Sub Mariners!

While in Connecticut, we took a visit across the Thames to check out the US Navy’s submarine museum, adjacent to the Groton Sub base. We were pleasantly surprised at how nice and thorough the museum was. After checking out some exterior displays we wandered through new display galleries marking the history of the US submarine force. The highlight of the museum is the tour of the first nuclear powered sub, the Nautilus. Encased in glass within the Nautilus was a first printing of Jules Verne’s “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea,” hence the name. The greatest disappointment in the museum was the snub at Southern submarines. A “yankee” mini-sub, the Turtle was developed to combat the blockading British navy in the Revolutionary War outside New York. The timeline of sub history picks up after the American Civil War, apparently overlooking the CSS Hunley, which actually sunk a ship. I suppose the natives of Connecticut were still sensitive towards the Housatonic, sunk by the Hunley outside Charleston. We discovered a somber display on the USS Wahoo, which was sunk in 1942 apparently by its own torpedo.

New London, CT

New London, CT...home of the United States Coast Guard Academy and Cadet Anthony "FREAK" Burley, c/o 2010.

Mystic Pizza

I didn’t have to work the week of spring break, so James and I decided we would go visit Tony at the Coast Guard Academy! We hadn’t seen him there since we dropped him off for swab summer last July, and we didn’t know when we would get a chance to go and visit again, so we decided to go. It was only about an 11 hour drive, so we got there Saturday night in time for dinner. We ate at Mystic Pizza, a famous pizza joint where Julia Roberts filmed “Mystic Pizza.” The pizza was actually fabulous, and the restaurant is in a quaint whaling town that has been restored. It was very cute, and I would love to spend more time there during the day, especially at some of the galleries and boutiques. Tony was allowed to stay out until 1:00 am, so we went back and watched movies before we took him back to base. On Sunday morning we went to church on campus, which has an absolutely gorgeous chapel and listened to Tony sing in the choir. It’s funny at church, because you can tell which class is which by the way the cadets dress. First years have to wear their uniform at all times, which kind of look like pilots’ uniforms.
Second years can wear khakis and a coast guard academy polo, which Tony is very excited about, and Third and Fourth years can wear whatever they want to.

Glowstick Fun!

I am such a little kid, and love things that glow in the dark! James and I brought lots of glowsticks to play with for Sarah and Abigail’s birthday…and it was so much fun. We made balls and necklaces and bracelets, and played outside in the cold with them. Grandma Gouger made a “bling bling” necklace with three balls that was awesome, and even AJ had a glowing collar. I’m sure the people driving by that night thought something crazy was happening at the farm, which made us laugh! When we were done playing with them, we decorated the front porch so that everyone driving by would enjoy a nice scene!!

Virginians!

It is sooooo good to be back in Virginia!! This is where we were meant to be! We love the winter and all of the beauty it brings. James and I intend to enjoy every chance of it we get!!

Can you see me?

The Old Mill

For three years now, I’ve wanted to go to the old mill at the farm, but it was always the wrong season. You can only go in the winter, because the path is too over grown in the spring, summer, and fall, and last time they went during the spring, Abigail picked up a copper head. So…it’s safest to say the winter is the time to do it. We went on an awesome short hike through the woods to the creek. Branches kept hitting us in the head, and Colin wasn’t too impressed with the branches, but we made it! Abigail and Brent have this awesome baby carrier for him… I think we are going to get a doggy one, because AJ was super tired out by the time we got back. The mill is from the late 1700s, and probably went out of commission in the 1830s. Some of the maps show the mill and some of them don’t, so there is some conflicting data as the size, purpose, and age of the mill. The ruins are really neat though! I enjoy being around ruins, because it makes you think about the past so much, and how awesome it is something could survive for hundreds of years! We got some awesome pictures while we were there…we only had seven digital cameras!! :-) We looked for the wheel, but couldn’t find it, although it has been seen before. >We think the hole was filled up, and we couldn’t differentiate between the wheel and the rest of the rocks. We followed the creek down to the old dam, which was also very neat!

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-AJ

Bling Bling!

When we managed to slide our way to the falls, a breathtaking scene was found. 20 foot icicles descended from the cavern walls while a mountainous mound of ice and snow had replaced the loud waterfall. The scene was very quiet, as we were used to hearing the gushing of water. The pond was sturdy enough to walk on, so we got a close look at the waterfall. Several families had come, and some ice climbers. One family was allowing their kids to knock the icicles down, so we got away from them fast. After taking hundreds of pictures, we were getting cold and headed back. We hope these pictures do the waterfall justice, as the falls were amazing!

Forced Sledders

Due to the ice, on several steep parts of the trail we had to slide on our butts. We learned to watch a few hikers in front of us as to the more slick parts. On the way back to the car from the falls, Krusty managed to slide into a hiker we didn’t know! One couple near us was funny in that one of them fell every few feet and was covered in snow while the other was perfectly steady on the ice!

Snow Hike!

Given our move to a more winter friendly climate, we decided the time was right to go check out the Cascades, a 100 foot waterfall in Giles County. After a few weeks of frigid temperatures, we were sure they were frozen over. Angela and I had visited the falls three years ago in the winter and were excited about going again. We enlisted Sam, Elise, and Krusty (Menchville alum!) and headed out 460. AJ had to sit this one out, as it was a long hike. We found the trail and plunged into a snow filled wood. Fresh flakes were falling as we quickly found a layer of ice hidden by the fresh snow.

Mmmm……Homeplace!

