A couple of weeks ago, the boys participated in a Living Wax Museum with our local homeschool group. We’d been prepping for it a while. Our preparation included many library books, some internet research, a half-day of shopping for costume pieces, and a visit to the Fort Worth of Museum of Science and History to see the George Washington exhibit (see previous post.)
Tigger - George Washington, Woody - Thomas Edison
Tigger had a blast dressing up as Mr. Washington. I found the wig and neck piece on sale for $5 at Amazon over Christmas. We went shopping at Goodwill and found the vest and green corduroy pants for $6. Once we added his own shirt and shoes, along with some knee-high stockings of mom’s, his costume was complete.
Tigger really got into his role as George Washington. He did a great job remembering his speech with the help of some index cards:
My name is George Washington. I was born February 22, 1732 in Wakefield, Virginia.
As a young student, I practiced handwriting but math was my favorite subject.
My father died when I was 11 years old. My half-brother Lawrence became my mentor. At 16, I became a surveyor because I liked measuring and map-making.
When I married my darling bride, Martha, in 1759, I became a step-father to Jacky and Patsy.
When the first continental congress met in Philadelphia, they decided I would be a good general. I was a good general. I encouraged my men to keep fighting for freedom.
After fighting in the war for 8 years we won and I became a hero. The newly formed government decided I should be the first president of our nation.
Because I was the first, many call me “The Father of Our Country.” I was unanimously elected for both of my terms as president. I never lived in the White House, but I did plan our nation’s capitol.
It is hard for a guy like me to relax, but when I do, I like to play cards, go fishing, and go fox hunting.
Much like my teeth today, I lost many teeth as an adult. I had a dentist create a set of false teeth for me. He made them out of hippopotamus ivory, human teeth and metal.
When I died, December 14th 1799, I was humbled that many said I was “First in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of my countrymen.”
A friend shared with me that when she went to talk with Tigger aka George Washington, she told him that she had visited his home. He responded quizzically, “Mount Vernon?” When she gave him affirmation, he was very excited. Then she told me she shared that she had seen where George Washington was buried and Tigger’s response was to hold his shaking head in his hands and sigh like it was more than he could bear. Oh my! I have a little thespian on my hands!
In the group picture with all of the kids, Tigger has a bizzare expression on his face. When I asked him about it, he said he was trying to keep his teeth together like George Washington. One thing we learned at the museum about President Washington’s teeth is that they had a spring in them that kept them open, so he often looked angry or pensive because he had to consciously work on keeping his jaw closed. The fact that Tigger remembered to “stay in character” for this absolutely cracks me up. My mother has said for quite some time that she thinks he will be a preacher or an actor. I’m pretty sure this confirms those thoughts. 
Woody also enjoyed dressing up. He liked the fact that the costume wasn’t all that involved. Knowing his personal taste, he would have hated wearing a wig or an elaborate costume. We used a suit and shoes that we already had, so all we bought was his shirt which was $3 at a resale shop, and silver hair paint for $3.
Woody did a great job as Thomas Edison. One comment that I received over and over from several moms is that he is going to be stunningly handsome when he is old. The combination of silver hair and blue eyes are going to have all of the ladies chasing him around in the nursing home.
Woody’s speech as Thomas Edison:
My name is Thomas Alva Edison. I was born February 11th, 1847 in Milan, Ohio. I was the youngest of seven children. All of my brothers and sisters used to call me Al.
I had hearing problems as a child, probably due to Scarlet fever. My teachers thought I wasn’t smart, but really, I couldn’t hear them. My mother thought I was full of curiosity and quite bright, so she began homeschooling me after 3 months of public school.
When I was 9, my mom gave me an elementary science book on chemistry. It was so much fun trying out every experiment in the book. I was hooked and began spending all of my extra money on chemicals to do more experiments!
I was a good business man all of my life. As a child, I grew vegetables and sold them in town. When I was 12, I started selling newspapers and candy on the train. When I was 14, I saved 3-year-old Jimmy MacKenzie from a runaway boxcar. I started my own weekly newspaper when I was 15.
I married my sweetheart, Mary Stillwell and we had three children. Unfortunately, she died. I then married Mila Miller and we also had three children.
I began my career as an inventor with the electrical vote recorder. Shortly after that, I created the phonograph which dazzled the public. Because of that, I became known as “the Wizard of Menlo Park.”
I created over 1,000 inventions, and had 1,093 successful U.S. patents. However, my favorite invention was the phonograph.
I am most known for inventing the light bulb, however, I didn’t invent it – I only made it better. I tried using different materials for filaments until I found one that was bright but did not burn up.
When I died on October 18th 1931, much of the world called me a genius. But I know better. I know that a good idea is not enough. It takes hard work to make dreams into a reality. That is why I say, “Genius is 1 percent inspiration, and 99 percent perspiration.”
This was a great event. I am so glad the boys chose to participate. They did a great job of researching their characters and then “becoming” them for an evening.
