Olivia is Eight Months Old!

Discovering grass,getting into grown-up things,but scared of grown-up things,fascinated by dogs,and food,sometimes bored,sometimes silly,sometimes very focused,and almost always happy.There's a story behind this last picture. Olivia was having a hard time getting herself back to sleep at night because she kept losing her binky in the corner of her crib or underneath her blankets. Daniel thought a good solution would be to put two binkies in her crib each night. Bad idea! Soon, Olivia was unable to get to sleep without the second binky in her hand. We had a few rough nights weaning her of that second binky.

Colonial Virginia: September 19

On Saturday, we drove down to Southeastern Virginia to see some of the historic sites.

We started in Colonial Williamsburg, which was once the capital of Virginia. Actors make it seem like you're walking through the eighteenth century.



Since we didn't pay the entrance fee ($35/person), we couldn't take tours of any of the buildings. But for free, we were still able to walk around town and enjoy the beautiful landmarks.

We found the ultimate climbing tree.
For lunch, we ate a local tavern. The waiters and dishes seemed to be right out of the 1700s.
And the old-fashioned high chair was pretty cute too.
Olivia enjoyed spending the day outside.

After Williamsburg, we drove down to Yorktown.
Yorktown is the site of the British surrender at the end of the Revolutionary War in 1781. A huge monument is dedicated to General George Washington and his army for gaining America its independence.
Yorktown gives a great view out into the Chesapeake Bay.
Our last stop of the day was at Jamestown, the site of the first permanent British settlement in North America. In 1607, the British arrived at Jamestown island.One of the most famous people from that time period is Pocahontas, the daughter of Chief Powhatan, who married Englishman John Rolfe. I've always been told by my parents that I am a descendant of Pocahontas, which would make Olivia a descendant too.
Even after all the driving and walking around, Olivia still had a smile on her face at the end of the day! But that could have had something to do with her new sunglasses. :)

Grandma Comes to Washington: September 9-12

With my youngest sister, Sharesa, moving out of the house to start her first year of college, my mom is a new "empty nester." While there are some lonely days, there are also some new perks. When my dad found out he needed to go on a last-minute business trip, my mom decided she needed to go on a last-minute trip to see her granddaughter Olivia. (She says she was coming to see me too, but I know the truth.) It took Olivia a few minutes of studying my mom to make sure this was for real, but then it was four days of smiles from there.

On Thursday, we took a tour of the Capitol.
This is the ceiling of the Capitol dome. It is a beautiful building.
Among many other interesting things, we saw where Abraham Lincoln used to sit as a congressman.
We saw the Supreme Court of the United States. (Or as Daniel and his legal buddies call it, SCOTUS.)
On Friday, we took a tour of Mount Vernon, George Washington's estate. When we saw that there was a $15 entrance fee per person, we thought about going home. But it ended up being the highlight of the trip. I have a new hero and only wish there were more people in America today like George Washington.
We visited the burial place of George and his wife Martha. George Washington chose to be buried here rather than in the middle of the Capitol where American political leaders had reserved a place for his tomb. After visiting Mount Vernon, it is easy to see why he would want to be buried there. Mount Vernon was where his family and his heart was. His tomb commemorates him as a real person, not just as a political and military leader.
On Saturday, Daniel joined us for a trip to the national monuments and memorials. The Lincoln Memorial is in the background, just behind the World War II Memorial.
From the other end of the Mall, from the same steps where Martin Luther King, Jr., made his famous address, we got a nice view of the Washington Monument and the Capitol.
Mr. Abe Lincoln sitting in his memorial. He was good about posing for our picture.
The Vietnam War Memorial. The wall lists the names of every American who died in the war. So sad.
Just before we left downtown Washington, D.C., to take my mom to the airport, we saw something that confirmed that we were really lucky to have her come out and spend time with us. I have only seen a black squirrel twice in my life and every time it has been accompanied by good luck.
On our way back to the car, we passed a pond full of noisy ducks. They are so lucky Olivia doesn't know how to walk yet. For now, she'll just have to stick with her rubber ducky.
Mom, thanks for coming to visit! And to the rest of you: come soon!

Just Like Her Uncle Adam

The other night, I woke up in the middle of the night and went in to check on Olivia. This is the position she was sleeping in.
Immediately, I thought of Adam (my younger brother) who often used to sleep with his bum in the air.

But I guess if we're comparing Olivia with Adam, then we need to throw in some cute pictures too, since Adam really was a very cute kid.

Harpers Ferry and Antietam Battlefield: August 29

For our second weekend on the east coast, we decided to head to West Virginia to go camping. We left right after I finished work on Friday, August 28, and it took us about 2 hours to get to the KOA camp in West Virginia.

On Saturday, we spent the morning at Antietam Battlefield (near Sharpsburg, Maryland). It was sobering to see the fields where thousands of Civil War troops killed each other on September 17, 1862. As you'll recall from your junior year of high school, that day was the bloodiest one-day battle in the history of America's military.

At Bloody Lane, 10,000 Union troops spent three hours trying to break through a line held by only 2,200 Confederate troops. One observer wrote about this part of the battle: "They were lying in rows like the ties of a railroad, in heaps like cordwood mingled with the splintered and shattered fence rails. Words are inadequate to portray the scene."
The cannons at Antietam are in the same positions they were in during the battle.
In the afternoon, we went to Harpers Ferry. (And no, there is not an apostrophe in Harpers, even though it's named after a guy named Robert Harper.)
At Harpers Ferry, the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers meet. Here, the Potomac river flows from the bottom of the picture, the Shenandoah flows from the right of the picture, and the resulting river (still the Potomac) flows off to the left.
During the 1850s, Harpers Ferry was a bustling merchant town. In 1859, John Brown attempted the raid of a local armory to advance the abolitionist cause. Though his raid failed and Brown was executed, the incident focused the nation on the moral issue of slavery and pushed the nation closer to civil war.
Today, Harpers Ferry is basically just a tourist stop, with many of the old stores preserved as museums.
Harpers Ferry is also a great place to get a cold treat on a hot day. Olivia enjoyed the flavored ice we gave her.
All in all, it was a fun trip, and we hope to continue taking advantage of having a car out here on the east coast.