THE TRIP- PEI, day 2 cont.

One of the difficulties of fiction is that it can be hard to re-create.  We had to keep telling ourselves that this was not the "real" Green Gables, but the inspiration for the setting in the book.  This is a real house, lived in by real people, and the author spent many happy hours here, but the rooms don't correspond to the rooms at Green Gables, they only give us an idea of the architecture, the decor, and the view outside the window.  I guess it just starts us on the path of "scope for the imagination", as Anne would say...

The front room.

Dining room

Kitchen

The pantry...

...where the poor mouse came to an untimely demise in the sauce.

Could be Matthew's bedroom

Possibly a guest room.

Looks a lot like a place where Marilla would sleep.

And her amethyst brooch is on the dresser.
(But my zoom wasn't cooperating...)

Sewing room.

Possibly a place for a hired hand to stay.

Anne's room.

Now how did that slate get broken?

Do you see what I see?  Yes, puffed sleeves...!

Bye, Green Gables!

After the Heritage Site, we went to the re-created village of Avonlea for lunch and more Anne-ishness. That will have wait for the next post!

THE TRIP- PEI, day 2

My mom grew up in Canada.  Of course, her literary heroine was the girl from Prince Edward Island- Anne of Green Gables.  It's a legacy that she loved passing on to me...

I received my first Anne book when I was 8.  I have memories of reading that book all through elementary and middle school- not just once, but multiple times since then.  And then, each year during college and for a few years following, I would start in the fall, and read through the whole Anne series- usually ending in the late winter.   It was the perfect way to endure a soggy PNW rainy season.

Since becoming a parent, however, my days of reading for pleasure somewhat diminished. Seems like  all I read for a few years were parenting books and the Bible (also a parenting book)!  But as kiddo got older, I knew it was time to introduce her to Anne.

I chose to read it aloud to her.  We started in the fall of her 3rd grade year.  Almost every evening, we snuggled into my down comforter and started our trek back in time to that little island with red soil...

The heritage site of Green Gables.  Cavendish, PEI. 

We started our tour by browsing through the small museum that told
the story of Anne's creator, Lucy Maud Montgomery.
She was called Maud by her friends and family.

Maud's scrapbook.  

After the museum displays, we watched a short video and then went to the barn to learn about life in the 1800s.

Kiddo milked the "cow"
(In case you can't tell, it's a plastic cow.  It gives plastic milk.)

Then we learned about churning.

Look!  Butter!

Our first glimpse of the house.  I'm all a-tingle.
This is the house of Maud's cousins, the McNeils.
She spent a lot of time here in her youth.

Be still my heart.  It's like I have found a long-lost friend...

The grounds and gardens were amazing.

My parents.  Are they not the cutest couple in the world?

They thought up that pose on their own.  

My dad was a trooper to put up with 7 females on this journey.
When the older set of granddaughters played Anne make-believe,
they always made him take the part of Matthew. 

No one told us this was the day to wear red or pink or white...  we just did.

A last look at the grounds before going inside...

To be continued...