Adventures Down South

The first days of May were rainy. According to the old saying, April is supposed to be the rainy month that brings on May’s flowers. But April’s precipitation was mostly snow and so far May hasn’t been too flowery. Although it rained off and on from Sunday to Wednesday, I did not find myself singing “Rain, rain, go away, come again another day.” The rain was good for the garden. But I did find myself wondering where that rhyme originated and, after a bit of research, found two interesting origin accounts. One account says the earliest version dates back to the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603), when the Spanish Armada was sent to invade England in 1588. The Armada had over 130 ships and the English fleet only had 34 small Navy vessels and 163 armed merchant ships. But the Spanish were defeated by the stormy weather in the English Chanel which scattered the Armada. The resulting rhyme was:

“Rain, rain, go to Spain, 
Never show your face again!” 

The other account says it dates back to the 17th century, and was first printed in the collection of proverbs Paramoigraphy (1659) by James Howell. The lyrics to that rhyme were: “Raine, raine goe to Spain: faire weather come again.” Sometime in the centuries that followed, it became the singsong rhyme we know.

Rainy rhymes brought to mind another song we used to sing as children:

“It’s raining, it’s pouring,
The old man is snoring, 
He bumped his head and went to bed, 
And couldn't get up in the morning.” 

The song’s first couplet was published in 1912 in a book titled The Little Mother Goose, but it probably dates much earlier. The more sinister second couplet about the old man with a head injury is more mysterious. No one seems to know when it came about or to what it might refer. Most suppose it’s just macabre words of the sort children come up with sometimes.

On Monday, Miriam, Hannah, and I went to a local nursery after work. We didn’t go to buy anything, it’s too early to plant out the things they were selling. We went just for the joy of walking around in their greenhouse and looking at all the blooming plants. We will go back sometime this week when they have their vegetable starts out for sale.

On Tuesday after work and school, Stacey and Hannah helped me plant strawberries in the rain. We planted 50 plants. We have room for 100 more, so I ordered more. You can’t have enough strawberries.

Planting strawberries.

Wednesday was very rainy and I was in school all day and I don’t remember much about it except that I had an appointment at the chiropractor after school. On Thursday it finally stopped raining. It was a lovely sunny day. I wasn’t in school that day, and I spent a happy morning tending the plants I have growing in the woodshed and on the back porch. I repotted several plants, an angel’s trumpet and a night-blooming jasmine that had outgrown their old pots. I watered all my little seedlings. I went for a haircut later in the morning and when I got back, I spent the rest of the day outdoors. I mowed the lawn and spent an hour pulling weeds. There is so much that needs to be done. I took some time to make a list of the projects I want Josiah to help me with while he is here – moving the pepper box, relocating a compost pile, tilling, cleaning the chicken coop, cutting firewood. I’m glad he likes to do that sort of work.

On Friday morning we left for our weekend adventure. We left home at 9:00 and drove south. We stopped for a few minutes in Duncannon to visit Aunt Esther and then continued on. We arrived in Frederick, Maryland, at 2:45. It rained the whole way. The Thayns and their crew arrived at 5:00. They had Josiah and his girlfriend, Vanessa, with them. We stayed at the Arcadia Mansion, which has been made into an Airbnb. The original house was built in 1790 and it played a part in the Civil War as headquarters for various units. We stayed in the central part of the house. It had a large entryway, five bedrooms, four bathrooms, an office, a dining room, a kitchen, and a living room spread over two floors connected by a narrow stairway. We made good use of every room. For dinner that night we had homemade pizza. After dinner we sat around and played games.

The Arcadia Mansion.

Looking down the staircase.

Playing games with Grandma.

Dinner on Friday.

Saturday morning we had breakfast, played a few games, and then headed up to Gettysburg. It was chilly and drizzling. We stopped at a covered bridge. The rivers and creeks were all up over their banks because of all the rain. We ate a picnic lunch sitting inside our cars in the parking lot at the National Cemetery. From there, we dropped Miriam, Hannah, Josiah, and Vanessa at the Visitor’s Center to see the movie and tour the museum. Stacey, Rachel, Tabor, and I took the girls to the Children’s Museum in town. The girls had a great time there. After that, we picked up the others at the Visitor’s Museum and drove around the battlefield. It rained the whole time, but we got out at several places to look at the monuments anyway. Then we went for ice cream.

The covered bridge.

At the covered bridge.

At the Gettysburg Address monument.

At the Children's Museum.

At the Children's Museum.

At one of the monuments.

Tabor at Little Round Top.

The view from Little Round Top.

The Pennsylvania Monument.

Ice Cream!

After we got back from our day’s excursion, we spent the evening just hanging around, eating, playing games, and visiting. Later in the evening, our niece Kailie and her husband, Ian, came by to join the fun.

Playing games on Saturday.

Sunday began overcast and rainy. We attended sacrament meeting at the Frederick First Ward. When we got back from church, we ate lunch and then went on an adventure. Near our Airbnb was another Civil War battlefield, one I’d never heard of before, the Battle of Monocasy, which was fought on July 9, 1864. It was a Confederate victory, but served a vital purpose in preventing the Confederate Army from advancing on Washington. We went to its visitors center and then drove around to the different farms that were involved in the battle. By then the weather had turned sunny and the places we stopped at were lovely. After visiting these Civil War sites, I’m in the mood to do some reading on the subject. For dinner that evening, we had breakfast burritos and for dessert, a selection of pies. Then we played games until bedtime.

At the Battle of Monocasy park.

Mabel at one of farms.

At one of the farms.

On Monday morning we drove into Frederick to visit the National Civil War Medical Museum. Unfortunately, it was closed, so we walked along Carroll Creek Park, which was nearby and then drove to a playground so the children could play for a while. As a special treat, we ate lunch at a Café Rio. Then we headed to the temple.

Carroll Creek Park.

At Carroll Creek Park.

We arrived at the temple, and as always, were astonished at what a beautiful building it is. Kailie and Ian joined us there. The open house was busy, but very orderly. We made our way through the rooms, each of them so beautiful. Then we went outside and walked around the grounds to look at the flowers and trees. Then it was time to say goodbye and head for home.

The Washington D.C. Temple.

At the temple.

The Baptistery (not my photo).

The Celestial Room (not my photo).

The east door of the temple.

Florence, Hazel, June, and Mabel at the east door.

The drive home was pretty, but seemed so long. We arrived home at 9:30, unpacked, and went to bed. Josiah is staying up in his old bedroom. Vanessa is staying next door at Kurt and Julie’s house.

Kurt came over last night to greet us and report on how things went while we were away. He did a great job caring for our plants and animals. There were several hard frosts while we were gone. There is frost again this morning. I haven’t gone out yet to look at the gardens and the orchard. I think things are okay. Today and for the next week I have Josiah and Vanessa here to help me with projects. We’ll start later this morning by planting the 100 strawberry plants that arrived while we were gone. On Thursday the Thayns are driving up to spend the weekend with us and the Fosters will arrive on Saturday morning. So much fun ahead!