Posted by Cindy on August 23, 2010
Norfolk, Virginia houses the largest US Naval Base in the world – and it’s huge! Just about everything in Norfolk seems to revolve around the navy including shipyard after shipyard similar to the picture above.
We only spent one afternoon in Norfolk, but easily could’ve stayed longer if we had the time. Our main purpose for visiting was to tour the USS Wisconsin.
Little did we know that our entry fee onto the ship also included an AMAZING hands-on naval history and ocean science center called The Nauticus!! (Can you see how the building is shaped like a ship?)
From a sneak-peak into the inner-workings of the USS Wisconsin…
and virtual war games…
to weather lab games…
and ocean animals…
to ocean exploration…
and classes to create your own motorized ROV…
this place was AWESOME! Well-worth the ticket price!
Next stop – Colonial Williamsburg.
Posted by Cindy on August 19, 2010
We took a MUCH needed and long awaited vacation to Virginia last week – and it was SO much fun! We soaked up a lot in seven days, so I’m going to post a short series of highlights over the next few posts.
First stop – Virginia Beach! This was the first trip to the ocean for Eli and a first for Caleb as far as memories go since he was very young the last time we visited the beach. They both fell in love, just like the rest of us already had been.
Taking trips with my husband is interesting, to say the least. He’s a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants sort of guy, which means we had no preplanned place to stay for any of the stops we made. That made finding a vacant and affordable hotel on a Sunday evening in VA Beach quite an adventure. After nearly two hours of searching, we settled in to the first floor beachside room of an older motel. It wasn’t the most lush of accommodations, but we had fun anyway. Below is the view from our little balcony. VA Beach has a wonderful boardwalk and biking area that run alongside the beach for three miles.
Speaking of the bikes. You can rent a family bike for only $20/hr. The kids begged to do this. Mistake – well, sort of. Even though four people peddle, it feels like you are peddling for four people all by yourself. We were so thankful when our one little hour was up! Riding was a nice way to see the entire length of the beach, though.
On to the beach pictures!
Caleb found three boogie boards in the trash during that first evening walk along the beach. All the boards were in decent shape and turned out to be the highlight of our time in the water!
Of course, wave jumping was almost as much fun as boogie boards (or booger boards as Eli called them.)
Eli loved playing in the sand!
Virginia Beach is very close to Norfolk, a US Naval Base. We were treated to ships and jets of all sorts during our short stay.
Cape Henry is the home to one active lighthouse and one retired lighthouse. We were going to tour them, but Eli was too short, so we just walked around the grounds instead.
Three days of vacation down in history (and we wish we were still there!) Next post: Norfolk, VA.
Posted by Cindy on August 4, 2010
I know I’ve been missing in action lately. Summertime is just too busy! So you don’t think I’ve fallen off the face of the earth, I thought I’d post a few scenes from our summer on the farm.
Wildflowers are bouquets from God! I can’t help but smile every time I see them.
(We don’t grow tobacco, but lease the land out – just in case you wondered.)
Hay season = our busiest season.
Even my oldest is in on the action this year.
Here is where I go for peace and to count my blessings.
I’ll be back before long, I think. I’ve been contemplating this blog over the summer and wondering what place it holds for the future. We’ll see.
