Mrsbear7's Xanga

For anyone who still reads this...

Mon, 03 Aug 2009 17:22:25 GMT

find me on facebook: Emily Clark or mrsbear7. I think I'll only blog when we go on trips. I really enjoy the 5 seconds to tell people my "status" mini-blog on fb. Sorry, guys!

4th of July Weekend in Missouri

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 01:42:21 GMT

Thursday we went to Springfield.

Friday we laid around and then shot off fireworks at Daniel's sister's house with neighbors

Saturday we celebrated a good old-fashioned smalltown America 4th! It was in Squires, MO, home to 60 people. About a thousand come to celebrate our independence each year though!

The stage

The booths of games

Trey with a cotton candy-sticky face

Playing with the little stuffed bee he won

We took Trey on the merry go round and slides, ate hotdogs, and waited around for fireworks to start while listening to old time country-gospel music being sung! Then, we listed to Alan Jackson and other "modern" country songs being sung by this good-ol-boy!

The fireworks display only lasted about 15 minutes but had some cool swirly firecrackers and other magnificent moments! All in all, a fun night that will probably never be repeated!

Edit: My father in law just sent me this pic from last night of Trey catching a trout (while we were out running around with Daniel's cousins)

Days 7-9 of Vacation

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 22:20:29 GMT

Monday, June 15th we toured Brown University (where Daniel briefly considered going). It is located in the heart of Providence and was a beautiful campus.

The library

A hawk that landed in the center of campus!

Providence

Capital building

Then we went a short drive down to Newport, RI, known for its mansions (where the Vanderbilts and Astors lived). We managed to save a lot of money by NOT touring the actual houses, but instead going on a cliff walk next to the Atlantic and behind the mansions! It was GLORIOUS and one of my favorite parts of our trip!!

Tuesday, the 16th we headed back to CT, by means of Worcester, MA where we went to the Higgins Armory Museum. We saw tons of knights' armor and enjoyed the building's faux castle.

Roman helmet from the time of Christ!!

Daniel trying on a helmet:

Me blending in w/ the gargoyle

Even the dogs had armor in medieval times!

We continued to East Granby, Ct that afternoon (outside Hartford). Daniel's Uncle Ian, Aunt Carol, and cousin Coryn live there. We enjoyed celebrating Cory's b-day with them and getting to know them (this was the most time Daniel's ever gotten to spend with them!) I also enjoyed drinking at dinner with them! And intellectual conversation. They are in their 70s, very wise, and involved in local organizations.

The next day, Wed. the 17th, we went to Harriet Beecher Stowe's house in Hartford. I was so proud to read what she had said about slavery: that she could not in good conscience, as a Christian woman, not do anything. Wow!! I also found it interesting that she had set up her kitchen in a very modern way, with an island! Heehee.

We toured the house with Ian and Carol. Next door was the Mark Twain house, where he raised his children

We didn't tour it but heard a funny story: his children thought Santa Claus lived next door b/c Calvin Stowe had a long white beard!

That afternoon, Daniel decided to take me on an adventure to Bristol, CT. That's where ESPN is! We didn't even know where we were going but got directions. We went into the business center first and were told that they didn't give tours and that we weren't even supposed to be on the property!

Then we went to the building where they broadcast but couldn't get past the security guard! Oh well. We tried. Trey Wingo!!! We only wanted to meet you!!

On the way back we saw THE most beautiful capital building in the U.S. Hartford, we commend you on your taste!

That night, on the way to dinner, Ian took us to see the largest tree in CT

We also got to hear all about the history of the area. We were very impressed at the way CT preserves its land and nestles its buildings into nature.

The next day, we flew home!!

Can you believe how long and involved our trip was?! It was amazing! We heart southern New England. Maybe someday we'll go to northern New England!

New England Days 5-6

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 23:36:25 GMT

Saturday, June 13th, we finally had our first fully sunny day! We drove from south Boston (where our hotel of 3 nights had been) down to Barnstable, Cape Cod, MA. We didn't go further into the cape b/c we had to be back to Plymouth that afternoon for our whale watching! We took the "scenic route" back north toward Plymouth but we couldn't actually see much of the cape due to all the trees along the road!

