"O I wish I was a Lassie" : National Tartan Day! :)

"Oh ye tak' the high road
And I'll tak' the low road,
And I'll be in Scotland 'afore ye...."

So today is the day every American who observes such holidays digs up their Scottish genealogy and displays their clan tartan proudly. Or, if you are like me, you bemoan the fact that you came from the Irish MacWilliams, and look up your Scottish cousin's tartans! :P
So pretty much, here we are! These are the MacLeod Clan's crests! (MacWilliams being an offshoot of the MacLeod clan) The motto: Murus Aheneus Esto means: "Hold Fast" which relates to the time when the Clan Chieftain wrestled a bull to the ground and the crowd shouted "Hold Fast!" *Swoons at thought* ;)
I love the language of heraldry, and learning what various symbols mean. The crest within the crest badge is blazoned a bull's head cabossed sable, horned Or, between two flags gules, staved at the first. Basically, all these various symbols stand for such tangible things as diamonds, gold, rubies, and topaz, and for such virtues as faith, obedience, and gentility. Better and better! :)
As a clan badge, we can also wear a sprig of juniper in our hats, or for ladys, at the shoulder of our tartan sash. Which brings me to our tartan! :)

"What an unusual dress, Molly. Is that the tartan of your father's clan?"
"Oh...no, Mrs. Hamley. Papa said it was not like any proper tartan he'd ever seen. But Miss Rose said it was the latest fashion in London last season."
~Molly Gibson of Wives and Daughters


These are the tartans of the MacLeod clan. The loud yellow one was designed in 1841 under the name "MacLeod". It is sometimes called Dress MacLeod, or MacLeod of Lewis, supposedly to come from that side of the family. (though it was designed after the family of Lewes had ceased to be chiefs)
The blue tartan was recorded in 1831 but is thought to be much older. It is sometimes called MacLeod of Harris.
So here I am, sitting on National Tartan day wearing a bright and springy plaid shirt....and hoping that there is some genealogical mistake and we are actually from the Scottish MacWilliams. However it is, I have enjoyed the research I did! :)
~Rachel

The Corries A' The Blue Bonnets

"Patriotism is your conviction that this country is superior to all other countries because you were born in it." -George Bernard Shaw

While my reasons for my patriotism are much deeper, this certainly is a part of it! Daniel and I believe that our bonny Stars and Stripes make up the most glorious flag of any country! And our fife and drums inspire me with a wonderful swelling of pride for my country that makes me want to sign up for the colonial army! ;) So far nothing can rival that for rousing my patriotism! But below is something that convinces me I have Scotch blood! (even if that is unproved! ;) This makes me want to get a sword and wear a plaid and go tramping through the heather speaking with a thick brogue! What do you think of it? -Rachel

p.s. I love this video, but some of the others done by this group aren't so great!

By Leanna's Request

Hey guys! Leanna won our contest earlier this weekend, so she asked me to post about Scotland. As most of you know, I love that country! (Although I have small hopes of ever getting there! :)

She entreated me not to do any research though, so I have compiled a list of the to 10 reasons I love Scotland....



1. The Accent! I can think of no accent I would rather listen to! So eloquent and lilting! I think of Rashleigh Osbaldistone in Sir Walter Scott's Rob Roy who was ugly, but they said that a girl could fall in love with his voice if she had never seen him. I would love to marry someone who, if not Scottish could at least do a fine impression of the accent for me! :)



2. Their vocabulary- who can resist smiling at expressions like "ding me daft", "bonny lass" "gang gyte" "wee bairn" and so many others!



3. The history! So many, many things have happened on Scottish soil! And they have the best names for their historical people! Bonny Prince Charlie, Mary: Queen of Scots, etc.



4. The spiritual heritage: Have any of you read about the Scottish Covenanters! I am fascinated by that group of hard-headed faithful men!



5. The heroes: Who needs a better role-model for men than William Wallace? (Unless you wanted to imitate John Smith or someone equally as great and godly!) William Wallace was a giant literally and morally! If a young man wants someone to be challenged by, just look him up, and listen to the talk Little Bear Wheeler does on him! But watch out! He had the worst death I've heard of in many a day! :( Very sad. I think I almost cried when I listened to the story of it!



