Farnsworth Forum

Yours truly is now 46, as of 4/4/11. Robert Downey, Jr. and I share the same date of birth. So much for the trivia books! We spent the day in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, with our good friends Don and Lori Henderson and their daughter Eilish and son Reed. We asked to go again to a beautiful spot called the Chagrin Falls. You can see its beauty in the photos to follow. Sorry about the closed eyes. I really need picture-taking therapy! Joel and Amelia really enjoyed playing with Reed and Eilish, who are both great with younger kids. Don was away for part of our visit, but he returned in time to snap this picture. Amelia kept telling him that he wasn't smiling! I got a really neat card from one of our supporting churches. It read: "Men of genius are admired; men of wealth are envied; men of power are feared; but only men of character are trusted." Amen and amen! May we all be people like that!

On April Fool's Day we headed to Titusville, PA (on the recommendation of Marisol's brother Wilo who is a petroleum engineer in Ecuador) to see the birthplace of the international oil industry. In 1859 Edwin Drake struck oil and established the first successful oil well in western PA. In the hands-on exhibit at the visitor's center Miss Kathy showed Amelia and Joel how to make plastic from borax, white school glue and water. It came out kind of like Silly Putty. Here is the original stone marker to commemorate the spot, dedicated by the Daughters of the American Revolution in 1914. It was moved to its current location in 1945. The Farnsworth family poses in front and inside the building that shelters the Drake Well Replica. The original well and building were destroyed when the oil industry in that area dried up and there was no foresight to preserve it for posterity. This is a replica of the Grant Oil Well Office where oil was struck in 1865. Amelia and Joel demonstrate ...

We spent the weekend with friends in Ohio. On Monday we still did home school, just not in our home but in theirs.

Amelia and her friend Faith donned Chinese garb for Awana Culture Night!

More snow, even though it's spring!