We sailed with "Capt. John's Boats" and left from Plymouth's harbor. It took 2 long, cold hours before we go to where the whales were (in the Atlantic Ocean, north of Provincetown, Cape Cod)!! We sat in the front of the boat so we wouldn't miss a minute of the action. I had 3 layers on and was still shivering even though it was sunny! The lady doing the commentary used time "directions" to tell us where the whales were. She has been observing whales for 10 years and knew a LOT. She got so excited about our whale watch, though, that she said: "Humpback Whale at 1 o'clock. Whale at 10 o'clock. At 9. At 2: they're everywhere!!!"

And they were. Ten to twenty whales (I couldn't keep track) surrounded our boat! I took 80 pictures of the whales. The color of the water becomes a light green and bubbly and then they surface so I was able to point my camera in the right direction. The tails of each whale are different, like a thumbprint, so the commentator started referring to them by name and I couldn't follow. I was a little jealous of Daniel who just got to stand there in awe of them b/c I was busy "working" at getting great shots of them. But I think it paid off:

the Mayflower replica

Plymouth Rock (which by the way the pilgrims most likely NEVER stepped foot on AND they went to Provincetown in Cape Cod first but the soil was too sandy so then they moved inland to Plymouth! Who knew?)

The next day we went to Plimoth Plantation where actors impersonate the Puritan settlers we call Pilgrims. Wapanoag Indians were in traditional dress but did not pretend to be in the 1630s as the settlers did. So we got some interesting perspectives from them (the Puritans were pious and not a lot of fun--- I'm thinking: hey, those are my Reformed spiritual ancestors but yeah... they were sometimes known for that!). I also found out that about 1 million natives (Am. Indians) were killed by a sort of bubonic plague in the 3 years before the pilgrims came! The Indian site you see in these pictures near the plantation was actually deserted when the pilgrims got there b/c they'd all died. =( The Indians that helped the pilgrims were from about 100 miles away.

This guy explained a bit about Native farming to us. When I asked him a question, though, he looked at Daniel and answered! It must be cultural?? But he did take a pic with me!

The big guy in the Wapanoag house asked Daniel what tribe he was from so Daniel got to say that he was Mayan (from Hondurus). That was cool. Also, this guy had heard of OKC's Red Earth festival in which dozens of tribes celebrate their culture. He said he's always wanted to come!

At the plantation, in one of the houses, I found this Bible. The title page (shown) says 1560!! I don't know if it's a replica or an original but it was awesome either way!

And we ran into the "ruling elder" of the plantation (aka pastor). We missed hearing him preach by about 30 minutes! =( It was a Sunday, you see.... I was quite disappointed! He liked Daniel's "Noah's Ark rafting" t-shirt and of course thought (in his 1630s brain) that it was all about his favorite Bible story

The top floor of the church!

A beautiful wood-carved trunk that I entered to win! They have a wood/pottery shop in which the artisans' work is in the 1600s style!

Back to 2009:
We drove to Providence that afternoon and went to the mall. I got a great new purse and we saw the most spectacular view from a mall ever, of the skyline there. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera with me (for once). We walked around a tiny bit and then ended up on federal hill in Little Italy. We ate at a yummy restaurant but unfortunately (in my PMSy state), I was exceptionally annoyed by a large family eating out back on the patio with us. They were drinking a lot and the women were SO LOUD the entire 1 1/2 hours we were there. They had no respect for anyone around them and I was disgruntled and complaining the entire dinner about them. Poor Daniel =(

More on Providence later: this was a LONG post! =) Hope you enjoyed it.

yeah...

