a field trip on new year's eve

 

good morning!

 

(zuzu, just watching the mourning doves and the squirrels)

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greg, morgan and i decided to drive to hyde park to see eleanor roosevelt's house, valkill (korrina and i visited in 2018). morgan and greg had never been.

the weather has now grown so warm that the fog was intense coming after such cold weather. we had a very foggy drive north.

we couldn't join a tour until 1 pm so we stopped at the same diner (eveready) korrina and i had visited as it was only noon.

someone is missing their glove . . !

eleanor's study . . eleanor's son had sold the house after she died, but the town ended up buying it and establishing the historic site. 80% of the furniture is now original with more promised when the current owners pass away or are finished using the pieces.

 

the dining room . .
 

all decorated for christmas . . i was hoping to pick up a dessert plate in the franciscan design for korrina but they never reopened their gift shop after covid.

it was fun to see the house decorated for the holiday season.

supposedly eleanor loved picking out gifts for friends and family and would surprise everyone with her memory of what they liked.

videos of eleanor knitting:

more lost gloves . . 

and a foggy . . 

and rainy ride home . . 

where we played scrabble while waiting for midnight to come around . . 

watching the times square alliance streaming event . . 

they gave a fun commentary with stories from people who were in the crowd (people from kentucky, florida, minnesota, wisconsin, new jersey etc . . )

happy 2023 . .

val-kill

korrina and i were up early to get on the road to hyde park as we had plans to visit eleanor roosevelt's home, val-kill.

we first looked around the beach that was near our room whose creek led out to the hudson.

it was a cute little park.

 

 

 we drove east over this bridge to get back on the highway.

 

in hyde park we stopped for breakfast at the eveready diner, which had been recommended by brian as he used to frequent it with his parents and friends while at the culinary institute of america.

they had an interesting - and large - mascot.

it felt very cozy sitting there with a nice hot cup of coffee in front of me.

(posting foodie pics on instagram)

(well, it was an extremely delicious breakfast)

finally, val-kill, named after the nearby stream.

the house was made of fieldstone and was completed in 1925.

winston came to visit and took a dip in the pool . . 

a menu for a picnic on june 11, 1939: virginia ham, hot dogs, cold turkey, sausages (hot), cranberry jelly, green salad, rolls, strawberry shortcake, coffee, beer, soft drinks . . (very american sounding, i think!).

a letter from queen elizabeth from 1946.

linens that eleanor monogramed herself. there were a few photos of her with a simple knitting project in her hands. she was known for having needlework or knitting with her that she worked on while "engaged in conversation," (with winston churchill, i wonder, while he was taking a dip?)

the living room . . all was decorated in a warm and cozy manner.

the dining room . . 

eleanor's study . .

i love the fireplace and the large floral lamps behind the couch.

the tennis court . . 

the garden where vegetables were grown for the meals, and also many flowers. val-kill was home to a handcraft factory until 1936 (woodworking - replicas of early american furniture - and weaving and pewter pieces), and then a working farm in later years, organized with help from her son elliot.

it was a wonderful visit that we had talked about doing for awhile, so it was extra nice to be there.