I Lift My Lamp Beside the Golden Door

Our graham cracker flag

The other day we were in Kroger and Vincent just randomly intoned, "I lift my lamp beside the golden door." While the cashier and the other shoppers gave him strange looks and stepped away, I explained to them, "Statue of Liberty."

In honor of the Fourth of July (and because we love our country!) we got the kids a CD that has all sorts of American songs on it as well as readings of important documents, like the Gettysburg Address, the Preamble to the Constitution, and the Declaration of Independence. The upside is that they've memorized most of these great writings and can spout out the Declaration on a moment's notice.

The downside is that if I hear Catherine humming "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" one more time I might break the CD.

Don't look too close or you'll see all my flaws!

Anyway, they've been wanting to learn more about American history. So we've read all about Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, Ben Franklin, Molly Pitcher and Paul Revere, we've read about Betsy Ross' life, painted her flag, cut out her five-pointed star and made graham cracker flags, and recreated the Boston Tea Party by dumping the pillows off the beds. We studied the great landmarks, both natural and manmade, of the United States and created a lapbook about our nation. Catherine and I even sewed patriotic napkins.

Needless to say, our little patriots are very excited about the Fourth. And not just because I have promised to bake a flag cake with lots of frosting. It's been fun teaching the kids about our country, and it has instilled in me a new appreciation for the brave men and woman who risked their lives for freedom.

I'll leave you with the words by Emma Lazarus that are inscribed at the base of the Statue of Liberty, so that if you ever hear a little boy quoting them in Kroger you can just smile and nod instead of looking at him like he's an alien.

"Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore,
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door."

Happy Fourth of July, everyone.