So much to say

And so little time to say it. Tomorrow we leave for our big Colorado road trip adventure. Not only have I not finished updating from when my family was here, but we also had a birthday and a visit from the Greenbergs/Rachie/Hannah, who just left this morning. There is no way I can get it all together before I leave, and I won't be able to blog on the road, so here are a couple of pictures to hold you over until we get back.

Annapolis

You gotta hand it to those cleaning ladies. They were quick with the sending-back-the battery business.

The first day after everyone arrived, we went into Annapolis, Maryland. Annapolis is right on a pier and is known for their KILLER seafood. We went to a restaurant called Mike's, which is right on the water. There was even a dock where people would come up in their boats, tie up, and come in for dinner. It was serious business.

 While we were waiting for our food to come, we wandered over to look at the ducks bobbing in the water. I got some super cute pictures of the kids. Seriously, they don't come any cuter than this.

 

The girls with Nana.

 Erik and Wayne ordered some insane poundage of whole crabs. I can't remember how many there were total, but it was a lot.

 After lunch, we headed over to the Naval Academy. It was graduation weekend and Memorial Day Weekend, so it was busy. The Academy's grounds were just insane. Here is a picture of the dorms. Yep, the dorms. I never even dreamed of living in a place like this when I was in college.

 The inside of the building definitely lived up to the exterior. We gained a greater sense of dedication that the Navy servicemen (and women) have for our country, which was a nice way to spend Memorial Day.

 We walked from the Naval Academy into downtown Annapolis, and saw some crazy yachts and tons of different sorts of boats. This is a picture of Middleton Tavern, which has been around since George Washington's time. In fact, they claim to be one of his favorites. We're totally going to eat there next time.

Downtown Annapolis is full of really old buildings, so it was fun just to look around. But we weren't walking around aimlessly: we had a destination in mind.

 

Have any of you ever seen Man vs. Food on the Travel Channel? Erik and I love to torture ourselves late at night by watching food shows and wishing we had some goodness of our own. We saw that this was in Annapolis, so we went to check it out. If any of you are familiar with that particular show, the host takes on insane eating challenges. At this place he attempted to take down a 6 pound milkshake. We were tempted to order it and share it with the whole table, but opted for the smaller one instead. Erik got somewhat crazy and ordered the pound burger. I had the house specialty, corned beef and coleslaw on rye. It was delicious.

 

As if we didn't eat enough through the day, we all saw a chocolate shop as we walked back to the car and everyone got treats. The had caramel apples with peanuts (my major weakness), and the girls all got candies.

We spent the whole day in Annapolis and didn't even begin to see all that we wanted to, but it's close to us and we can't wait to go back and visit again.

Williamsburg Ghost Tour

Still no battery, but I do have one more adventure from the pictures on my mom's camera. Our first night in Williamsburg we decided to take the ghost tour. We researched it a little online first, and decided it would be kind of cool.

 

Our tour started out at William and Mary. It's the second oldest university in the country. Can you name the first? (I couldn't - but Erik did). There were a few spooky stories about the older buildings built in the 1700s. Still, everyone was feeling pretty confident. It was still light out.

But as soon as it started to get dark.....

OK, now from this point on, I need to tell you a little about "orbs." At the beginning of the tour, the guide told us to take a lot of pictures because there were "energies" that couldn't be seen with the naked eye. These energies are "orbs." There's a lot of hoopla going around about this stuff. Some people say it's paranormal - others say that it's just lens imperfections or the flash reflecting off of things like pollen. I don't believe in ghosts. BUT...All I know is that there were places with the "orbs," and there were places without the "orbs." You can decide for yourself. It doesn't look like pollen to me.

 

Considered the most "haunted house" in the tour. Several people died or committed suicide here, all in the same room.

 Church steeple.

 The cemetery next to the church.

 I had to take a picture of my Grandma because she was whining the whole time about how orbs aren't real. She has quite a few floating around her.

Sorry about the quality of the pictures - I am definitely not a great "nighttime" photographer. The tour was totally fun, but definitely not too scary. There were some interesting historical stories, but I never felt nervous or spooked. If you're interested in reading more about the tour and sightings, click here. It's pretty fascinating - lots of others have posted their pictures of the tour.

P.S. The oldest school in the country is Harvard (in case you are like me and didn't know).

Monticello

"I cannot live without books."

~Thomas Jefferson

We have been busy! I have been waiting and waiting for my family to take their trip out to see us, and the day finally came! I have lots of pictures to share, but they are going to be a little out of order, since, well, I left my camera battery and charger in the hotel room and didn't realize it until we were far, far away. Sigh. But, I snagged my mom's camera and took a bunch of good pictures during the rest of our adventures. One of the stops we made during our whirlwind American history tour was Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson. I've been to Mount Vernon several times (George Washington's home) and this was so, so different. Thomas Jefferson was quite a brilliant man, and the house was full of his own inventions and a lot of his original belongings, which I thought was pretty cool.

 First we hopped aboard a shuttle and drove up to the top of the mountain that Monticello sits on.

 Next, into the house we went. This is the front of the house...

 When you walk into the foyer, there are all sorts of artifacts that were sent to Jefferson from Lewis and Clark. Shortly after the tour guide walked in and told us that there were no photos allowed inside the mansion. Phew, I got one just in time without being caught.

 The view was phenomenal. I can see why Jefferson chose this spot from the 3,000 acres he owned. It couldn't have been very convenient, though.

 Tons of beautiful flowers.

 Here is the mansion from the back. Pret-ty nice.

 We wish our yard was as awesome as Thomas Jefferson's.

 We could fly high in the sky every single day.

 Again and again and again.

 

 This picture cracks me up every time. Number one, Eliza looks like she is posing for an old-fashioned portrait; number two, her glasses are too small.

  

 Our little family.

 

 Check out this creepy tree. Do you see the eyeball?

 After dinner we went out for some "colonial fare" at the local tavern, called Mitchies. All of the people were dressed in colonial costumes. The food was typical of the time, from beets and black-eyed peas, to biscuits and peach cobbler. I had a colonial diet coke. I had to take this pic with my phone, which is why it's all dark and blurry.

Monticello was really fun. We got to know a lot more about Thomas Jefferson as a man, and the drive from Williamsburg up to Monticello and then from Monticello back home was so beautiful. If you have a chance, go. 

Hopefully the housekeeping ladies at the Embassy Suites will get their buns in gear and send me my battery soon, and then I can post some more pictures. Coming up: Annapolis, Williamsburg, Jamestown, and Yorktown. I know you're excited.