Monticello and Malfunctioning Motors

Yesterday we took a day trip to Monticello about 2 hours from here in Charlottesville, VA. Monticello is Thomas Jefferson's home that has been preserved and restored. It was interesting to learn more about Jefferson and see his very clever home filled with books, art, and innovations to save time and energy. I learned many things about Jefferson - Here is a brief summary.

He married a woman named Martha who died in childbirth before Monticello was ever finished. We know little about her because Jefferson burned all her letters in his grief after she died. Only two of their six children lived to adulthood and of those two daughters, one died giving birth to her only child. Jefferson invited his remaining daughter to move to Monticello with her 12 children and 1 adopted child (from her sister). So he had lots of grandchildren around!

Jefferson was the father of "Paleontology" in America (though it wasn't called that then). He was the President who purchased "Louisiana" and then sent Lewis and Clark to explore the west. The entrance room to Monticello served as a museum displaying antlers and from the strange animals that Lewis and Clark found out west and ancient bones from the mastodon.

Jefferson wrote more than 20,000 letters in his lifetime and made copies of many using a "polygraph". He also had thousands of books in his first library which he sold to congress after the Capitol was burned and it's library destroyed. These books started "The Library of Congress". His second library also contained thousands of books.

Jefferson seriously opposed slavery and was the first to introduce a bill that would allow masters to free their slaves (which obviously did not pass). After battling slavery for years, he realized that he would never see change in his lifetime and predicted that it would be an issue that would divide the nation. He had several slaves at Monticello and freed two while he was living and six in his will. Jefferson died with no money and many debts. His family sold to Monticello to pay for his debts.

Okay so that wasn't a little summary - but there you go. The house was beautiful, as were the gardens, and the surrounding countryside. Curly thought the tunnel under the house was pretty neat.

So now to the less happy part of the day - We drove out here in my grandparents and now parents 1990 Chrysler 5th Avenue because it has a huge trunk and we wanted to save our car from all those miles! It has worked beautifully the whole trip... until last night - da - da - da - duhm - We feel very lucky because we were only a couple of miles from home when the trouble started. We pulled into CVS to pick up some eggs for Lou's cake and then the car wouldn't start. We were having trouble finding someone to help us when our guardian angels pulled into the parking lot driving a red minivan. I saw a couple dressed in their Sunday best and thought, "They just went to the temple." and I was right. A very kind couple gave us a jump for the car and not only that but the man was from Idaho Falls, Idaho - small world. Unfortunately I didn't find out their names, but we feel very grateful that they helped us. We made it within a half a mile of our home when we coasted into the parking lot of some large apartments and died... Fortunately, our friends live in that Apartment - I told you we are lucky! Lia brought her car around to jump ours and then let it charge for a while (Fisher walked the screaming tired children home in the stroller). Alas, the charge didn't work and the car is sitting in that parking lot waiting to be towed to a repair shop in the morning... boo hoo! We think (and really hope) that is just needs a new battery... but we are awaiting the verdict. We feel really grateful for the kind friends that we have made here - I am not sure what we would have done last night without them!