What a field trip!

Did we really drive 6 hours for a Language Arts field trip?

Yup.

This month Gabby has been reading Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. I've assigned her several essays and she's been working on a great sewing project as part of it but the coolest thing we've done is driven to Massachusetts to visit Fruitlands and Orchard House, two of the places the Alcotts called home.

I'm lucky in that I have family who live in the Boston area, so it was easy for me to call and say, "Hey, would you guys care for some visitors this weekend?" and hop in the car and take off. We saw Fruitlands on the way. Fruitlands was the farm the Alcotts moved to when Louisa was 9. They tried to live out their Trancendental dreams, to create a utopian community that lived independently off the land, in harmony with nature. The experiment failed pretty miserably; the Alcotts left, penniless and hungry after 7 months. The farmhouse is still there with other art and culture museums on the property. You can walk through the woods and play old-fashioned children's games, see the attic where Louisa slept and enjoy the other exhibits.

It wasn't too pricey, for a museum and even the little boys had fun. You can learn more about it here Fruitlands Museum And see our family enjoying it below:


Gabby in front of the farmhouse

Henry David Thoreau's desk

Louisa and Anna's attic bedroom

Artwork by May
Gabby, Bri, William, Fielding, and one of the museum workers (a very sweet lady) playing with the old toys and in the woods.





Just this morning we visited the other site -- Orchard House. This was the most stable home for the Alcotts. They bought it after having moved 22 times in 30 years! It was where Louisa wrote Little Women and where she based the book as well.

Walking through Orchard House was AMAZING! There had been very little change to the home in the 150 years since they moved there. More than 80% of the furnishings actually belonged to the family -- including quilts made by Marmee. (The Alcotts girls truly called Abba Alcott that, just like in the book). In some rooms you can see the artwork of May (Amy March): beautiful framed paintings and sketches done right on the walls. Mr. and Mrs. Alcott encouraged her to draw on the walls!

The tour began with a video about the Alcotts, hosted by "Louisa May" herself. Then we were taken into the kitchen, which was an addition by Bronson Alcott, built right over the well, so the family had easy access to their water supply. A door in the floor opens to reveal the well below. I loved hearing the stories the guide told, particularly one about May and Julian Hawthorne capsizing in a boat in Walden Pond and having to walk home together, soaked, May's white dress ruined, through a busy Concord town center.

If you get the chance I highly recommend going, especially if you're from the Boston area. My mom went with us and after we left, she said, "I can't believe I've lived here all my life and never seen this place! Orchard House

The Alcott's home in Concord

Bronson Alcott's school