Little House Reading

What an incredible summer! While I only had one other Laura presentation after the one at Norskedalen, that doesn't mean it wasn't a Laura filled summer. One of the main things I did over the summer was do some more reading. When it comes to research, you can never get enough material. So I wanted to give a list of some titles I checked out, and ones I still want to read.
1) A Little House Reader edited by William Anderson. This includes writing from Pa, Ma, and Mary.
2) Laura's Album compiled by William Anderson. This is full of pictures and stories about Laura's travels.
3) A Little House Sampler compiled by William Anderson. This includes the writing of Laura and Rose, and is a collection of early stories and memories.
4) On the Way Home by Laura Ingalls Wilder. This is a diary of the trip from South Dakota to Missouri.
5) West from Home by Laura Ingalls Wilder. This is a compilation of letters to Alamanzo while Laura visits Rose in San Fransisco.

So there are five books to start out with. William Anderson has plenty more books about Laura and her family, and as he interviewed Laura they are some of the most accurate. Also, there are "Little House" books now about Rose, Caroline, Laura's grandmother Charlotte, and her great-grandmother Martha. I've read the Martha books, and they really help bring a new perspective to Laura's life.

Traveling in Time

In this month's Family Fun magazine, there is a large article about traveling Laura's paths. The author's family traveled from Pepin, to Walnut Grove, and then to De Smet. While it was interesting to hear about the journey in a slightly professional manner, it got me thinking about my own travels to many of Laura's homes.
The first Laura monument I can remember was De Smet. I must have read the books, they must have meant something to me, for I can recall names and such from the place we visited. I don't remember what the place was called, but it was on quite a bit of land. They had an old school house, and a dugout, and a barn, and the horses were all named after horses in Laura's books. There was a covered wagon that people could ride, and children were even allowed the privilage to help drive the horses. I remember being so scared, but my little sister jumped right up to do it. There was also a small little buggy, with a pony in front, and a teen who would drive them. That pony knew its route around the barn so well, it let any child get behind the reins and never ran off. I remember jumping in again and again. There was also a scavenger hunt there, that for free I believe, you would find different things or answer questions, and in the end they gave you a popsicle. As a seven year old(I think thats how old I was) a popsicle was a great prize, especially on a warm summer day. And it was there, after seeing a dugout, and playing school, and riding in a covered wagon, that we bought our set of Laura's Little House series. Without those books, I do not think my love for Laura would have bloomed as it had.
Now, I know that this sounds like an old woman looking back on happy days gone by, and in a way, it is just a jumble of memories. However, I believe that these memories lead up to the lover of Laura that exists today. So pick up a copy of Family Fun, and read the organized version of a person's visits. However, unless you go and make the memories of your own, the article will never mean anything else besides another person's own opinion.

A blurb

So May 2nd is coming all to quickly. But... the La Crosse Tribune finally has a blurb about my program on their website. Here is a link: www.lacrossetribune.com/app/calendar/events/index.php?com=detail&eID=11285&year=2010&month=04

I hope to see some of you there. :)

Rules

While researching more about Laura in order to fully be prepared for my program May 2nd, I came across an interesting document under "Prairie Life" on the one website. It was a set of rules for school teachers in 1915. As a college student pursuing teaching as a career, I found them to be very interesting. Check them out...

Besides being humurous to me, its interesting to see how much things have changed over the years. In many ways, I'm glad teaching isn't so strict today.

The Great Sneeze

So this pretty much speaks for itself. Bound to make you laugh. This is one of the many random moments that happened while filming "The Little Houses in America's Midwest."

A little scared

So. I have not presented my program as Laura very often. Which is why the phone call I got Friday scares me.
I got a call from a lady asking me to do a program for Norskedalen. She had talked with my grandmother, heard about my presentation, thought it would be wonderful, and asked me to fill in for a group that could no longer present. And I said yes.
So May 2nd, at 2 pm, I will be presenting for about an hour at Norskedalen.

Normally, I wouldn't be scared, just nervous. But when she said that the number of people ranges from 10 to 75, I freaked a little. No one wants for a tiny crowd, or no one to show up, yet no one wants a very packed room, with over 50. Honestly, I don't think my program is very good. But I'm going to try.
Try is all I can do.

Want to visit?

Greetings all. I thought I would share some amazing websites for those of you interested in possibly traveling to the different little house sites. Or, these offer great information about Laura and her books. I have them some what in order of when the Ingalls family lived there.

For Pepin, WI
http://www.lauraingallspepin.com/

For Independence, Kansas
http://www.littlehouseontheprairie.com/

For Burr Oak, Iowa

http://www.lauraingallswilder.us/

For Walnut Grove, MN
http://www.walnutgrove.org/

For De Smet, South Dakota
http://www.liwms.com/

For Mansfield, Missouri Information

http://www.lauraingallswilderhome.com/

If you are in want of seeing major museum pieces, such as Pa's fiddle, these are only available to see in Missouri, as it was Laura's final home. Many don't know about Burr Oak, as Laura never wrote about it in the Little House series. In De Smet though, there are some awesome opportunities for kids, such as scavenger hunts and driving a horse buggy. But I'll share some more about those adventures later.

The whole story

Alright. So, the long story of it all. Why it started, all that. I suppose you could say it started before this summer. It actually sort of started when I bought the dress and sunbonnet. That was so long ago, I don't even remember exactly when that was. So I had a dress, and a bonnet, and a pair of stockings, and no reason really to wear it. Until we had to dress up for school as our favorite character and give a presentation. So, a life long fan of Little House, I naturally dressed up as Laura. Now, as I am over a foot taller than Laura was herself, I am definitely not a perfect model of what she looked like. Oh well.
So, when this summer rolled around, and my grandmother cleverly asked if I knew anything historical, my first thought was Laura. So, I was, I say anyway, tricked into portraying Laura for my grandmother's DAR meeting. My sister helped make a power point DVD, while I did the research and found all the pictures and music. The ladies loved it, but my grandmother was not satisfied. Nope, but that is her. One of the ladies mother-in-law was a cousin of Laura, and unfortunately this lady was unable to come to the meeting. So, my grandmother wanted me to perform it again, just for this woman. I had enough trouble doing this for a group of people, let alone doing it for two. So I made a film of it. We used the old homestead at Norskadalen as the perfect backdrop, and after a whole weekend of tweaking the footage, we had a good DVD, complete with blooper reel.
So far, everyone has seemed to enjoy it. I don't know, I guess I'm proud. I just wish my grandmother would quit showing it to people. But, its what has started it... people wanting it in the schools, at Norskadalen, just letting people know about Laura. So far, I haven't presented anywhere else yet... but this blog is here to chronicle it, my adventures at the Little House sites, and any cool bits I'd like to share about Laura herself. Here goes.

It started this summer...

It happened this summer. I was plunged into the role of Laura Ingalls Wilder for my grandmother's DAR meeting, and it has clung to me. I can not shake it. So this is an area for me to share my travels, my research, my teachings and my life portraying Laura Ingalls Wilder. Perhaps I'll share pictures of myself as I try to share my life as her, or perhaps I won't. I can tell you one thing, once I put on that dress and bonnet, what happens in the role of Laura is never dull.