Hoop fun at Strawberry Banke and beyond

Earlier this week we went to the living history museum, Strawberry Banke and there was so much to see and do that we couldn't do it all in one day.

The museum is in Portsmouth (NH) and has homes and exhibits from Colonial times to the World War II era. The girls were excited to see homes from the era of their favorite American Girl historical book characters.

We went with some friends and opted for the self-guided tour so the kids could explore the houses and exhibits they were most interested in.

There were interpreters at most of the houses and some were on the street. This woman was sitting in front of the Abbott Corner Store and had a lot of gossip about the town to share.

And the interpreter at the Shapiro house had the kids convinced that the house was really hers and that she lived in it. She was a wealth of information about immigrant Russian Jews in the early 1900s and the kids spent a lot of time asking questions and hanging out in this house.

L. struck up a conversation with the cooper and found out that he made the barrels she had seen at Old Fort Western in Augusta last fall.

There were lots of flowers in bloom during our visit but the extensive gardens around the museum promised quite a colorful and impressive display in mid- to late-summer.

G. had her camera and we have lots and lots of photos (many more than we needed) of fancy beds, kitches and other "cool stuff" inside the homes we visited.

The kids also had a chance to play some old-fashioned outdoor games like Rolling Hoops and Game of Graces.

But then an interpreter came along and set the girls straight on the "proper way" to play the Game of Graces. Apparently they were using the shorter rolling hoop sticks instead of the longer, thinner Grace sticks.

And the girls' hoop activities continue as they're dancing with the more modern hula hoops during their dance recital tonight and tomorrow.

It's going to be a busy couple of days...