Stickball

Now I have played wiffleball and softball. Heck I watch baseball. Not all that often, but I do watch it once in a while. But today was the first time I'd ever played stickball. I'm a girl! Come on it's not like I went out and played ball all that often. The hubby and I went to Montross to play stickball with a friend in a field. If you're rolling your eyes you just don't know how to have good wholesome fun! Both of the boys had played before and seemed to enjoy themselves. I had fun too. We really needed more people to get a decent game going, but they did about five innings out of it. Pretty good considering the humidity.

For those of you as uninformed as I was, stickball is played with tennis balls and wooden bats. And, of course, gloves. There were only three of us so we had a bucket of tennis balls. While one person batted, another pitched. The third person was in the outfield. I was the outfield. I didn't mind, because truly I suck while at bat. It was hot as all get out even though it was only supposed to be in the eighties. There are other rules and such that go with the game, but you get the gist.

The pictures aren't of the best quality, because I took them with my camera phone while I was out in the field and was hoping the boys wouldn't notice me. We met up around three and left around five. Stopping for waters once and beers at the end. I was smart enough to bring both. The other thing that the boys did that I thought was kind of neat, but beyond my knowledge of baseball was call out old players from their favorite team as they went to bat. The hubby chose the Cardinals and Phil chose the Yankees.

Escape of the Inner Child

On August 23rd I witnessed a transformation come over the hubby. Upon arriving at the Washington National Air and Space Museum my 31 year old husband became as excited as a 5 year old on Christmas morning. It was a sight to behold.

I’ve always known his fascination with planes, but I didn’t realize that doing this would make him so happy. Nor did I realize how much he loved the F-4U Corsair. I dubbed it the Corsair Affair after realizing how many pictures he’d taken of the thing. I even had to tell him to stop after catching him snapping a picture of the same plane for something like the third or fourth time. Man did our digital camera ever get the workout. We killed the battery. I actually ended up purchased a small model of the plane for him.

All in all this museum is well set up, but not very well lit. We got to see a Tomcat, the Enola Gay, a concorde and the space shuttle Enterprise. Which I found quite interesting. It’s kind of sad to find out that some of the planes are the last of their kind. Especially when they humanize them by giving them a name like George or Irving. We even did one of the IMAX movies. Not what we were hoping for and a bit Disney if you ask me. Oh well! What was supposed to be maybe two hours ended up being around five hours. All in all it was a fun day.

And no day is complete without having at least one, maybe two goofy pictures.

Amusement Park Comparisons

The hubby and I went to Bush Gardens Europe yesterday in Williamsburg. They have a 'Here's To Our Heroes' offer every year where they give free tickets to military and their dependents. Which I think is very nice. So we decided to take advantage of said offer.

We enjoy this park because it's clean, well laid out and has some good places to eat. They also have shows to see. They also have a beer presentation where you sample four beers. Plus they have beer to drink in the park. Bonus! But if you get a ticket out of your own pocket it may not feel so great. Ticket price for a single day is about $55. Ouch!

Paramount King's Dominion is another park that we have been to. It may not have as many shows, as fantastic of variety of food or the beer, but it does have more roller coasters and a water park. While the ticket price for two days is $52. Sweet!

Hmmm. I think Bush Gardens needs to rethink themselves if they hope to get repeat users with the military. Most enlisted families can't afford multiple trips to Bush Gardens, but King's Dominion might be more doable.

Screw You Sprint

Finally the hubby and I had enough of Sprint's crappy service. As in no coverage in our area at times and poor customer service. So we finally wised up and moved on to AT&T. The good news is that most of our family already has that network so our minutes will not be counted against the minutes we purchased. It rocks. There was only a minor problem with porting our numbers, but other than that we've had no problems. Unlike our other service where we constantly had trouble and couldn't even get service in our own home. Nextel was fine until Sprint took over. I'm sure they'll try to screw me for discontinuing my service, but it's so worth it. I can get service at my job now and everywhere else I go. And customer service has been so helpful.

Adventures of Kaiser Dawg

We took our dog with us to the Chancellorsville battlefield. He was so excited that finally his parents were taking him out that I thought he was going to take flight as fast as that tail was going. We were going on an adventure and he was so ready.

Needless to say Kaiser got plenty of treats when we finally got home.

Kaiser loves rides in the car. He's very patient too. Except for when mom gets out to run into Wal-mart for a few minutes. Guess he thought he should get to go too.