6.The landscape: Have you ever wanted to see heather? I do! I echo Emily Dickenson's idea that though she had never seen the moor, she knew just what heather looked like. I've never seen a picture of it, but I can nearly smell it in my imagination I have such a clear mental idea of it! :)

Then the highlands! Such a wild and romantic landscape, if rather foreboding in places!



7. The national costume. Who can beat plaid? I find it very pretty, though, if you are to wear a kilt, be sure you are a VERY manly looking man, like Angus Buchan or someone of that sort! :)



8. Shortbread and tea! I like shortbread, and I wonder if they invented the pretty shortbread pan I have?



9. The names of places there: all over Great Britain they have the most poetic names for places!

Like Stratton-upon-Avon (or something equally cute like that)



10. Their names: I have grown to have a great fondness for Scottish names like Ian, Angus, Duncan, Mary, Jenny, Elana, Fiona, Ellen, etc. (And according to my Baby name book Rachel is a favorite in that wonderful country! :)



Oh! I have a numer 11: Their music!!!! The old ballads and songs are the most beautiful imaginable I feel! And the dancing! That makes 12 I guess!!! Sorry! :)



So now, I hope you know why I am so intrigued by Scotland! The only thing that would slightly frighten me would to swim in Loch Ness! ;)

Who knows but there might be some lone Pleseasaurus (sp?) left in there or something!

Okay! So much for my part of this post! Now Sarah wants to post something!



Hey Everybody! Sorry I haven't been posting stuff recently.
Okay, as some of you know, we've been watching Emma (and even since before that,) I've been wanting to make a book for my hopechest of a collection of riddles! So, I don't really want to surf the internet for riddles, I would much rather do it in a more quaint, and old-fashioned way.
Now, if any of you can contribute one of these puzzling rhymes, I would appreciate it. So just leave a comment if you can, and I'll use it in my book! :)
Thanks! I just thought this would be a fun and interesting collection to do!
-Sarah

Ane Daft Yang Limmer's Skirling

Hi! (the title is Scottish brogue for "One Crazy Young Woman's Skirling" (skirling is the way they describe a bagpipe's sound, so maybe it isn't the most flattering adjective for my singing!))This is me, Rachel! We are about to leave for a very spur of the day ;) get-together with the Wilsons! Yay! I don't think we've done something like this since last February, so I'm really excited! (guys, seeing you for an hour or so after church just wasn't cutting it even for the Dads I guess! :) I am so excited! Anyway, there is something strange going on with my mind- some of you may remember me writing about the odd things I think of when I am working with Dad. Well, I have been reading Rob Roy by Sir Walter Scott. (It is all about Scotland and very exciting and I highly recommend it if you want to become familiar speed-reading Scottish Highland Brogue. Anyhow!) So this is the thing: maybe my mind is too occupied with Scotland right now, but the only songs I can think of are Scottish songs, and words to Scottish songs I've read. My mind was like this today:

(singing to myself) "Ye Banks and Braes o' Bonny Dune
How can ye bloom sae fresh and fair"

The next minute- "I saw a thrush!
Sitting on a bush
And the song he sang was "A Jug of Punch" o-de-lie-delay!.."

(by the way, the words to the rest of it are not very good so I haven't learned it but the tune is catchy! :)

Then- "My love is like a red, red rose
That's newly sprung in June,
My love is like a melody
That's sweetly played in tune...."

Then, "....hmmmm (can't think of the words then a rousing: "The Maid that Sold her Barley!"


And then the words I somehow remembered from reading them in a book somewhere:

"Have Ye Heard of Kate Kearney?
She lives on the banks of Killarney,
From the glance of her eye
Shun danger and fly,
For fatal's the glance of Kate Kearney."

So I am trying to think of something else to sing, and by the way, I am almost, almost done with Rob Roy. I hate that Diana Vernon must go to a convent! But I'm sure in the next few pages Rob Roy will help Frank Osbaldistone get her out of that predicament! :) -Rachel