Where I've Been: National Historical Parks

When most people think of the National Park System, they think of places like Yosemite, Yellowstone, or the Grand Canyon. Our 63 National Parks are incredible; I've visited 19 National Parks and am eager to experience more of them. While well-deserving of their fame, these parks represent only about 1/7 of all of our National Park units. The National Park System includes 433 locations, including National Battlefields, National Monuments, National Preserves, and units in 16 other categories, covering over 85 million acres. Today I want to focus on National Historical Parks. 

There are 64 National Historical Parks (NHP) in the National Park System. These units "preserve places and commemorate persons, events, and activities important in the nation's history." Units designated as NHP tend to be physically larger and more complex than the units designated as a National Historic Site (NHS). While an NHS usually has a single historical feature (such as a historic house), an NHP often extends beyond a single building and includes later structures and/or significant natural features. Below is a list of all 64 National Historical Parks, along with their locations. I've starred the ones I've visited, and added links for any I've been to since I started blogging about travel. 

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Where I've Been: National Historical Parks

Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park, Kentucky

Adams National Historical Park, Massachusetts

Appomattox Court House National Historical Park, Virginia

Blackstone River Valley National Historical Park, Rhode Island

*Boston National Historical Park, Massachusetts

*Brown v. Board of Education National Historical Park, Kansas

Cane River Creole National Historical Park, Louisiana

Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park, Virginia

Chaco Culture National Historical Park, New Mexico

Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park, District of Columbia, Maryland, and West Virginia

*Colonial National Historical Park, Virginia

Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia

Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park, Ohio

*First State National Historical Park, Delaware

Fort Sumter and Fort Moultrie National Historical Park, South Carolina

George Rogers Clark National Historical Park, Indiana

Golden Spike National Historical Park, Utah

Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia

Harriet Tubman National Historical Park, New York

Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park, Maryland

*Homestead National Historical Park, Nebraska

Hopewell Culture National Historical Park, Ohio

*Independence National Historical Park, Pennsylvania

*Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve, Louisiana

Jimmy Carter National Historical Park, Georgia

Kalaupapa National Historical Park, Hawaii

Kaloko-Honokōhau National Historical Park, Hawaii

*Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, Alaska and Washington

Lewis and Clark National Historical Park, Oregon and Washington

Lowell National Historical Park, Massachusetts

*Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park, Texas

Keweenaw National Historical Park, Michigan

Manhattan Project National Historical Park, New Mexico, Tennessee, and Washington

Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park, Vermont

*Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park, Georgia

*Minute Man National Historical Park, Massachusetts

Morristown National Historical Park, New Jersey

Natchez National Historical Park, Mississippi

New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park, Massachusetts

New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park, Louisiana

Nez Perce National Historical Park, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington

Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park, Georgia

Palo Alto Battlefield National Historical Park, Texas

Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park, New Jersey

Pecos National Historical Park, New Mexico

Pullman National Historical Park, Illinois

Pu'uhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park, Hawaii

Reconstruction Era National Historical Park, South Carolina

*Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front National Historical Park, California

Salt River Bay National Historical Park and Ecological Preserve, Virgin Islands

San Antonio Missions National Historical Park, Texas

*San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park, California

San Juan Island National Historical Park, Washington

Saratoga National Historical Park, New York

Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park, New Hampshire

Salem Maritime National Historical Park, Massachusetts

Ste. Genevieve National Historical Park, Missouri

Sitka National Historical Park, Alaska

Thomas Edison National Historical Park, New Jersey

Tumacacori National Historical Park, Arizona

*Valley Forge National Historical Park, Pennsylvania

War in the Pacific National Historical Park, Guam

Weir Farm National Historical Park, Connecticut

*Women's Rights National Historical Park, New York

I've been to 15 of the 64 National Historical Parks. That's fewer than I expected - a lot fewer. There are some where I'm not sure if I've been there, like Sitka NHP. I've been to the Alaska Raptor Center that is 0.3 mile away multiple times, so there's a decent chance that I visited the NHP. Another example: I thought I'd been to Salem Maritime NHP, but we drove by it on a guided tour and heard all about without actually getting out and seeing it ourselves. Regardless, there are a lot of great places on the list that I hope to visit someday.

Coloring Dumbo with a Glow Effect

There are a lot of really cool coloring trends lately. In her latest video, Sarah Renae Clark covers thirty (30!!) of the most trendy coloring techniques. Some of them look like so much fun! I've especially been wanting to try the neon effect, so I got out my Disneyland Parks Colouring Book (affiliate link here and below) and picked a Dumbo image.  However, as I almost always do when crafting, I ended up going rogue. Instead of following the easy steps for a neon effect that Sarah outlines in her video, I complicated things with a bunch of experimentation. I'm calling this a glow effect, because it definitely isn't the neon effect and it reminds me of the lighted inflatables at the zoo during the winter.    

I cut my coloring page down to a 7" square, then got out my black Ohuhu Honolulu. 

I colored the background, making sure i could still easily see the lines of the coloring page. I decided that I would just be coloring Dumbo, not the nephew riding him or anything in the background. I traced all the lines I'd be keeping in white using an Ohuhu Nahuku. In retrospect, I should have jumped in with color, not white. But we learn through experimentation. 

I started out trying to do a gradient kind of thing with the three blues in my set, but ended up coloring over most of that. I love how the Nahukus can just layer and layer and layer. As you can see, I decided to add some of the greenery back into the image. I (mostly) followed the lines on the right-hand side but made up my own design on the left. 