After the 3.6 mile walking tour though, Kaiser has decided that maybe this whole going out with the parents thing isn't so fantastic. He was whooped by the time we finished the walk. Then the poor baby had to suffer through a driving tour. He was so well behaved though.

14 Years

Today the hubby and I celebrate our 14th anniversary. There were a lot of people out there who didn't think that we would make it. So to all you doubters out there I blow a big raspberry your way.

I have nothing truly profound to say. I still love this man as much, if not more than I did the day I married him. Only God knows why. He drives me crazy at times and I'm sure he can say the same about me. Goodness knows we fight like cats and dogs some times. We've both gotten older and gained some weight, but there's no one else I would rather be with.

We chose to celebrate quietly. Not truly doing anything other than going out to dinner at Bonefish. And having champagne for a celebration toast. It was nice to just be together and do nothing especially after the really busy week we had last week. We drove home listening to songs from our iPod that meant something to us and not just the crap they have on the radio. Okay so we were a bit sentimental. We're allowed.

Plus he did get me a really bitchin' digital camera for our anniversary. He so rocks! What can I say? I'm pretty easy to please.

A Farewell To Friends

On August 11th our friends Derek and Sarah headed back for Illinois. Not before going with us to see Bourne Ultimatum. The movie was actaully pretty good if you could get over the crappy camera work. And I must admit I think I'm beginning to like Matt Damon as an actor. Please don't hate me as a person for that statement. But he's better than Ben Affleck. After that we hit Chipotle's for lunch and then headed to the Richmond area. Chipotle's seemed to be a reoccuring theme this week.



Of course we didn't go directly to the airport. Somehow we managed to squeeze in one more battlefield. This shouldn't have shocked me. But I did have to wonder. How the hell did we manage that? Well not an entire battlefield. Just a hill actually. We went to Malvern Hill which is where this picture was taken. I don't honestly know the significance and I didn't ask for fear of a lecture.

We thoroughly enjoyed the time with our friends. Once we got home we were exhausted. I can only imagine how Derek and Sarah felt since they had something like a two hour drive to get home once they landed. Plus their flight got delayed. Ugh! We actually went to bed early and slept for twelve hours. All that sun and constantly being on the go finally caught up with us. I think I'm getting old. Luckily the dog let us sleep. Wish I could say the same for the cat.

Another Bloody Battlefield

August 10th we headed out early to Sharpsburg, MD. Also known as Antietam for those of you from the North for a battlefield known as the bloodiest one day battle in America's history. We had to start out early due to the long drive, but I think it was worth it. Sarah and I both agree that it was the best of the battlefields that we have gone to this week. The park rangers were knowledgeable and passionate about the history. Ranger Jim Bailey gave us an excellent overview of the battle. You could tell that he really loved his job and wasn't just reading from a script, which was what it seemed like at the other battlefields. The weather was also on our side today. It was sunny, but not miserable. When you look out on Antietam you just shake your head in wonderment. Why would anyone want to battle here?


The sunken road and Burnside's bridge are my favorite areas. I know it may seem strange that I say things like that, but it's true. This is a battlefield that is well preserved. Things are still pretty much as they once were. In fact Sharpsburg is actually smaller now then it was during the battle. That's just something that boggles my mind. Jim snapped this picture of Sarah and I while we were walking the sunken road. That's the other thing I like the road is still sunken and you can sort of see how things might have been at the time. Another thing that intrigues me is looking down on Burnside's bridge. Charging that hill must have been daunting. It looks like suicide to me.


Another stop that we made was Harper's Ferry. Which really isn't all that far from Antietam. That in itself needs a day, but we decided to try and see a few things before we had to head back for the day. There's a point where you can stand and see the Potomac and Shennadoah Rivers meet as well as view three states, Virginia, Maryland and West Virginia. It's quite lovely. Another strange skirmish that occured here, but was an interesting sight. While we were walking along the trail we came across a doe and her two fawns. They seemed unimpressed by our presence and slowly meandered off. One fawn was so intent on grazing that she was totaly unaware of us. I felt the need to speak to her and let her know we were coming. I was probably within a little more than arms reach when she decided to scurry off. I mentioned to the hubby I thought I could have reached out and pet her but refrained for fear of startling her too much and pissing off momma. He said it would have been funny if she'd have kicked me. Now there's a supportive hubby.

