SEPTEMBER

For Labor Day, we headed north to a resort town and lake for the day. We hadn't planned on the day being so nice or the kids wanting to "swim," so at the end of the day, we let them head into the water in their clothes. Of course, the original idea was for them to just wade. "Don't get too wet . . ." Right.

Doesn't Bug's face say, "What's the big deal, mom? It's just water." I ended up agreeing!

Our town has Touch-A-Truck day with dozens of big trucks, construction equipment, firetrucks, school buses, Red Cross vehicles, you name it. If it's big, impressive, on wheels, it's there and the kids (and parents!) can climb all over them.

Every little guy's dream!

The girls loved it too!

Firefighter . . .

Big rig driver. . .

Paramedics. . .

SWAT team member . . .

And a good time was had by all!

At the end of September is the largest World War II re-enactment in North America. It is held about an hour away from our house and it is one the highlights of my year! This year's weather was gorgeous and we had an awesome time (ok, I had an awesome time).

Bagpiper

Every where you look are vignettes that look like the 1940s.

A jeep, a gun and the girls! (and if you look closely, you will see that I wore a skirt . Wonders never cease,)

A soldier and his dog.

Bug had a great time!

There are dozens of large military vehicles in working order -- pretty impressive.

Chica in a WWII front lines foxhole. I want one as a fort in my back yard!

Bear ready for battle.

The ZamFam comin' attcha!

The day ends with a large-scale re-enactment of a real battle or engagement complete with Hollywood-style pyrotechnics. It is incredibly loud with the explosions pounding off your chest -- exhilarating! El Guapo took these pics from the back with Bug. The girls and I were sitting right along the string-line -- front row seats.

Throughout the day are other minor skirmishes. This one took place in a German-occupied French village, but the Allies prevailed. (To preserve the realism, they don't always.) This is a Scottish force complete with our bagpiper and a guy in ghillie.

Hands up, Krauts! Check out the guy in the tam o'shanter and kilt!

This guy was trying to escape and the Scots had to subdue him. They really hammed it up and audience was roaring.

Our final outing in September involved an informal tour led by my aunt to several organic/cottage industry farms in a nearby county. This was dream-fodder for me, since I would love to have a small farm with some animals. I think Bug shares the dream. We called him the Goat Whisperer because the goats in this pen followed him everywhere! He'll always have the career option of goatherd!

If you are interested in seeing pictures of our 2008 trip to WWII days, I have placed them chronologically in 2008, but they are newly posted (today!), so check them out here.

Chica's Big Day Out (or how I took years off my kids' lives. . .)

One of my enduring passions is World War II, mostly because I do believe that the "greatest generation" did nothing less than save the world. The 1940s-era holds endless fascination for me, and I never tire of hearing stories from both the front lines and the home front of the courage, ingenuity and heroism.

So it was with great excitement that the ZamFam5 headed out to the largest WWII re-enactment in North America. It is held every September about an hour away from our house. When we arrived, we were met with all the sights and sounds of a German-occupied French village. Trying to get our bearings, we pulled off to the side of a dirt track that ran through the center of town only to have a volley of gunfire erupt mere feet away! We had inadvertently found ourselves with a front row view of one of the many skirmishes that are held throughout the day. It was deafeningly loud. Bug was so scared he turned completely white, went totally stiff and held his mouth open in a silent scream. The girls kept looking at me wide-eyed for assurance, but shouting at them didn't really convey that everything was okay. El Guapo had a priceless expression on his face that said, "Don't look at me. This is all your mother's doing!"

Before the battle, occupying forces patrolled the streets.

Their friendly and casual demeanor gave no indication of the gunfire that was about to erupt in moments!
The gunfire reports were so powerful, you could feel the concussions on your chest. Awesome!
Some Allied troops had taken up in the General Store and were trying to battle their way outside. We thought the rifles were loud and then they rolled up with this baby! Percussive! In the interest of realism, not all of the battles end with Allied victories and in this instance, the good guys were captured and marched away. Then the occupying forces packed up and rolled on down the street.

There are home front and front lines exhibitions, as well. Here the girls are in the area showing the role of the Red Cross.

Everywhere are period vehicles and folks in costume. So authentic.

This could be on a street corner in 1944. Love the uniforms!

The front lines area is divided into Allied and Axis zones. Visitors hike through the woods to view various encampments. Can you imagine living like this?

There are many impressive military vehicles.

This officer was impressive and realistic with his dapper uniform and dour expression.

Not a real fan of posting pictures of my girls with a N**i, but the horse in the picture is a movie star. He played John Adams' horse in the HBO miniseries. (If I ever run for public office, I might have to remove this one -- can you imagine what someone could write?!)

This is my favorite picture of the day (thanks, El Guapo!) because it so perfectly captures that even though conditions were most difficult, British will, order and patriotism still thrived. Brilliant.