Spring Vacation {Virginia and Washington DC}

A few photos from our trip to Virginia and Washington DC. Spent 10 days with my parents and our friends Tasha and Steven. Amazing trip with such beautiful sites and moving historial places. Choosing just a handful of pictures was difficult, but I thought these summarized the get away.

Mt Vernon (George Washington's Home)

Shenandoah National Park

Saw all of the Washington DC monuments in one day.



Fun in Fredricksburg, VA



Gardens at Monticello (Thomas Jefferson's home)

Enjoyed shopping, cooking and eating dinner with our friends.

Took advantage of serendipitous moments like this outdoor carnival themed ice cream café.



And a dream come true for me...the Washington Cheery Tress in their peak blooming period.



 An unforgettable family vacation...

Blanco, Texas Lavender Festival

We love the Texas Hill Country and will find any excuse possible to visit the area. Every year in June, the town of Blanco hosts their Annual Lavender Festival. This is our second year to attend the event and it was a much needed get away for all of us. Marin and I experienced cutting lavender from the plant for the first time ever. She was especially excited about carrying the purple basket and using the scissors "all by herself." Adalyn was content to ride on Daddy's chest and sleep during most of our adventures in lavender fields. During our time at the festival we enjoyed lavender ice cream, lavender honey and sampled lavender margarita mix. A highlight of the festival was eating at the Redbud Cafe and listening to live music while there. Marin and Adalyn both enjoyed it. After the festival we spent three days with Steven's parents in their cabin near the Frio river. We all came back refreshed and relaxed.

Kayaking the Colorado River {Bastrop, Texas}

There are very few activities I find stress relieving. Kayaking is one of those...and I love it. Steven would probably laugh as this comment, because the first five minutes in the water I'm a wreck. "Don't come near me, I'll tip. Hey! Don't leave me behind I don't know where we are going. Why are you going so fast? We have all day!" After a good 10 minutes I slowly relax...the angry, anxious lady in the orange boat becomes calm and jovial.

I let the sounds sink in. I stop worrying that I'll tip and feel comfortable with my strokes. That's when it happens. I chill. Sunshine, the sound of water, a breeze. I forget about everything that has to be done at work and around the house. I don't worry about Marin and all the decisions that come with parenting. I just float or paddle. Slow or fast.
Last Saturday, Steven and I spent three hours on the Colorado River, near Bastrop, Texas. Yep, that's right a 26 week prego spent three hours in a kayak! Other than needing an extra large life vest and requesting a bit more help getting in and out of the kayak, I felt normal.

Thank you Steven, for a nice weekend away; and thank you mom and dad for keeping Marin. I needed that float.

Michigan In One Post {Hard To Do}

This is extremely delayed as the instant we set foot back in Texas we hit the ground running. The Pumpkin Carving Party was only 9 days away and we were scurrying to pull everything together. Sadly, blogging was minimal that week. Our trip to Michigan was beautiful. I've never seen such vibrant fall colors. And lighthouses! I'd never stepped foot in one let alone climb to the top of one to look out over the most beautiful lakes in the USA. The weather was COLD and my dreams of Mackinac were shattered by the flu, but persevere through the rough stuff, we did.

I'll only post a handful of pictures here, but you can view the fickr album from our trip here. Okay recap:

Thursday Oct 8 – Day 1Airport Houston to Chicago (Marin's first plane ride)
Airport Chicago to Flint (Just enough time to grab dinner and board)
Picked up rental car.
Spent the night at Sleep Inn. (comfy beds!)

Friday Oct 9 – Day 2Breakfast at Sonic. (Funny and so lame.)
Hit the road. Interstate 75 North out of Flint
Williams Cheese – Linwood, MI (Marin LOVED the cow and even posed for a picture!)
Tawas Point Lighthouse
North Bay Bed and Breakfast - Presque Isle, MI

Saturday Oct 10 – Day 3
Sunrise on Lake Huron
Old Presque Isle Lighthouse
New Presque Isle Lighthouse
Knaebe’s Apple Farm, Rogers City, MI (***** Five Stars. My favorite memory from the trip)
Mackinaw City – Arnold Ferry to the Island (The ferry ride was VERY rough. Big waves, lots of swells. Poor baby Marin cried and cried. She finally passed out. We are still debating if she literally passed out or just cried herself to sleep. I'm afraid that was our omen for Mackinaw island)
Mackinaw Island – Bogan Land Inn Bed and Breakfast


Sunday Oct 11 – Day 4Carriage Tour of Mackinaw Island (Arch Rock, East Bay View on Mackinaw)
The Flu...

Monday, Oct 12 – Day 5Leaving the Island – Mackinaw Bridge
Great Lakes Boat Building School - Cedarville, MI (Steven was in HOG HEAVEN. I think he could have stayed for their next nine month session.)
Soo Locks - Sault Ste. Marie, MI (Steven loved the engineering, Marin loved the leaves, I was just trying to stay warm!)
Scenic Drive Between Sault Ste. Marie and Tahquamenon Falls
Tahquamenon Falls (lower falls)
St. Ignace

Tuesday, Oct 13 – Day 6St. Ignace Hospital – Official Flu Diagnosis.
Tunnel of Trees Scenic Drive
Winery
Grand Traverse Lighthouse
The Cook’s House Restaurant - Traverse City (This tiny restaurant in hot, downtown Traverse city only seated 11-18 people. That meal was hands down the best meal we had in Michigan and was Marin's first white table cloth dinner. She did impressively well.)

Wednesday, Oct 14 – Day 7Northport
Leland
Sleeping Bear Dunes (*****another favorite stop)
Four hour drive from Frankfort to Flint.
Sleep Inn Hotel

Thursday, Oct 15 – Day 8
Airport – Flint to Chicago and Chicago to Houston
HOME!

ALASKA

Sorry for the delay in posting these pictures from Steven's trip. He came home a week ago today. So happy to have him back! As you can see Anchor point, Alaska is beautiful. The construction work went well; Steven had a chance to go kayaking and deep sea fishing and even brought back 70lbs of halibut plus mementos for me and Marin.

I hoped to have more to say, but last night was the first time I saw Steven for more than 12 hrs. He came home and went right back to work. Life has been a bit crazy for us lately!

He looks for property in Alaska most every day. We disagree about how often we'd be able to visit if we did own property there. I say five times in our entire life and Steven says five times a year!