How Did We Manage That?

August 9th was supposed to be a day of rest from the battle fields. We were supposed to go to Washington's birthplace, Lee's birthplace, the winery I work at, and do a brief visit at Fredericksburg battlefield. And possibly go downtown Fredericksburg to take in some of the history there. Stay out of the heat since it was to be a scorcher that day. That's not how it happened though.

We went to the Fredericksburg battlefield first. Don't get me wrong, it's interesting. But I think I've done this battlefield three times or more since we live near by. It should have only taken us an hour, maybe an hour and a half. But it took us much longer. Most of the day in fact. Now I will admit we did get a late start, but still. . . We also decided to do the driving tour. Which was nice since we got to be in the air conditioning. Note to self. Bring a book. Although we did stop for Chipotle's for lunch. Yum!

Once we finally got away from that we headed for the other activities that had been scheduled for the day, but due to time constraints we could only do two. We went to Washington's birthplace first. Something neither the hubby or I had done. We got there near the end of the day so the park ranger didn't even charge us. I thought that was really nice of him. It is a beautiful area. We were able to go to the location of where the house stood and stroll the grounds. Luckily we left just before the storm hit.

Luckily for us the winery that I work at is on summer hours and stays open until six. Well until Labor Day that is. So we were able to do a tasting. I got to see some people that I hadn't seen from work in a while. Which was nice, but also a bit distracting. Also found out which wines Sarah and Derek enjoy. Needless to say they have very good taste. They like the black label wines. We were also able to give them a tour. Unfortunately our wine maker had already left for the day so I couldn't introduce them and pick his brain. I tend to do that a lot.

For dinner we headed out to a place called Good Eats in Kinsale. It's a bit of a hoof, but we thought it was worth it. It really doesn't look like much from the outside, but remember the adage 'Don't judge a book by it's cover.' The place looks like it could have been an old gas station at one point in time. The inside is nice though. The only term the hubby and I can think to describe it is chez country. And we don't mean that in a bad way. The food is fantastic. Derek and I split a bottle of Malbec. They do carry Ingleside wine, which makes me happy, but I really wanted Malbec with my prime rib. I'd say Derek must have liked the food since he did finish off the rest of my steak and Sarah's. I was so full that I fell asleep on the way home. Bad hostess.

One thing I did learn so far this week. I have camera envy. I want a new digital camera!

A Day In DC

So Wednesday, August 8th we spent the day in Washington DC. This nation's great capitol! We spent most of the day wandering around the art museums. Something the hubby and I wouldn't normally do, but I truly enjoyed doing with Sarah. So Sarah I'm really glad that we got to do this with you. Although I don't think that Derek was too happy about it. He looked a bit bored. We did stop by the National Air and Space Museum and saw the Spirit of St. Louis which is pictured above, as well as a few other things. Really to do DC properly you need a couple of days, but we were limited in our time with our friends and only had Wednesday to do it in. So we were content with what we could get. Unfortunately the American History Museum was closed down so we couldn't do it. Which sucked because I think the whole group would have enjoyed that.

As we walked from place to place we came across the Navy Memorial. So of course we stopped, since it's something that would be near and dear to the hubby's heart. There's a picture of me below with the lone sailor. It's quite interesting.

All in all I thought it was a nice day. We ended it by going to Bonefish in Fredericksburg. Boy were we tired from all of the walking. And man does DC traffic suck!

The Battlefield Journey Begins

So Tuesday, August 7th we went to the Battle of Manassas. Also known as the Battle of Bull Run for those of you from the North. I'm not a major hisotry buff or anything, but my hubby and his best buddy are so we went. Derek is on vacation and this is what he enjoys. It was hot and humid, but I'd say it was interesting. We were smart we brought waters and sunscreen. I'm pretty much the photographer on these outings, so here's a picture of the hubby, our buddy Derek and his lovely wife Sarah.

Like I said it was interesting, but they focused more on the first battle than the second one. It really is interesting to see when you actually get on the battlefield and take a look around. And the park rangers really seem to like to hear themselves talk. We took the driving tour of the second battle and it kind of sucked.

I know this is a bit late in getting posted, but I've been busy so sue me.

Holy Cow Batman That's A Lot Of Meat!