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 19:12:28 GMT

This week's gonna suck!
Mon, Jun 22
Sunny
100°
76°
0%

Tues, Jun 23
Sunny
100°
76°
0%

Wed, Jun 24
Partly Cloudy
100°
76°
10%

Thurs, Jun 25
Mostly Sunny
100°
77°
0%

(Fortunately? I'll be stuck inside all week in an integrating technology into my classroom class, at the end of which I gain a laptop computer!)

the next two days in and around Boston

Sat, 20 Jun 2009 17:08:42 GMT

Day 3: We slept in and then drove up to Lexington, MA for the Liberty Ride: a trolley tour of Lexington and Concord where the Revolution started. We learned that Paul Revere road first to warn Sam Adams and John Hancock that the British were coming to confiscate all the weapons that were stockpiled and also to warn that they would be arrested (they did not come to attack as I had thought before this trip: only to get the colonists' weapons and maintain control). So here come a whole bunch of untrained Scots and Irish redcoats. They had to walk from Charlestown to Lexington and it took several hours. They get into Lexington and some colonist fired at the British(some speculate Sam Adams since he was always doing whatever he could to start a revolution including using the Boston Massacre as propaganda- the 5 men who died there provoked the attack!). They fired back and the first colonist casualties occurred here. But this was NOT the shot heard round the world. That happened later in the day, April 19th, 1775. The British continued along the main road to Concord and there, by the bridge, they were fired upon by many colonists who had banded together. The redcoats incurred their first casualties here and this was the "shot heard round the world" because now the war had started. The poor British were shot upon all the way back to Boston.

Concord was also a literature and philosophy center in the 1800s. Right next to the bridge where the first shots of the Revolution were fired is the home of Rev. Emerson. His son, Ralph Waldo Emerson later owned it:

I also found out that Revere was later captured but then returned to Lexington.

Henry David Thoreau and the Alcotts also lived in the area and were friends. I went to the real Orchard House that Louisa May Alcott and her family lived in after she came home disabled the Civil war. She had contracted dissentary and they treated her with mercury! This is when she wrote Little Women, highly based on her own family. I got to see Anna's real, plain wedding dress (think Meg in the book) and see May's drawing and painting all over the house (Amy). 90% of the Alcott's stuff is still in the house which is amazing. It was very very cool.

Mr. Alcott's School of philosophy right on their property:

Day 4: We went to the oldest presidential birthplaces in the U.S! John Adam's and John Q. Adam's then to Peacefield where the Adams came home to after his retirement and 4 generations later lived there!

Adam's birthplace in Quincy, MA (south of Boston)

John Q's on the same plot of land:

Peacefield:

The gardens:

Their extensive family library (18,000 books!)

After this amazing morning, we went to the Sam Adams' brewery for a tour and got to try a some free beer, including one not on market yet! Most of it was lost on me but I liked their cherry wheat beer and Daniel of course was in heaven. =)

On the way to this section of Boston, we walked through an Arts district. This sculpture cracked me up:

Then we headed back to downtown Boston and saw a few things we missed the first time:
Quincy Market place/Faneuil Hall

Cheers

Boston Commons and then the Public Gardens (including Make way for the ducklings)

We walked by a whole bunch of women putting up signs. We finally read one and it said "Dyke March" Come to find out the Gay pride parade was the next day. We were rather glad to get out of Boston when we did.

The last thing we did on this busy day, full of walking (again! my legs were killing me) was see one of my best friends from high school, Amanda, and her fiance. We went to this hip restaurant called Fire + Ice. They grill your food right in front of you.

Good times!

The most extensive trip we've ever taken!

Sat, 20 Jun 2009 16:18:00 GMT

We did more, saw more, and learned more on this trip than any other trip before. So it's very difficult to sit down and write about it: how much detail do I go into? This could take hours....

I'll start with some observations I made about New England:

1) Most people talk (in MA and RI mainly) with a Bostonian sounding accent (not refined as I had imagined)
2) It is socially acceptable for women to cuss- loudly- in public. One of my first experiences of this was in a Wendy's in Boston the FIRST day we were there. A lady in line behind me is on her cell talking about "this f-ing thing and that f-ing thing". Woa. Then, a few days later in a Boston subway restaurant, a lady who is not even that angry can't find her cell and says, "I forgot my cell phone, God- damnit!" Wow. (I prefer to cuss in the privacy of my own home or with friends.. so I guess it's cultural since I live in the Bible belt!)
3) Bostonians do drive recklessly while in motion. When they are stuck in traffic, they ALL honk... one person honking is not enough apparently... they all have to chime in as if that rectifies the problem.
4) At a Red Sox/Yankees game, the fans ARE as drunk as you can imagine and are rude (when A-Rod came up they chanted "A-Roid: You do steroids!!" However, they make up for this behavior by belting out "Sweet Caroline" by Neil Diamond in the 8th inning and swaying and really getting into it! So cute.

