the first night and around 8:30 the second night. And don't think he would sleep in. Just don't entertain that fantasy. I didn't.  

The weather cooperated pretty well. It didn't rain at all except for a few showers here and there. On Monday, our plan was to spend most of the day at the beach so we were a little concerned when we woke to gray, gray skies. By the time we had breakfast, took a walk, and played on the playground, however, the sky had begun to clear, and we headed to the beach. Duncan had fun playing in the sand and watching the other kids. He's still a little anxious about the water, but he did venture in. We had lunch on the beach and then went out in a rowboat. Duncan proudly "rowed the boat," which means he managed to hold one oar while Jamie kept us from tipping over.  Duncan and Jamie grilled hot dogs on the fire, we fought the gnats, and we roasted marshmallows.  Good, clean (sort of) fun was had by all.

S'mores, campfires, and tent-sleeping seem to have made their mark.  We survived two nights on our first trip and felt brave enough to book a second trip.  I've been wanting to go to Old Sturbridge Village for a while so we're going to camp at a nearby campground and spend a day there.  I don't imagine we'll sleep any better, but Duncan is pretty excited to go camping again.  

Say the Right Thing

My little boy is in training to be a great man.  I'm working on learning to appreciate the sincerity, even if it means I have to walk away to laugh out loud.  About my exercise regimen, Duncan says:

"You're getting smaller Mama."

"You're getting TINY."

And In Case You Needed a Good Laugh

Duncan is usually pretty photogenic, almost frighteningly photogenic, but sometimes he does this thing in the car when he's bored. Not so attractive. When he is 16, I will be in big trouble for this, but so it goes. That's why I get paid to be the Mom.

American Leonardo

I have driven past Locust Grove in Poughkeepsie innumerable times in the last 21 years but never ventured into the former home of Samuel F. B. Morse. We arrived at Locust Grove just in time for the first tour, a private tour as it turned out. Our tour guide was a stooped and aging man who returned to the porch after showing us the house and sat peacefully on the wrap-around porch to await the next visitors. I wondered how long his rest would last. I expect he had plenty of time for a siesta.

Morse was a painter by training; after he graduated from Yale, he attended the Royal Academy in London and later founded the National Academy of Design and served as its president for 20 years. Most of us know him better as an inventor; on a trip home from Paris, he conjured the idea of the telegraph and Morse code, and he returned home to realize his vision. His invention made him a wealthy man, more so than the portraits he commissioned in New England, but he would continue to apply his artist's eye as he developed his new home in Poughkeepsie.

Morse and his first wife purchased the property in Poughkeepsie in 1847, and he set about converting the Federal house into a Tuscan style villa.  He added wings to the north and south and created an octagonal room, a porte-cochere, a billiards room, and a four story tower that faces the river.  In 1901, the property was acquired by the Young family, who continued to develop the property.  The interior remains exactly as it was the day its final owner, Annette Innis Young, passed away.

I enjoyed the tour.  The house has an interesting collection of artifacts, including Chippendale furniture, Hudson River School paintings, and English silver.  The grounds are free and offer about three miles of tranquil walking trails and gardens.  One of my favorite features was what appeared to be a community garden that was being tended by local families.  The next time you drive by Locust Grove, think about taking an hour to stop in for a visit.  It's a quick and worthwhile trip back to the 1800's.

Bowdoin Park

We've had a slow start to Duncan's summer field trips.  Last week, we needed to make a trip to Target in Poughkeepsie before we went camping so tacked on an afternoon at Bowdoin Park, which has a nice playground and a fantastic water feature.  I forgot to take a picture of the water, but it was essentially a sprinkler park, complete with three turtles that spouted water at various intervals.  Duncan wasn't interested, but maybe next time.  He did enjoy the playground, and it was nice to spend time by the river on one of the few sunny days we've had since summer began.