Williamsburg, VA

Later the same evening, we found ourselves in Colonial Williamsburg- the old part of town! This is just a very cool inn that you can stay at. I thought it was beautiful and captured well the colonial architecture we were surrounded by.

Here's Jim in the front lawn in front of the Governor's Mansion.

The Capitol Building before it moved to Richmond.

It was later turned into a girls' boarding school which explains a story we learned about on our "Ghost Walk" of the city that evening. WooOOooo! The story goes that one of the tour guides heard giggles and running feet as he was leading a group through. He wasn't too scared since he could tell the little girl was playful and liked him. She followed him around every evening as he had to lock up and shut all the interior doors at night. But there were times when other tour guides took groups through that she would be really naughty and make tons of noise upstairs. Nobody knew what it was until the news got to the one guy and he said, "I know just what to do." So he went upstairs and into the darkness said, basically, "I don't mind that you follow me around in here. In fact, I like the company. But if you keep acting like that we can't be friends anymore." And it never happened again! Kinda cute.

But this isn't very cute. Two criminals, right where they should be.

Jamestown & Yorktown VA

Jim and I just got back from Colonial Williamsburg, where we spent the weekend celebrating our 5th anniversary. Here is the first installment of what we experienced...Our first stop was Jamestown- the first settlement in our country (1609), named for King James.

This is where the fort wall stood according to the excavations. They are still excavating on the other side of the wall. We got to watch them with their shovels and sifting machines...but no big finds while we were there.
Here is where the very first church in our country stood. The "Memorial Church". This is the 3rd rebuilding (sometime in the 1800's) as fires claimed the first two. You can look down through the glass on the floor and see the original foundation. There was a very cool spirit within the walls.
Here's James in Jamestown
Jamestown monument

That same day we also visited Yorktown, but the only photo we got of that was of the Victory Monument. Does anyone know the history of Yorktown? Well, I will enlighten you in a nutshell. It's where the French and American troops under the direction of George Washington defeated the British in a key Battle of the Revolutionary War. Other key names include Rochambeau, Cornwallis, and Lafayette.

It was all very fascinating and a good walk. Later that day we played around a little at a Go Kart place. Here's Jim getting ready to go!

Of course I won. (the first race, least!)

Wedding in Walnut Creek

My cousin Chad has known his fiance' for 6 years, and they finally tied the knot! It took place in the gardens in Walnut Creek, CA- very beautiful. The groom and all the groomsmen wore kilts. How cool is that? Chad wore the family plaid of the Cameron's. Here's the procession:
Mother of the groom
Ring Bearer and Flower girl
Father of the Bride & Bride (Heather)
Groomsmen & couple
As you can see, it was a lovely day and a lovely place to have a wedding. Afterwards we all participated in family/wedding photos. Here's naughty Elena escaping into the brush. "How do you catch a cloud and pin it down? How do you keep a wave upon the sand?"
Gotcha!
All of the counsins on my mom's side made it, save two. Not a bad percentage! 15 total on that side. I won't even begin to count on my dad's side...well, just for giggles...18 still living + 4 step-cousins. We're everywhere! Anyway, back to the wedding. In the gardens there was a clubhouse where the reception and dinner was held. Everyone cheered as the wedding party was announced, this time as Mr. & Mrs., Elena thought they were all cheering for her. "Yay, Awaina!, Yay!" She said, clapping her hands with glee. What a corker! It was a fun time, with a good buffet and drinks of the bubbly sort, for those who wanted such. Lots of dancing and music. Which was a lucky thing to have, since the DJ they had booked died in surgery the day before the wedding. Not good! So they got a guy finally who was available. I'm sure nothing short of a miracle and a relief to the bride and groom. Here are some of us at the tables:
Wedding party
Mom, Elena & cousins
Lauren my sis & Jackson

Dan my bro & cousins
That's enough for now. I have much more to come!

Playing in Pacifica

We're back! From June 25th to the 29th, Elena and I were in California for my cousin Chad's wedding. We flew out and stayed the first night with my aunt in Pacifica. We had all day on thursday, as my parents and siblings wouldn't get into town until that evening. My Aunt Susan generously left us with a car, gps and carseat while she went to work. So, with time to kill, we headed to the beach! Which actually was not far at all from my aunt's house on the hill. Here's the view from the back of the house:



The front of the house faces the hill. So, we played a bit on the chilly beach. It was probably 60 degrees, but the water had to be ten degrees colder than that. Brrr! I let Elena run around in the sand like she had seen all the time on her little tv shows. But she got scared of the chilly water as it came up and got her out of no where. She kept wanting me to carry her. Poor thing! So we back away from the waves a ways and found an old plastc shovel, and then the fun began! Here are some pics. Gorgeous beach! It's usually overcast here, but the sky is even darker because of all the wildfires. Craziness!



