Inauguration!!!!

I am SO excited..... Ms. Wood, Mr. Rowley, Ms. Edwards, Kennedy and I are going down to Washington DC for January 20th. That is right we are going down for the Inauguration of our first African American president.

Ms. Wood and Ms. Edwards were joking one night about flying down for the day. They looked up flights and saw how inexpensive the flight was they decided to go for it. Ms. Edwards emailed Senator Snowes office and was notified that we all had tickets....well ok......Ms. Wood. Mr. Rowley, and Ms. Edwards have tickets. I am going to have to hang out in her bag. Ms. Wood is going to hang on to Kennedy.

So here are the plans......Ms. Wood and Ms. Edwards are going to enjoy a slow day on Monday. They are going to take a slow drive down to Ms. Wood's parents house. I think we are going to stop by Freeport and walk around....we might even hangout in Augusta some. The morning of the 20th we are going to arrive at the airport and take a 6:20 AM flight to Baltimore MD. We will be meeting Mr. Rowley in Baltimore and will ride in together to the Inauguration. After the Inauguration they are going to head to Union Station where they will ride the Metro out of the City. They will then be returning back to Maine and to school the next day. Crazy aren't they? I plan on resting on the 21st...to each their own I guess.

I am SO excited. I have never been to an Inauguration before.....It is going to be so crazy....They are predicting that there will be more people at this event then any other Inauguration.

I wanted to share my excitement with you as well as a little information about Inaugurations.

At the Inauguration the President is going to be sworn in saying the following words:

"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the
United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve and defend the Constitution of
the United States."

The President will say these words at noon at the United States Capitol in Washington D.C. Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. will administer the oath of office.

The Vice President (Joseph Biden) will be sworn in by Justice Stevens. Biden will say the following when he is sworn in:

"I do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States
against all enemies, foreign and domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the
same: that I will take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose
of evasion, and I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about
to enter."

Inauguration history:
George Washington was inaugurated President on April 30, 1789 in New York City. (He
should have been inaugurated on March 4th.
The date of Inauguration was changed from March 4th to January 20th through the 20th
Amendment. (1937)
Jefferson was the first President sworn in Washington D.C.
Franklin D. Roosevelt was the last President to be sworn in on April 4 and the first President
to be sworn in on January 20th.

Well that is enough for now...I will have more to share soon :)

Rockport Mass

Ms. Edwards and I went down to her parent's house for the weekend. Her mother and Ms. Edwards decided to go to Massachussetts and visit some of the families graves around the different towns.

Below are some pictures that Ms. Edwards took in Rockport Mass. There is an amazing chocolate shop there called Tucks....It has the most amazing, yummy, delicous chocolate that just melts in your mouth.

Visit to the Farm

Ms. Edwards took me on a trip out to the family farm.  She decided that I should wear my halloween costume and show it off.  Below are pictures of Kennedy and myself.  I am the scarecrow and Kennedy is the lion.  Bet you can't guess what movie I am from.

North Carolina Trip

Ms. Edwards and I went to Raleigh North Carolina for a conference connected to the Fund for Teachers Grant that Ms. Edwards received.

We were able to meet with the group that helped to sponsor our trip the Rural School and Trust Community.
We left Dirigo High School and headed to Portland Maine. Ms. Edwards ran into the Portland Mall and picked me up some new clothes. I think that she bought a new jacket as well.

When we arrived that the airport we discovered that our flight was delayed. We were suppose to leave at 7:30 PM. Our new flight was not scheduled to leave until 9:00 PM. We were supposed to get a connecting flight in Washington DC. We arrived in Washington DC 10 minutes after our flight took off. We had to stand in line to get our new flights for the morning and then headed to the hotel.

Ms. Edwards ate dinner with the other teacher from Maine who received a grant. We didn't get into our room until after midnight. Ms. Edwards and I had to get up extra early to catch our shuttle to the airport. We then caught the earliest flight to get to Raleigh.

We arrived at the hotel that the conference was going to take place. Ms. Edwards had missed the first three presentations by the time she got to the conference. There were 11 other teachers at the meeting who all took part in professional development opportunities during the summer.
The different locations that people went to where:
The Galapagos Islands
Ireland
National Parks
Tour of the Country to meet writers
South AfricaCosta Rica
New Zealand
Economics Conference in Baltimore
Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania

Everyone did a presentation about their trip. Ms. Edwards brought me to her presentation. Below is a picture of me in my new suit for the presentation. Like the hat?
Ms. Edwards presentation was mostly over General Thomas Jackson. She also included photo albums of her experience as well as a wiki that anyone can access to see her unit plan and how she has been presenting this new information to her students.