Okay, now prepare yourself for a 10 day report of our trip. I may do a few days at a time and stretch this out!

Day One: We fly into D.C. where it decides to storm and they ground ALL planes. So we're stuck in D.C. for the night when we should have been in Hartford, CT staying with Daniel's Uncle Ian. We get a sweet deal b/c we only have to pay $65 for a $300 room at a Sheraton in VA.

Day Two: We get up at 5 the morning. Oy. We fly to Hartford successfully. Our bags arrive with us (praise the Lord!) We rent our car. About that time we discover we've had a rather major miscommunication.
Daniel: So we're going to the Red Sox game tonight!
Me: What? No we're not, we're going tomorrow night (looks at the schedule I've been planning for 6 months
Daniel: No, look at the tickets; it's tonight
Me: "You've effed our trip!"
Daniel: No I didn't f*** the trip. I told you about this months ago!
Me: But you didn't stop and verify that I had changed it on the schedule
We huff and puff and get in the car. I then call Beth who's from Worcester, MA to ask for her help in re-arranging our schedule b/c what I had planned would not have fit in the time we had before the game. She's amazing and we decide to go downtown Boston and hit the historic Freedom Trail and that way we'd be in town already for the game. First we go to our hotel and get subway tickets for our 3 days in Boston. Then we take the subway and start touring the Freedom Trail (you follow a red line of paint of red bricks throughout a 3 mile stretch of the city):

We saw the state capitol building

Paul Revere, John Hancock and Samuel Adams' grave

the site of the Boston Massacre (a small section of sidewalk in a busy intersection!)
the meeting house where so much was planned

a whole bunch of churches

skyline

Paul Revere's house and one of the bells he made;

the USS Constitution, a boat from Revolutionary times, I believe:

Charlestown where Bunker Hill (the first major battle of the Revolution) is;

Then we ate at a great pizza joint near Fenway called Uno's. They had a yummy chunky tomato sauce on their thick crust pizza. mmmm. And then off to the game:

We won 6-5! And we headed home on the subways with thousands of others and were stuffed on the train like a true Bostonian, like a sardine. We finally got to bed about 12:30 so that was our 19 1/2 hour day! What a way to start a vacation!!

has the dreaded day come?

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 23:15:58 GMT

Have I abandoned xanga for facebook? I may have.... I enjoy the quick status update versus the time to write a full blog entry. Plus, more people read my fb. Hmm.. Perhaps I shall leave xanga for when I have pictures or deep thoughts to share. What say you?

Molly Elizabeth Ford

Wed, 27 May 2009 01:26:10 GMT

the dog. Rest in Peace. 1992-2009

I wish I had digital copies of ALL the many many pictures I took of Molly while growing up. I will try to do that sometime in the next few weeks. But for now: here are some of Molly 2004-2007ish

She was the only red head in our family and had a lot of spunkiness until the end.

Tulsa Time with Nori

Mon, 25 May 2009 01:45:26 GMT

Thursday night mom and dad had an open house of their friends so they could meet Nori. Thursday was also my last day of school!!!!

My fabulous colleagues and I had once last lunch together since Robert is leaving the profession to pursue his roofing business:

Friday night Daniel and I saw Terminator and I found it intense but enjoyable. It had a wonderfully redemptive plot. =) Yesterday, I drove to Tulsa and spent a whole bunch of time with my grandparents yesterday and today. They LOVE their first great-grandbaby!!

Nori is 3 months old now:

Doesn't she look like a baby doll or a gerber baby? She is gorgeous! And so pleasant: she smiles and talks to you, and giggles.

Here she is with her great-grandma:

And great-papa:

And her momma:

and her auntie em!

and her great-grammy:

Her parents and grandparents:

4 generations of Frost/Ford girls! My grammy who had my mother, who had my sister, who had Nori!

Tomorrow we'll have a Memorial Day BBQ with my parents and sister and James (who as you have surmised, are here in OK for the weekend!)