Later on that day we went to the San Francisco Zoo, and a playpark with my cousin Erin and her kids. Aunt Susan joined us for a picnic lunch at the playpark. KFC, baby! The funniest thing happened there. Elena was just running around all the fun things to her heart's content, when I looked over and a gaggle of 5 or so kids had started following her around. They varied in age, the oldest maybe 8 or 10 years old, but they just thought she was the funnest little toy in the whole place! They were helping her get on the big kid toys and just following her around, and she didn't mind a bit! It was the cutest thing. Like she was the pied piper, or something. My camera had died, otherwise I would have gotten a shot of it. So funny. I'll post more about the wedding later!

Good Eatin'!

I just wanted to share a yummy peanut butter bread recipe that I tried the other day. It's quite delicious. The best is putting grape jelly on it when it's hot out of the oven, or after toasting it later. Mmmmm! Here it is:

2 Cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup sugar

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

1 egg

1 cup milk

3/4 cup peanut butter*

Grape jelly, optional



In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add egg, milk and peanut butter; stir just until combined. Pour into a greased 8x4x2 inch loaf pan. Bake at 350 Degrees for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack. Serve with jelly if desired. Yield: 1 loaf. *Note: Reduced fat or generic brands of peanut butter are not recommended for this recipe.



It was yum to our tums!



And here's a pic of Elena being cute. One of my regular 35mm film shots...

Addendum

As an addition to the last double-bath post, here are some more bathing beauties. Nothing like passing time on a hot day than splashing around outside! And it's free!

Baffy Time!

So, it being Father's Day, mommy got to give the baths. And for the first time we did a two-in-one! Yep, Elena and Aaron had their first "baffy" together, or as Elena calls it "splasha-splasha". They did pretty well, except for Elena shrieking too much out of excitement and making Aaron cry a bit. (Too loud!) But they are a pretty cute pair! And even more cuddly when squeaky clean!



Daddy got breakfast in bed today, after being allowed to sleep in (the kids actually slept in!): Waffles with fresh fruit, and cottage cheese and fruity jell-o and juice! Daddy was happy. He also got the third season of Scooby-doo on DVD- a household favorite! Many of you may not know this, but Elena's room since an infant has been scooby-doo themed. Maybe I'll post some pics of her decor sometime...Oh, and we can't forget the handmade and self-signed card from Elena that she made in nursery! What a good Father's Day we've had. All thanks to a great Daddy. Couldn't ask for a better Father for my kids!

Dress-ups!

So, I love to go 'yard sale'-ing on the saturdays that I don't work. I went out this morning (early since it was already 80 degrees already by 9 am) with my mother in-law, and we had a great time finding lots of fun goodies for a great price. Among the treasures found were some scarves and new toys. Elena decided she wanted to wear ALL of it!

I love this one of her- in her sports car, a scarf over her hair and sunglasses- like the true diva she is. Ready to go for a drive!

Day to Day

Better weather is here! Last thursday we decided to finally get out of the house and enjoy the beautiful creations around us in our community. We walked the 2+ miles around the lake with some friends, and we didn't realize what we got ourselves into! It's a very hilly trail, and I estimate that pushing the double stroller is equivalent to pushing nearly 100 pounds (on wheels). So I got a good workout! It was a warm day too. Needless to say, we had to go to Rita's Italian Ice to refresh ourselves with a fat free Mango Ice. Yum!

Yesterday we went out to lunch with all the extended family in the area- to the Olive Garden. I was a good girl and ordered the apricot grilled chicken with steamed vegetables. Very tasty, actually. (I'm trying to look good for my trip next month to my cousin's wedding in California.) Elena loves sour things- especially if it's citrus. I tried to capture the look she gets- so funny!

Elena and Aaron also got their own little table next to ours in the kitchen. (Thanks to Freecycle!) They were pretty excited. What a cute pair!

Mommy to the Rescue

Well, I've been trying to upload a video of Aaron rolling over for several weeks now, but I think our internet connection is too slow. And in the meantime, he's started to do the army crawl. And he's going fast! So, I decided just to forget the video, since it's been forever that I've had a new post! Here are a couple of dirty, impish faces. Full of mischief, these two.

Funny story. Last week I was frantically searching the house for my keys so I could go Visiting Teaching. Couldn't find them anywhere in the house, so I went outside to check the car. Well, while I was outside Elena said "Bye, Bye Mommy!" and shut the front door. I didn't even notice in my haste, and as I was realizing the keys were not in my purse- which was in the trunk- I went back to try to get inside. Pulling open the screen door suctioned the front door all the way closed. Nooooo! Realizing it was now locked I tried kicking it. Pretty sturdy door, so it didn't budge. I went around the back of the house to look at them through the sliding glass window, which was also secure. Dangit! But I could see both of them looking at me and beginning to panic. Help! Long story short, I went to the back door by the utility room and ended up kicking it in. I felt like Dog the Bounty Hunter! As splinters of wood fly I run back upstairs to the living room to two bawling children and shout "Peek-A-Boo!" Yay! Everyone was happy again. It was just a game! Man, oh, man.

Lessons learned: #1)Always leave the front door unlocked if going outside #2)Leave a spare key somewhere outside #3)Slow down & think! Now we have to replace the back door frame- might as well get a new door too! Expensive mistake. Oh, well- I can only laugh about it now.

I wish the weather would make up its mind. Summer, here we come!