Oops. I gave Dumbo three front feet. Did you notice? It's a good thing the Nahukus layer so well. Third foot gone!

After I finished coloring, I used Ohuhu Halawas to add a soft glow around the outside edges. Finally, I added more black to the background. I kept the coloring page on the cardboard you see protecting my table, which is what gave the background that interesting mottled look. It helps disguise the original lines of the coloring page. 

I learned a lot while coloring Dumbo and had a lot of fun. I'm eager to try this glow effect again, but before that, I'm going to try actually doing the neon effect properly. Stay tuned!

Celebrating Dad

One year ago today was the memorial service for my dad. It was a celebration of his life, a time to focus on happy memories. We had a really nice service at my parents' church, followed by reception with a popcorn machine (one of Dad's favorite foods) and a cake inspired by his years coordinating the summertime hot dog lunch giveaway at Hope Lutheran. Family and friends traveled to Idaho from California and Washington, along with the many local friends who attended. Dad would have loved it. 

Celebrating Dad (affiliate link)

Instead of a guest book, I put Dad's photo on cardstock and asked guests to sign that. These two pages are now together in the album.   

I miss you, Dad. Thanks for a lifetime of memories. 

Root Beer Float Craft

I can only remember a single time in my life when I wasn't happy to see a root beer float. Every other time, I've been excited to receive this creamy and delicious treat. The root beer float dates back many years, although exactly how many is unknown. We do know that the ice cream soda was invented in Pennsylvania in 1874 by Robert Green. But did he specifically make a root beer float? Legend has it that Frank Wisner of Colorado made the first root beer float in 1893. Whether you're in Pennsylvania, Colorado, or anywhere else, this is a great time to make a root beer float craft and follow it up with the real thing. Affiliate links below. 

Root Beer Float Craft

Materials: 

• watercolor paper
• scissors
• white colored pencil
• scoring board (or ruler)
• watercolors
• cardstock or construction paper
• craft glue
• cotton balls
• root beer barrels to enjoy while you're crafting

Steps: 

Cut out the pieces you will need from watercolor paper: a rectangle with rounded corners at the bottom for the mug, a C-shape for the handle, a cloud shape for the ice cream, and a bent (or straight) piece for the straw. 

I should have arranged these the better way for this photo. See above.

Put the mug piece onto the scoring board. With the white pencil, score the center line. Then score more lines an equal distance apart. You can do this step with a ruler, but the scoring board is easier and more fun. 

Color the very bottom of the mug shape with the white pencil. Paint over the mug shape with brown watercolors. The white pencil will resist the paint. 

I chose to add a really pale wash of brown to the handle so that it didn't look so stark white when the rest of the mug had a brown tint. Paint the straw the color of your choice. I experimented with painting the ice cream a slightly yellow, but it looked weird (to me) against the pure white cotton balls. So I left the ice cream white. 

When all the pieces are dry, choose cardstock for the background. Add a contrasting strip along the bottom for the table the where the mug is sitting. Glue the pieces in place. Tear the cotton ball into a dozen or so pieces. Add glue along the bottom of the ice cream and the top of the mug, then place the cotton ball pieces into the glue. 

Invertebrate Crafts for Kids

Did you know that there are around 1.3 million different species of invertebrates?! This includes approximately: 

• 1 million species of insects 
• 100,000 species of arachnids (spiders, scorpions, ticks, etc)
• 85,000 species of slugs and snails
• 47,000 species of crustaceans
• 20,000 species of bivalves 
• 72,000 other species (everything from sand dollars to jellyfish to octopuses)

Those are staggering numbers! And when you consider how many individuals of each species there are, it is simply mind-blowing. Invertebrates are absolutely fascinating. Pair a study of invertebrates with a series of kid-friendly crafts. Below are nine of my favorites. 

Invertebrate Crafts for Kids

1. Cardboard Tube Honey Bee - Where would we be without bees? Craft a model of this vital pollinator using a cardboard tube.

2. Pretzel Monarch Butterflies - Make a gorgeous edible treat, inspired by the monarch butterfly. This craft is best for teens and tweens.

3. Ladybug Under a Magnifying Glass - What better way to study a tiny animal but under a magnifying glass?! This craft lets kids focus on all the details of a ladybug. 

4. Peanut Picnic Ants - Ants are absolutely amazing. Sure, they can be annoying, but when you learn more about their strength and teamwork, you can't help but be impressed!

5. Glue Resist Spiderweb - Create a beautiful spiderweb with two kid-friendly items you likely already have at home. It's a lot of fun to make. 

6. Lobster Drawing - Learn how to draw an American lobster, step by step. Then add watercolors to give it mottled coloration.

7. Crayon Resist Swallowtail - Use a fun crayon-resist technique to color accurate pictures of your favorite butterflies. This is an Eastern tiger swallowtail. 

8. Cardboard Tube Firefly - Fireflies are such interesting insects! Make your own firefly using a cardboard tube. Lights are optional, but totally cool. 

9. Painted Dragonflies - Create a beautiful painting featuring lots of colorful dragonflies. This mixed media project is really fun to do. 

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Be sure to check out the rest of the invertebrate craft tutorials! If you're looking for ideas for other animal crafts for kids, I have those too. Click on the links to find bird crafts, mammal crafts, fish crafts, reptile and amphibian crafts, and even crafts featuring mythical creatures!