North Carolina

The last week in March we had a fun time studying about North Carolina. For us the first thing we think of with connected with that state is my sister Martha and her family. That is where their home is. The above picture (which I had to scan in and for some reason the colors are funny) is of Derek and Martha and kids on the coast in N. Carolina. I understand that the coast is very beautiful there and that there are a lot of shells that can be collected.
This is another picture that Martha gave me. It is of cotton growing in N. Carolina. They grow a lot of cotton in that state and also have many textile mills. In North Carolina they make hosiery, denim, carpet, blouses, sheets and towels.

We didn't end up eating a lot of food from N. Carolina but one that we tried was peanut soup. We thought it was quite good. I think it is a North Carolina recipe because of the peanuts in it (which they grow there). Martha and another friend who both tried it thought that it actually tasted like a Thai soup. I did also attempt making North Carolina BBQ which is famous and I made some pork steak that we liked quite well but we decided not to bother with BBQ sauce and it was afterwards that I realized that it is the sauce (a vinegary BBQ sauce) that makes it North Carolina. Oh well! Milk is the State drink of N. Carolina and we certainly had plenty of that.

One thing that I ready about which is well known in North Carolina but which we didn't get around to trying was Livermush. You can check out the recipe here. It is made from cornmeal mush and hog liver. It really doesn't sound to appetizing but it sounds like there are many fans of it. If any of you have tried it I would love to hear what you think. I found this fun video that shows you all about it. Maybe it will get your taste buds watering.

One night we did have fun decorating our table with North Carolina stuff. Martha had brought us a box of shells and pine cones which we used all over the table. The kids thought we should also include Sunny as part of the centerpiece.
There is a lot of beautiful scenery in North Carolina. We had a great time looking at all the pictures.
As far as History goes we enjoyed reading about how Orville and Wilbur Wright went there (around Kitty Hawk) to try out their airplanes. I guess that area had better wind than in Ohio.

What can you share with us about North Carolina? Also this week we are studying Vermont, we would love to learn from you about that state as well.