Field-Tripping {Unabridged Version}

It's late already.  Little time = lots of pictures = few words.  Maybe.  ;-)

The field trip I mentioned a few days ago was to New Market Battlefield for their annual Homeschool Day.  This was the second time I had gone--the first being two years ago (briefly mentioned in this blog post...I just noticed that, in the picture in that post, David was wearing the coat that Tobin wore this year, and Josiah was wearing the coat that David wore this year...my boys are growing up...and wearing lots of hand-me-downs!).

If you're not familiar with the Civil War battle held at New Market, I'll just mention that the big deal about it was that cadets from VMI (Virginia Military Institute) marched a gazillion (more or less) miles to take part in the fighting.  Some of them were only 15 years old.  The South won the battle.  And that's about all I know about it, but when I think about those boys...and my boys...it makes my heart ache.

The Homeschool Day focuses, not so much on that battle, but on what life was like during that period of history.  I had initially been a little reluctant to go because the weather that morning wasn't very good (cloudy, cool, and a chance of precipitation); but as soon as we exited the highway, Josiah recognized the frontage road that leads to the battlefield, and he got all excited.  "I love this place!" he exclaimed repeatedly.  That moment made it all worthwhile.  :)

 Enough with the wordiness - on with the pictures!

The sight of Tobin trying so hard to hold his "gun" like his big brothers just makes me smile.  Sweet boy!

Shav, always up for a challenge, decided to walk...and push the stroller...over uneven ground and rough grass.  That didn't last very long.

From the Civil War "camp," my boys raced over the battlefield to the next item on our itinerary:  the fair.

I couldn't decide which of these pictures of colored bottles (for a ring toss game) I liked more.

These rings suspended in the air were for tossing a paper airplane through.  I tried, and failed dismally.  The wind must have caught my airplane and thrown it to the ground.  It couldn't have been operator error.  ;-)

Shav held onto the ropes supporting the tent and watched all the excitement.

No Homeschool Day could possibly be complete without a rousing game of Spin the Hoop.  :)

 Josiah has played this on enough field trips that he's actually learned how to do it!

 Then it was time to march up the hill to the craft barn to do...well...crafts.

Wait.  Did I say, "to do crafts"?  I really meant, "so Mommy could take a picture of a weathered old door in the barn."

 But there was some craft-doing as well.

While the craft-doers were busy at work, Shav was busy perfecting the art of walking down a little hill and around a corner while holding onto a fence for balance.

While the older boys listened in on a few demonstrations (cooking, school, games, etc.), I stayed outside with the wandering Shav and had fun taking pictures and finding beauty in random places.

And then, before the older boys were ready to go, Shav hit the wall:  the I-can't-possibly-be-happy-another-second-because-I'm-so-tired wall.  

We marched back across the battlefield to our van with Shav in the stroller, and the only reason the entire group of people at the Homeschool Day didn't hear his wails all the way across the field was because I had put a bag of fruit snacks in my pocket--"for such a time as this."  By carefully doling those out to him as we walked, he stayed quiet nearly all the way.  By telling the other boys that they too could have a bag of fruit snacks when we got to the van and they were buckled in their seats, I was able to generate more cooperation from reluctant departers than might have been expected (particularly from a certain three-year-old whom I know well).  Once the van started rolling, Shav fell asleep immediately...

...still clutching some Goldfish in his little hand.  :)

Oh, I almost forgot to mention the best part of the day.  Are you ready for this?  The Chick-fil-A cow was there, and the boys got to meet him, give him high-fives, and get hugs from him.  The boys--especially David and Tobin--were ecstatic about this; and as we moved around the battlefield to the various activities, they were always looking around for that cow.

I have no doubt that, in years to come, when we return to that battlefield, they'll ask where the cow is...

...and will never forget that they met him there.  They might not remember how many miles the VMI cadets marched to help the Confederate troops, but they'll remember the cow!  :)