Today we went to Texas de Brazil with our friends Derek and Sarah. It was quite the experience. If you have a place like this I highly recommend it. The service was fantastic! The atmosphere lovely. And the food was to die for. Did I mention that the company was beyond pleasant? It can be a bit pricey, but is oh so worth it!

Our friends just arrived at the Richmond airport and to celebrate their arrival we decided to try this resturant that a co-worker of my hubby's had recommended. Notice it took some friends coming for a visit for us to try the place. Holy cow was there a lot of meat there. I swear I could feel my arteries hardening as soon as we sat down. There was beef, chicken, pork and lamb. And thier wine selection was to die for. I didn't even get to look through the entire thing. I did choose a 2006 Argentinian Malbec that went quite nicely with the various meats that they served. Later I asked for a dry white and our waiter, Tre, found me a wonderful Chardonnay that wasn't too oaky. I'm kicking myself because I didn't get the names of the wines. I just wished they'd had some nice Virginian wines. But I guess that would have been pushing my luck huh?

We capped off the evening with some decedant desserts. The hubby and I both had to get our desserts put in a to go box. I swear I thought I was going to pop!

Weddings and All The Hoopla That It Entails

So last night I helped a friend cater a wedding. Serving food and such. Lucky I got some remittance for my services as it was hot, humid and generally unpleasant in the black jeans that I was required to wear. Let's just say I was so happy to get in my little air conditioned car to drive home at ten that night. Oh yeah they had a belly dancer at the wedding too. Turns out she was the sister of the bride. The strange things people will have at their wedding receptions. On to my story.

As I was helping carry bottled waters out to where the service was to be held a thought occured to me. We've gotten too bogged down with the frou frous of weddings. It was nearly one hundred degrees at six in the evening and this bride had her groom in a tux and everyone else in formal wear. How awful! They all looked very nice, but completely overheated. I joked with the bartender that if it were me I would go with sundresses and khaki shorts and hawaiian shirts.

I brought this whole line of thinking up to my adoring hubby at breakfast the next morning. At first he stated that we had already exchanged vows why would we need to do it again. But I'm guessing the glare I sent his way this time made him rethink his statement. I mentioned it would be more of a party this time around. How cool would it be to exchange vows in the vineyards of our favorite winery with all of our friends around us. But instead of being all stuffy and formal we go casual. He could wear khaki shorts and a hawiian shirt. I'd wear a sundress and all of our guests could dress likewise. We did get married in the middle of August, so this would be perfect. This made him smile. Afterwards we could just have a party with wine, beer, good food and friends and family. What could be better? Of course my smarty pants hubby thought of some things to make the wedding 'better'. The pirate in him came out. We'll see if this all comes to fruition at our twentieth.

But really is there truly a need to go into debt to celebrate the union of two people? Don't get me wrong. My friend the caterer made some cash as did I. And of course the winery this young woman had her wedding at made some money. But wow all the hassle. I'm so glad that my wedding was simple.

Being A Good Hostess Even If It Means You Alienate Your Cat

As we get ready for some friends to come for a visit I decided to shampoo my carpets. I have pets and he's allergic.

So being the good hostess that I am I'm trying to make life a little easier for our guests. I'd like our friend to still be breathing when he leaves. I'm pretty sure his wife would like this as well. Of course I don't own a carpet shampooer so I had to go rent one from the local Food Lion. So after man handling that machine into my little car and getting it home and then moving furniture to do a true cleaning I'm waiting for the carpets to dry. But I didn't stop there, I took the shampooer upstairs and did the carpets up there. Even though they won't be staying the night with us.

But now I am dealing with the repercussions. My cat is griping that the carpets are wet. And the dog is out of sorts because there's so much stuff on the bed he can't lay on it and he can't sleep upstairs because the carpets are wet. Mom just rocked their little worlds with that loud machine and now the floors feel funky. You know it's bad when the cat will go and gripe to the hubby.

Should I be afraid to go to sleep tonight? Odie does have an evil glint in his eyes. Or has my cat always looked like that? I know the dog's forgiven me. I bought him off with a pig ear, but cat's are much more complex and not as easily manipulated as dogs. Knowing my tubby tabby he'll just wake me numerous times throughout the night wanting to chat.

Here I Am

Just like every other self-involved person in the world, I've decided that I want a blog. Hopefully I'll be entertaining. Oh who am I kidding? This is purely to entertain me. That's what the internet is for right? So entertain me internet!