We didn't have a lot of opportunity to leave the hotel. Ms. Edwards did have the chance to go to a Japanese Restaurant, where they cook your meals right in front of you. On the second night she had the chance to spend a little more time with two of the teachers.

Ms. Edwards and I, enjoyed our experience in North Carolina. We learned a lot about the different locations that the other teachers visited over the summer. We also learned about some websites that will enhance her classroom.

It was nice being able to connect people to the grant programs and learning more about the two separate grants.

Our flight home was another adventure. A hurricane was threatening Maine and Ms. Edwards was a little concerned about whether or not her flight would make it back to Portland. After much debate, Ms. Edwards decided to keep her scheduled flight. All went well.

Ms. Edwards had an early dinner with her family and headed back home. I wonder where Ms. Edwards will take me next.

The First Ladies of the United States of America by Margaret Brown Klapthor and Allida M. Black

Ms. Edwards has started to read the books that she purchased on our trip this summer. We have decided to summarize her books on here for future reference.

The first book she read was on the First Ladies of the United States. The item that caught Ms. Edwards attention the families of the presidents.

Martha Dandridge Curtis Washington - She married twice. Her first husband was Daniel Parke Custis and they had four children. Two died in infancy and the other two survived and were raised by Martha and George Washington. (John Parke Custis and Martha Parke Custis)

Abigail Smith Adams - She married John Adams. They had three sons and two daughters. (Abigail, John Quincy, Susanna, Charles, Thomas Boylston and Elizabeth (stillborn)


Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson - She was married twice. Her first husband was Bathurst Skelton and they had one son. Their son, John Wayles Skelton died as a child. She married Thomas Jefferson and they had six children. Only two lived to adulthood. (Martha and Maria) Their other children were Jane Randolph, unnamed son, Lucy Elizabeth, and Lucy Elizabeth.

Dolley Payne Todd Madison - She married twice. Her first husband was John Todd Jr. He died three years later from a yellow fever epidemic. They had two son (John Payne and William Temple) John lived to adulthood. Dolley married James Madison and they had no children together.

Elizabeth Kortright Monroe - She married James Monroe and they had three children together. They had two daughters and a son who died as an infant. (Eliza Korthright, James Spence, and Maria Hester)

Louisa Catherine Johnson Adams - She married John Q. Adams and they had four children together. (George Washington, John, Charles Francis, and Louisa (died as a child)

Rachel Donelson Jackson - She was married twice. Her first marriage to Lewis Robards ended in divorce. Her marriage to Andrew Jackson took place before her divorce was final. They had to remarry. They had no children together. They did take care of two nephews of Rachels.

Hannah Hoes Van Buren - She married Martin Van Buren and they had five sons. One of their children died in infancy.

Anna Tuthill Symmes Harrison - She married William Henry Harrison and they had six sons and four daughters. (Elizabeth, John Cleves, Lucy, William Henry Jr, John Scott, Benjamin, Mary, Carter Bassett, Anna Tuthill, and James (died in infancy)

Letitia Christian Tyler - She married John Tyler and they had eight children. Seven survived to adulthood. (Mary, Robert, John, Letitia, Elizabeth, Anne Contesse, Alice, Tazewell). Anne Contesse died in infancy.

Julia Gardiner Tyler - She was the second wife of John Tyler and they had seven children. (David Gardiner, John Alexander, Julia Gardiner, Lachlan, Lyon Gardiner, Robert Fitzwalter, and Pearl)

Sarah Childress Polk - She married John Polk and they had no children.

Margaret Mackall Smith Taylor - She married Zachary Taylor and they had one son and five daughters. Two daughters died as children (Octavia and Mary) Their other children were Ann, Sarah, Mary, and Richard)

Abigail Powers Fillmore - She married Millard Fillmore and they had two children. (Mary Abigail and Millard Powers.

Jan Means Appleton Pierce - She married Franklin Pierce and they had three children. Franklin Pierce Jr. and Frank Robert died before their fourth birthdays. Benjamin Pierce died at the age of 11 in a railway accident.

Mary Todd Lincoln - She married Abraham Lincoln and they had four children. (Robert Todd, Edward Baker, William Wallace, and Thomas) Edward and William died before adulthood

Eliza McCardle Johnson - She married Andrew Johnson and they had five children. (Martha, Charles, Mary, Robert, and Andrew Jr.)

