Wilder Days 2015 ( As in Laura Ingalls)

I am sure if you have followed my blog for very long you know that I am slightly obsessed with all things Little House on the prairie. I've written about visiting Laura Ingall's adult home ( where she and Almonzo lived as had their family, and where she wrote the little house books.) Well, this year we took it to an all knew obsessive level and attended Wilder Days. This happens in September in Mansfield, MO. This is about a 4-5 hour drive for us, so we drove up Friday night to be ready for the Saturday Festivities. There are so many things going on. The first of which you can see above is in the city square of Mansfield , which is charming to start with. They have a bust of Laura, and during Wilder Days have tons of exhibits, vendors, a pageant for Laura and Almonzo look alikes, kid games. I mean really just a day of good ole' fun.

 

Then there is a car show. I really have never been into cars, but found this to be fun to look at. Lots of good stuff! My husband and kids loved it of course, which made it all the more fun.

 

Then there were things going on at her homeadstead. Below is a picture of me and the two oldest. Yes they have on bonnets. The tour this day only provided access into the up stairs guest room where Carrie and Mary and even her parents would stay when they visited. I love her house.

 Then there was a parade! Just look at the downtown little shops. It was a small parade but so.much.fun! I mean just really took me back to what I would expect a parade was maybe 3-40 years ago.

 This is the old Bank of Mansfield. Just a beautiful building.

 Then back at the homestead there was the Fiddle Off. Yes that's right a fiddle off. They started with little bitty guys maybe 4-5 years old then went up to what I would call professionals. They each played I think 3 songs, then at the end of the afternoon the top ones came back and played a few more. They gave away quite a few prizes to the winners. This was held on the grounds of Laura's home. We had a quilt we sat on and the kids could play in the field with other little Laura enthusiasts and it was just a magical day.

 

 If you get a chance to go to this weekend, I would recommend it. They have an RV park in Mansfield as well as one Inn ( with like 5 rooms). We stayed in nearby Ava, MO. which was about 15 miles away. We are making plans to go back next year. Yes, it was that much fun.

 

 

 

 

 

Book Review: A Foxfire Christmas

I really like Christmas. Not so much the plastic Santa type stuff, but a good ole' fashioned Christmas. Anyhow, the latest book I read is called " Foxfire Christmas" Edited by Eliot Wigginton. It's wonderful. First of all it's a super easy read, I read it in no time at all, then gave it to my 9 year old daughter who also read it in a span of just a day or so. We both loved it. It's really about a group of high schoolers in Rabun County ( Appalachian Mountains- North Carolina) that interviewed old timey residence about their Christmas experiences.

There is a section about making their own decorations, about their typical menu, their "serenading" ( a form of caroling) and about gifts and Santa. Yes the classic apples and oranges and nuts and peppermint stick. Every once in a while a father would whittle a toy or the mom would make a fabric scrap dress or something similar. The book talks about the overall excitement of the day, and really many didn't get a toy, but loved the food, fellowship and family.

It was a light read, but one that I couldn't put down. I found myself smiling when recalling simpler days and some really insightful Christmas cheer.

I'm sure you could find it at your local library, I found mine though on Amazon for less than $5- shipped! I'm glad I went ahead and bought it though because I see us reading it again and again.

I hope the holidays are shaping up nicely for you all,


Happy Homesteading y'all!