There is nothing quite like the Homeplace to get you excited about eating! I mean…I’ll be excited for a whole week about going…and its quite a trip. It’s an hour drive there on back roads and usually another hour wait after you get there. But, then you get the food, and you are like…heck yes! The Wyse’s came to Virginia Tech to visit Jennifer and because Aunt Derrita was visiting. Emily came up from Ferrum with her friend Latisha, and we all went to the Homeplace! The wait was a little longer than usual, but this time there was this amazing old couple who entertained us!! They sang gospel songs and old country, and we made requests the whole time. It was their ministry, and I thought it was super sweet. As we were waiting, Jen, James, and Jay (ha! It would be the three J’s) began reading the confederate books they were selling. These books were crazy! The covers were confederate flags, and all of the books were written with deep southern sympathies. The most outrageous one described why black people were lazy and ignorant in general. I couldn’t believe it! If the books hadn’t been 30 dollars, we would have bought one just so people could believe it!! After the wait, we enjoyed an amazing home cooked meal of fried chicken, roast beef, mash potatoes, veggies, cobbler, and coffee. It was soooo good! 

War Memorial

We thought this was a good picture of the marble War Memorial. Only West Point and Navy have more medal of honor winners!

Lunch with Wifey

Angela and I have been enjoying the chance to eat lunch together until I leave, and given the snow I took the liberty of catching some great scenes of campus with snow. We usually eat in Squires overlooking College Avenue and enjoy watching undergrads get in and out of cars. Angela really wants to work with freshmen one day, as she likes how unique and naive they are! Don't we all wish we could be freshmen again?

Snow!

We received a nice blanket of snow last week, which has stuck around due to the frigid temperatures. With 4-5 inches on the ground, AJ has had a difficult time walking and sniffing out grass, which is funny to see. Angela was hoping to get out of work for a day to play in the snow, but Tech doesn't shut down for just a few inches. Also, Angela's car had a flat and we had to dig it out of a foot of snow (due to plows) to get it to the shop! This is the view from the front door the morning afternoon, pretty nice!

Doggie Amusement

AJ has provided all in the townhouse with hours of fun, once we got him to stop peeing in fear of Bic... recently he has managed to get himself stuck under the couch!

My Pink Bear!

If you have never been to Build-A-Bear, it is quite an experience!! There are lots of animal bodies, none of them with stuffing, and then a complete boutique of clothing and accessories. I went to the mall with my Mom and Mrs. Linda to build bears, which is so much fun! This was my second build a bear animal, but my first one, an adorable flamingo named Sparkles, was displaced in the move to Waco. I picked out a very sweet pink teddy bear who reminds me of a care bear, with a white heart on her tummy. My mom picked out a little white maltipoo that looked like Lizzie, and Mrs. Linda picked out a little brown dog with a spot. Then we had to have them stuffed and give them a heart, which is very involved and includes a heart ceremony. You have to do all sorts of random stuff like rub the heart on your head, spin around in circles, give the heart a kiss, etc. Then comes the really fun part of picking out accessories! I picked out fun pink sunglasses with rhinestones, my mom picked out a cute little shirt with flower ear clips, and Mrs. Linda picked out boxers!! The only bad part about making bears is that you have to carry this huge box around the mall afterwards, and it gets in the way!

Back from Iraq!

My dad came home for Iraq unexpectedly, and James and I were able to go home and visit him and my mom!! He was having surgery done on his face due to a skin cancer growth, and although it was benign, because it was on his face, they decided to send him home to have it taken care of. He flew through Germany, where he stayed for a few days, and was given things to feel at home by an organization out of Roanoke! Operation First Response, http://www.operationfirstresponse.org/, provides backpacks with the comforts of home, including hygiene things, underwear, and a homemade quilt.

It was great seeing my dad, but sad that it had to be under these circumstances. I tried on his armor, as he had to travel with it, and it was SUPER heavy! I could hardly breathe in it…let alone wear it for more than 5 minutes! But….if it stops bullets then it is worth it!


He brought back some really cool Persian rugs as well.
They are red, white, and blue, to match our house, and they look amazing! We had to rearrange the house trying to figure out where they looked best, and we ended up finding the perfect spot for them. AJ loved the rugs, and he would jump on them when we were trying to roll them out. The rugs are REALLY cool! You can’t buy that quality in the US!  We also enjoyed some good meals, talked, went shopping, and just hung out while he was home. It was great seeing him! We can’t wait until he is home for real!!!

Home Sweet Home!

Our new place is wonderful! We are renting out a room from our friend Bic in a townhouse very close to campus, right behind one of my favorite restaurants, Macados. Our room is so comfortable and fun, and I feel so much safer living here than I ever did in Waco. AJ likes the room, because he can sit on the bed and look out the window and bark at the cars coming in and out of the parking lot. We have a gorgeous view of the mountains, and we can watch AJ playing in the back yard from our room. Our roommates, Bic and Titus, have been great! We enjoy roommate dinners, American Idol (which I had never watched before…but am loving!) and 24. I had also never watched 24 before, which is SUPER addicting. James and I bought season one, and have been watching it, as well as watching season 6 with the town house! It has been such a sweet change from a bad situation, and we are so happy to have made the choice we did.

Do you have an appointment?

The New Year brought good news as Angela was offered a job at Virginia Tech in the University Studies Department. We put a lot of faith coming back to Virginia without jobs, but the Lord always provides! I have an awesome job as the Administrative Assistant in University Studies, where I am basically the receptionist and the little projects person. I answer the phones, schedule appointments, sign people in, work with students changing majors, and do the dean’s list, plus whatever else the office needs done at the time. I love it because the office caters to freshmen and sophomore students who have not declared a major, which are the students I love working with…especially freshmen! They are so fun, because they are growing so much during that year, and you can have such a huge impact helping the student, as they are trying to define who they are!!  I think I want to work with freshmen for a very long time. I love everyone in the office, and I have been learning a great deal, so I am very excited!