Julia Dent Grant - She married Ulyssess S. Grant and they had four children. (Jesse, Ulysses, Jr., Nellie and Frederick).

Lucy Ware Webb Hayes - She married Rutherford B. Hayes and they had eight children. (Birchard Austin, James Webb Cook, Rutherford Platt, Fanny, Scott Russell all lived to adulthood) (Joseph Thompson, Manning Force, died before adulthood)

Lucretia Rudolph Garfield - She married James A. Garfield and they had seven children. Harry Augustus, James Rudolph, Mary, Irvin, and Abram - lived to adulthood. Eliza Arbella and Edward died before the age of four.

Ellen Lewis Herndon Arthur - She married Chester Arthur and had three children. William Lewis Herndon died at the age of two. Chester Alan Arthur II and Ellen Hansbrough Herndon live to adulthood.

Francis Folsom Cleveland - She married Grover Cleveland while he was President of the United States. She was 21 years old when they married and the youngest first lady. They had five children. (Ruth, Ester, Marion, Richard Folsom, and Francis Grover.

Caroline Lavinia Scott Harrison - She married Benjamin Harrison and they had two children. (Russell Benjamin and Mary Scott)

Ida Saxton McKinley - She married William McKinley and they had two children that both died at young ages. (Katherine and Ida)

Alice Hathaway Lee Roosevelt - She was married to Theodore Roosevelt and she died after giving birth to their only daughter Alice.

Edith Kermit Carow Roosevelt - She was the second wife of Theodore Roosevelt and they had five children. (Theodore Jr., Kermit, Ethel Carow, Archibald Bulloch, and Quentin.

Helen Herron Taft - She was married to William Howard Taft and they had three children. (Robert, Helen Taft, and Charles Phelps Taft II).

Ellen Louise Axson Wilson - She was the first wife of Woodrow Wilson. They had three children together. (Margaret, Jessie, and Eleanor)

Edith Bolling Galt Wilson - Her first husband was Norman Galt. They had one son together that only lived for three days. Their 12 year marriage ended with his unexpected death. She married Woodrow Wilson while he was in his first term as President. They had no children together.

Florence Kling Harding - Her first husband was Henry De Wolfe. They had one son, Marshall Eugene DeWolfe. She divorced her husband. She married Warren G. Harding. They had no children.

Grace Anna Goodhue Coolidge - She married John Coolidge and they had two sons. (John and Calvin Jr.)

Lou Henry Hoover - She married Hebert Hoover and they had two sons. (Herbert Charles and Allan Henry)

Anna Eleanor Roosevelt Roosevelt - She married Franklin D. Roosevelt and they had six children. Anna Eleanor, James, Elliott Franklin Delano, and John Aspinwall all survived to adulthood. Franklin Delano Jr. died in infancy.

Elizabeth Virginia Wallace Truman - She was married to Harry S. Truman and they had one daughter named Mary Margaret.

Mamie Geneva Doud Eisenhower - She was married to Dwight D. Eisenhower and they had two sons, Doud Dwight who died at a young age and John Sheldon Doud.

Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy Onassis - She was married to John Kennedy and they had four children. (Arabella - stillborn, Caroline Bouvier, John Fitzgerald, and Patrick Bouvier - died in infancy). She married Aristotle Onassis in 1968.

Claudia Taylor Johnson (Lady Bird) - She was married Lyndon B. Johnson and they had two children. (Lynda Bird, and Luci Baines)

Patricia Ryan Nixon - She was married to Richard Nixon and they had two daughters. (Tricia and Julie)

Elizabeth Bloomer Ford - She is the widow of Gereld R. Ford and they had four children. (Michael, Jack, Steven, and Susan)

Rosalynn Smith Carter - She is the wife of Jimmy Carter and they have four children. (John William, James Earl III, Donald Jeffrey, and Amy.)

Nancy Davis Reagan - She is the widow and second wife of Ronald Reagan. They had three children together. (Patricia Ann Reagan and Ronald Prescott). She is stepmother to Ronald Reagan's two children from his first marriage. (Maureen and Michael).

Barbara Pierce Bush - She is the wife of George H.W. Bush and the mother of six children. (George W., Pauline Robinson (died 4 years old), John Ellis, Neil Mallon, Marvin Pierce, and Dorothy Bush)

Hillary Rodham Clinton - She is the wife of William Clinton and the mother of Chelsea.

