Aunt Gentry and a Weekend in Kentucky!

We are so excited to have Aunt Gentry visiting us for a couple of weeks here in Ohio! The boys are loving time with their aunt (although every picture I try to take of them together shows a different story!) and I am loving having some more sister time!

This past weekend, we went back down to Maysville, Kentucky for cousin Keteaonk's 3rd birthday party.  It was nice to get to spend some more time with our Meyer-Smith cousins! 

Trying to take a nice fall picture..... :)

...making birthday pizzas on Keteaonk's actual birthday, Friday...

...having fun in the hotel with Aunt Gentry...

...trying to take a nice picture by the fountain in downtown Maysville...

...and....a Pirate Party!!!  Here is the birthday boy. 

And Jack was happy to leap into the pirate theme himself...the only one willing to wear a mustache and hook!  He was "Captain Jack Sparrow" and George was "Black Spot" for the party!

The boys had their first swings at a treasure chest pinata!

And the pirate theme continued throughout the weekend and at a local park....Aunt Gentry and Mommy happily playing along!

Another large part of our weekend was absorbing some of the local history.  Since Gentry and I both love history, it was amazing to explore some of our nation's history from that part of the country.  Maysville, Kentucky and Ripley, Ohio are spots on the Ohio River where the Underground Railroad, the link of individuals and places that helped get escaped slaves as far north as they could go safely, was most prevalent.  In fact, it was in Maysville, after one slave owner lost track of a slave so completely and said, "...there must be an underground road somewhere..." that the term "Underground Railroad" was born.  The first spot on our tour was the National Underground Railroad History Museum...made out of what was once the grand old Bierbower house.  We saw the root cellar and underground area, underneath the planks of the servants' quarters, where oral history says the escaped slaves hid.  There were many artifacts in the museum and we all got to hold in our hands the iron neck collar that was used as a form of punishment for slaves who had attempted to escape.  It was heavy and horrible.  Even Jack began to understand that we were in a house that was safe for people who needed help and he pulled me to a hallway and said, "Mommy....there are soldiers coming there!"  

Another stop was the Rankin House, across the river in the free land of Ohio.  This was a home owned by Presbyterian minister John Rankin (and his family of thirteen children!) and was the first stop across the river for slaves escaping to freedom.  The Rankins worked tirelessly for forty four years to assist in the Underground Railroad. 

Reverened Rankin had steps built directly from his house down to the Ohio River in order to help the slaves get up the hill more easily.  From that point on the hill, you can see five bends in the Ohio River.  

After that, we drove a few miles farther north to Georgetown, Ohio....the boyhood home of 18th president Ulysses S. Grant.  He lived in this home until he was 17 and entered West Point.  An interesting fact we learned was that his name was actually Hiram Ulysses Grant.  The senator that wrote his appointment to West Point didn't know his name well enough, but knew of his family and that his mother's maiden name was Simpson, so he wrote the appointment for Ulysses Simpson Grant.  When Grant got to West Point and tried to correct it, they said he was either U. S. Grant or he could go home.  So...the name stuck!  And from it, we get the nickname "Unconditional Surrender Grant"!  All from a "typo"!  

The actual house was closed for renovations, unfortunately...and much to Gentry's dismay!  :-)

But we were able to go down the road to see the one-room schoolhouse Grant attended as a child.  Inside were many artifacts from the school and also from the house...including the small, wooden cradle (over 200 years old) that Grant's mother brought with her and used to rock baby Ulysses! 

The school's back yard dropped down to a small creek, with a pretty significant incline.  Jack immediately dropped to the ground and began to roll down the hill.  I couldn't help wondering if young Hiram Grant did the same thing!

We had a wonderful time....with our cousins, and with our historical interactions!  I'm so glad Gentry could be along for the fun...and the road trip was so much more fun with her!