2 Years!

Two years goes by fast. We have lived at 5 different addresses since we wed, and traveled many miles and seen many things. But we have seen how great our relationship is and how awesome it is to hang out with your best friend everyday!

Government Outing

Last week I headed with my Navy training class up to our nation's capital for an up close look at the alphabet agencies that help keep our country safe. It was a good networking tool for us when we get to the fleet, but was also a welcome change of pace from our cold, windowless classroom. We stayed at Bolling AFB, right on the Potomac. The trip was typical of many in government, poorly executed. We nearly left people in Virginia Beach and did not have enough transportation for everyone... But it worked out. I got to see Screech and Tall James as well. After a particularly long day, a few of us took a stroll around the Mall to see the sights. I had not seen the WWII memorial yet, so that was neat. The Pentagon was my favorite tour. We were led on a 9/11 tour of where the plane hit, which was particularly touching as a Navy work center was among the worst hit. The building is immense with well over 20,000 people working there each day. We left DC around 2pm to hit Hampton Roads just in time for summer rush hour... good idea!

Pat Robertson and Al Sharpton

Miss Bianca and Bernard

Ever since I watched the Rescuers as a little girl, I’ve always wanted to go boating through a swamp. I think that movie also encouraged me to want to adopt a child one day…I mean…who wouldn’t want a little Penny with pig tails? It’s amazing how influential movies are in children’s life…I mean…just watch Happy Feet. Doesn’t it make you want to save the penguins and save the earth? And the Lorax? Who doesn’t love the Lorax?

"I am the Lorax. I speak for the trees.
I speak for the trees, for the trees have no tongues.
And I'm asking you, sir, at the top if my lungs"-
he was very upset as he shouted and puffed-
"What's that THING you've made out of my Truffula tuft?"

(Mary…you HAVE to read this book!) Perhaps it’s because I grew up in California to be an environmentally conscious liberal, and their classroom agenda is to encourage us to be tree huggers! And I probably love adopting dogs because of Oliver & Company. Cartoons corrupted me! Anyways…the Rescuers was released in 1977, six years before I was even born, yet it is one of my favorite movies of all time. So last weekend, I finally had the chance to canoe through an awesome swamp! James and I drove down to Merchant Mills Pond in North Carolina (which is a little less than 40 miles from Virginia Beach) and enjoyed a few hours out on the water. The swamp was surreal, like something out of a movie. The peace and quiet was intense, and as you listen to the birds and the bugs, you can easily get lost in the eerie beauty of the moss and green water. The spiders in the canoe didn’t even bother me, and I enjoyed watching them scatter about the water lilies. We saw lots of sunbathing turtles, lots of bugs, majestic birds, some fish, and an adorable little red frog. There were signs for alligators, and I was hoping to see one, but unfortunately we didn’t cross paths. There is something really special about moss hanging off of a dead tree reflecting in a calm pond on a late spring day. We could have spent hours out there on the pond, but work beckoned us back to the suburbs. North America is a blessed continent geographically, and we are excited to leave one coastal plain to see mountains, Great Plains, desert, and a southwestern coastal new home!

GO WEST YOUNG MAN

"Go west young man, haven't you been told
California's full of whiskey, women and gold
Sleeping out all night beneath the desert stars
With a dream in my eye and a prayer...
In my heart"

Ever since I met Angela, she has always raved about how great the state of her birth is. We are just weeks away from heading to California, and we are getting excited. Other than finding a place to live and learning to navigate a new city, we have much to do here first. However, I am just glad to finally get to do some real work. Among the best aspects of being in the military is the ability to move often, between jobs and cities if you so choose. Getting paid to move across the country is awesome! We are planning to visit several national parks, including the Grand Canyon, the Painted Desert, Montezuma’s Castle, and steakhouse in Amarillo, TX. Yes, we are traveling through Texas again, but this time we are hitting up the pan-handle. We are excited about our route as I have rarely been out west and I have never ventured as far as California.

Virginia is for Wine Lovers

Wine is such an interesting industry; a unique combination of art and science, that either pleases or disgusts. The more I learn about wine, the more interested in it I become, and I really wish I hadn’t dropped that Wine class I was taking in college. James stayed in his Beer class, and he learned how to brew his own beer! I think I'll take a class in wine when I get a chance. Last year, we began the annual girls wine trip away in North Carolina’s Yadkin Valley, and we continued it this year in Charlottesville, Virginia! Charlottesville is the center of Virginia 's wine industry, so we thought it would be a great place to start. We had been planning this trip for weeks, and then when we went to get a hotel room, we realized it was UVA’s graduation weekend! What horrible planning! There was nothing available within an hour of Charlottesville, and the one hotel we did find about that far away was $300 a night! Thankfully, Grandpa and Grandma Gouger have a farmhouse in Louisa, which is only 30 minutes from Charlottesville, so not only did we get to enjoy a weekend of wine, but we also got to enjoy the farmhouse! And I absolutely love the farm! It is such an awesome treasure in our family, and I love being able to spend time there. The only problem was that the wineries were packed because of graduation, but we were still able to visit five. On the first day, we made it to three, and on the second day, we invite James to join us for the last two! We began at Jefferson's Winery (of course), and then headed to Oakencroft vineyard, until we ended up at Whitehall vineyards.

Precious Blooms!

Friendship and Flowers bring me such Joy!