Whirlwind Tour Of The Midwest, Part 1

On December 19th we left the East Coast and began our "whirlwind tour of the midwest". We spent 15 days traveling through 8 states!! The girls remained in good spirits for most of the drive with the exception of Ella being car sick all the way through the mountains of West Virginia (she refused to wear her Sea Bands). Gotta love family trips.... Anyway, I'm going to split up my postings so that each entry isn't way too long. I'll also try to limit how many photos I add to keep from boring you.

Our first stop was in Indianapolis where we spent some time with dear Army friends, Scott & Kathleen and their three boys, Jacob, Matthew and Michael. My Michael (or Big Mike as the boys call him) was honored to be the MC at Jacob's Eagle Scout Ceremony. They have since moved to the mountains of Colorado where we hope to be able to visit very soon!

Wreaths Across America ~ Arlington National Cemetery

Our family participated in Wreaths Across America on December 13th at Arlington National Cemetery. Volunteers helped place over 10,000 wreaths donated by the Worcester Wreath Company on the headstones of our nation's fallen heroes. It was cold, windy, and I think we all lost feeling in our toes within an hour of being there. However, it was an amazing oportunity to tell Madison a little about our World War II soldiers and what they had to endure ~ walking miles in the snow with wet socks and boots ~ fighting for our freedom and the freedom of those less fortunate. The gratitude I feel for our veterans makes me speechless. May we never forget those who fought for our nation or take for granted the freedom we have been given.

Thanksgiving

I am finally taking a few moments to upload some photos from Thanksgiving (I have been so busy lately I'm not sure whether I am coming or going!). We are blessed to live very close to a dear friend of mine, Joyce, and her sweet family. I have known Joyce since 4th grade (so you don't have to do mental calculations, that is 28 years of friendship)! Together we experienced life in elementary school, junior high, high school, church youth group, and even college! How she put up with me this whole time I'll never know....

Anyway, we spent Thanksgiving with Mike & Joyce and their three children and had a wonderful time. We were also able to visit Williamsburg and Jamestown.... which, by the way, were incredible! I could go on and on, but due to limited time, I'll just stick to adding a slideshow of some pictures we took!

Pumpkin Patch

October means many things for me ~ hot apple cider, long walks in the crisp Autumn air, crackling fires, sweaters, watching Sleepy Hollow, roasting pumpkin seeds, and a trip to the pumpkin patch. When I was growing up, our family went to Brown County, Indiana every Fall. We would browse the shops of quaint Nashville and takes hikes in Brown County State Park. If I close my eyes I can flip through a photo album of memories that bring a smile to my face and warm my heart. It is my deepest desire that my own girls have such memories of their childhood.

Saturday we went to Cox Farms with our friends Abram, Terri, Emily & Sarah. The experience was more amusement park than the pumpkin patches of my youth, but we really had a wonderful time and enjoyed the beautiful October weather. We went on the world's longest hayride (very cool!), drank apple cider, went down huge slides, fed some goats, found our way through a corn maze, and milked a cow (just to name a few activities)! Here are some photos of our day:

Columbus Day in DC

What better way to celebrate the finding of the New World than by visiting the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History!? I can't really find a link between the two, but that's where we ended up on Monday anyway. The girls loved the dinosaurs (don't we all???) and Madison was fascinated by the Hope Diamond! What do you know... girls do have a gene that makes them attracted to expensive sparkles!

Before we left Michael gave Madison her own digital camera (his "Iraq" camera ~ the one that made it to and from the sandbox and, believe it or not, still works!). She was so excited and couldn't wait to take her very own pictures. She is in photographer heaven and has already been through 4 batteries. Anyway, here are some pictures (both from my camera and Maddie's).

For your amusement, here are some other photos taken by Madison on Monday:

Family Reunion

This weekend our little family of travelers found ourselves in New York for a family reunion (Michael's side of the family). I, once again, fell in love with New York and completely understand why people buy those "I heart NY" t-shirts. I so need one. Anyway, we just loved spending time with family and had a wonderful weekend... it really ended way too soon! Madison made fast friends with her cousin, Sophia, and a dog named Sam. Once again I took way too many photos, so here is yet another slide show. By the way, thank you Aunt Nancy & Uncle Bill for planning everything!

Relaxing In Savannah

Michael's sister, Dayna, joined our family for a trip to Savannah after Allan & Tiffany's wedding. Traveling with our family usually proves to be interesting... I was a little worried that Dayna might be driven to the edge of insanity. However; she didn't run away screaming, my girls behaved rather well, and we all had a wonderful time together! Just so you know, we always have a great time with Dayna... she is the best and we love spending time with her and Chris! -sniff- I wish we lived closer.

Here's a recap: We got to the hotel I reserved online ~ The Clubhouse Inn & Suites. I admit it... I am a hotel snob and believe that cleanliness and safety are a priority. A free breakfast is also a bonus, but not a necessity. Anyway, I had a bit of a sinking feeling when we pulled up and there was a pawn shop and check cashing joint just outside of the hotel. Fast forward... the rooms were dark (no doubt to hide the dirt), the carpet was damp in one corner of the room (???), the shower looked a bit moldy (I couldn't really tell due to the 20 watt light bulb in the bathroom), and there was a man wearing his "tighty whities" to swim in the pool right outside our sliding glass doors. The final straw was Michael finding hair on the bottom of Ella's feet that weren't any of ours. GROSS! After less than an hour in the room, we loaded up our things and Michael marched down to the front desk. We received a full refund and found our way to a fabulous hotel in Historic Savannah called Four Points By Sheraton. FABULOUS! We will definitely stay here in the future and recommend it to anyone who asks.

While in Savannah, we ate at The Crab Shack (YUMMY!) on Tybee Island, went to the top of the Tybee Island Lighthouse, played at the beach, ate more seafood than you can begin to imagine, toured the Juliette Gordon Lowe house (she's the founder of the Girls Scouts), went on a evening carriage ride, swam in the hotel rooftop pool, ate some more seafood, shopped, walked cobblestone streets, and had a ton of fun!!

Allan & Tiffany's Wedding

Michael's brother, Allan, got married this past weekend. The wedding was wonderful and we are so excited to welcome Tiffany into our family! Michael was the best man and I was honored to be a bridesmaid. We had such a fun time! Thanks to my sister-in-law, Dayna, for most of the fabulous photos in the slideshow. Enjoy!

Our Weekend Getaway

This weekend we escaped our normal routine and headed to Rocky Gap Resort in Maryland. It was wonderful to relax, enjoy the fresh air, and become one with nature. No traffic. No lines. No sour faces. Can it get any better than that?

The girls loved to feed the ducks and had a great time wading in the water.

How gorgeous is this?!

Below is the view from our room... why don't we have a view like this at home?

The girls, like all children, could have played in the pool the entire time and been completely happy. Below is a picture of "Goggle Girl"....

Above you see Madison, the First Mate of our paddle boat. And our trip on the lake wouldn't have been the same without Captain Mike. Below is the Deck Hand, Ella. I was the photographer.... the reason I am never in any pictures.

And last, but not least, was roasting marshmallows over the open fire. It is very important to end a day by the lake with roasted marshmallows (and a few mosquito bites....)!