Laura Lane Welch Bush - She is the wife of George W. Bush and the mother of Barbara and Jenna.

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It is interesting to look at the children that these individuals had. It really shows the history of the time periods and the fact that many children died to all classes of people. Even Presidents lost children to illnesses.

Gettysburg National Battlefield

Books Purchased 18

Vicksburg - James Reasoner
Gettysburg Experiences: A Biographical Collection - Diana Loski
Human Interest Stories of the Gettysburg Campaign - Scott L. Mingus, Sr.
Human Interest Stories of the Gettysburg Campaign Vol. II - Scott L. Mingus, Sr.
War Stories: A Collection of 150 Little Known Human Interest Accounts of the Campaign and Battle of Gettysburg - Gregory A. Coco
Gettysburg Remembers: President Lincoln: Eyewitness Accounts of November 1863 - Linda Giberson Black
Civil War Curiosities: Strange Stories, Oddities, Events, and Coincidences - Webb Garrison
20 Good Reasons To Study The Civil War - John C. Waugh
Ministering Angel: The Reminiscences of Harriet A. Dada, A Union Army Nurse in the Civil War - Edmund J. Raus, Jr.
The Gettysburg Diaries: War Journals of Two American Adversaries - Mark Nesbitt
Scandals of the Civil War - Douglas Lee Gibboney

Iwo Jima

On our way out of Washington DC we stopped by the Iwo Jima Memorial. The memorial was created to honor our marines who fought for our country. Around the monument is the names of all the conflicts and battles that the marines have fought in.

The monument itself is of the flag raising that occurred on February 23, 1945 on Iwo Jima. Five marines and a navy sailor raised a second flag on Mount Suribachi. The flag raising was photographed by Joe Rosenthal. This photograph became a symbol the marines and of the war.

The men in the photograph were Sgt. Michael Strank, Cpl. Harlon H. Block, Pfc. Franklin R. Sousley, Pfc. Rene A. Gagnon, Pfc. Ira Hayes, and PhM. 2/c John H. Bradley.

Sgt. Michael Strank - died 1945 on Iwo Jima, Japan

Cpl. Harlon H. Block - died 1945 on Iwo Jima, Japan

Pfc. Franklin R. Sousley - died on March 21, 1945 on Iwo Jima, Japan

Pfc. Rene A. Gagnon - survived the war and died on October 12, 1979. He is buried in Arlington

National Cemetery.

Pfc. Ira Hayes - survived the war but had a hard time being labeled as a hero. He felt that the

heroes of Iwo Jima fought and died on the battlefield.

PhM. 2/c John H. Bradley - He survived the war and returned home. He was married for 47

years and had eight children. He died on January 11, 1944.

The memorial was designed by Horace W. Peaslee and was dedicated on November 10, 1954 by President Eisenhower. The figures are 32 feet high holding a 60 foot flagpole. A cloth flag hangs from the flagpole.

On the memorial is inscribed "In honor and in memory of the men of the United States Marine Corps who have given their lives to their country since November 10, 1775."

http://www.nps.gov/achieve/gwmp/usmc.htm

http://www.iwojima.com/raising/raisingc.htm

Holocaust Museum

Ms. Edwards and Ms. Wood went to the Holocaust Museum and walked the three floors of exhibits that were dedicated to the time period in history when the Jewish people of Europe were persecuted against by the Nazi Party and Hitler. They were not able to take pictures inside the museum and they wouldn't let me out of the backpack. Below are two pictures that Ms. Edwards took outside of the museum.

The museum also had exhibits to other cultures and time periods of history when people were persecuted against. A current example being the people of Darfar. It is amazing and horrifying that events like this still go on today. At least there are people out there who are courageous enough to share their stories and let the world know what is going on. Hopefully there are courageous people out there to stop these events from occurring as well.

Fords Theater and Petersen House

Ms. Edwards and Ms. Wood visited the location that Abraham Lincoln was shot and the location that he died.

We were not able to go into Ford's Theater because it has been closed down for renovation. It is still an active theater and inside is the box that Abraham Lincoln was sitting in when he was shot by John Wilkes Booth. Abraham Lincoln was sitting with his wife, Major Henry Rathbone and his fiance.

Across the street from the theater is the Petersen's house. This is the boarding house that Abraham Lincoln was taken after he was shot. Lincoln died on April 15, 1865, at 7:22 AM. He was 56 years old.