Sweet Girls!

Jesus said, "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven."

 

 

 

 

 

The end of History...beginning of Fellowship!

We were at Annapolis for their first week of classes- A Parade!!

Horseshoe Crab on the Chesapeake Bay

Crab caught off the pier...a Crab Feast followed!!

Part of our trip that we loved was the opportunity to spend time with family (my cousin's family who has 6 children) and friends (who also have 6 children), who moved from Montana 3 weeks after we did.  We were ready for quality time with familiar loved ones- and were so thankful for our time with them all! 
Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Philippians 2:1-2

Admiring a pen full of new sheep!!

Petting zoo at the Creation Museum

Philadelphia and Washington D.C

We were able to get right up to the Liberty  Bell, and we were quite near Independence Hall...but they were already sold out of tickets for the day, so we didn't go in.  Philadelphia had so much to see, and we enjoyed a quick glimpse of American History!

A less-than-great photo of the Liberty Bell

Washington D.C could have kept us hopping for days...so we did a driving tour, and spent time at the Lincoln Memorial and the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.  The air and space was a hight point, especially for the kids!

Mt. Vernon

George and Martha with the cousins!

 We have family in Edgewater, MD and were able to spend several days with them.  They were excellent tour guides, playmates, swimming buddies and teachers on All-things-Chesapeake Bay!!

bad angle...sorry oxen!!

Mt. Vernon was beautiful.  The working farm aspect was my favorite!  There were oxen walking down the road as we were on our way up to the house...I LOVE oxen!  I love what they represent and how peaceful they appear, especially for 'beasts of burden!' They were wearing a hand-hewn yoke that was beautiful.  It is such a good visual for me to see 2 animals side-by-side in a yoke!  Matthew 11:29-30 says, Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

The 8 children on the porch of Mt Vernon!  13,13,12,11,9,7,5,4, and another due in December, not pictured!!

Living history at Mt Vernon , such a treat! This guy told us about what they were growing and why.

The Jersey Shore!

Deep Fried Oreos and Funnel Cake on the Boardwalk!

Walking the boardwalk in New Jersey was great!  I hate to admit that most of the things that I wanted to see on the East Coast can be directly attributed to movies I watched in my youth!  Mystic Pizza, Beaches, Big, The Perfect Storm, To Gillian on her 37th Birthday...I may be the only person who actually remembers these movies- but anyhoo...They gave me a mental image of what the East Coast would be like- and it did not disappoint!!! It was unique and beautiful.

The very best parts of our time in Jersey were, 1) THE PIZZA...the best we've ever had!! and 2) the guys who worked the game booths on the boardwalk.  To say that we stood out would be an understatement!  The cultural norms on the boardwalk did not include happy families who were fully dressed!  We got to chat with some of the workers, and our favorite was the one who asked if we came to the 'Shore' because of the TV show...I told him no, that we didn't watch the TV show- He was surprised/confused, and was wondering who we were- we talked about where we lived, and he told us about his life there and his job- For your mental picture, he was a mid-thirties man, clean-cut and nice looking, wearing a large gold chain necklace.  After visiting, and deciding not to toss the softball into the bushel basket- at 3 balls for $10.00, we were walking away, and he shouted after us- "Hey, Big Love...are yous guys from that show Big Love??"  He thought he had us all figured out...we must be mormon polygamists!!  FYI- we're not mormon or polygamists.

Boston

Boston Harbor

 The Freedom Trail was a great walk through Boston, and we were able to see a lot of things that we had read about.  There were street dancers, sky-scrapers, historic cemeteries and bicycle couriers...all on the same block!  My favorite people-watching event was when a young man wearing a chef's uniform was walking on the sidewalk and greeted an older Italian woman by saying, "Ciao, Senora" and she greeted him back, in Italian- It was very quaint!  We also got to see a man buy a loaf of fresh bread, and strap it to his backpack for the bike ride home! 

Jesse and Paul Revere

The Old North Church

We were very thankful to get to see so much in Boston.  Since we were driving the truck and pulling an enclosed trailer, parking was always an adventure!  Thankfully, we were able to park in the Convention Center parking lot in downtown Boston, and walk from there!  We are definitely not city-folks, but we did enjoy our day in Boston and could appreciate the history, community and excitement of living there!

Pennsylvania and Hampton Beach

Leaving a fun 'mom-n-pop' campground in PA

 The next day we arrived in New Hampshire to pick up the collection, and then it was on to the coast!

 I searched on the internet for a family-friendly place to get fresh lobster, and I found a great spot where we could get 2 fresh lobsters for 20 bucks...what I didn't check on was the price of their fish and chips...boy did they see us comin'!!!

2 members of our family enjoyed lobster... the other 3 looked at it as more of a science lesson- definitely NOT a meal!  We enjoyed the fish-n-chips (drowning in tartar sauce), the view, and the accents of the locals; the lunch crowd was full of 'regulars', so we got a great experience as well as a great lunch!
The scenery, the people and the 'feel' of the New Hampshire shore, were just as unique, fun and interesting as I had hoped they'd be!!  It was a highlight of our trip...

Gettysburg...and Chocolate!

Howie, our knowledgeable Gettysburg guide!

Day 2 of our trip we explored Gettysburg battlefield.  We arrived in the visitor center early in the morning to get a good foundation for our day of learning.  The battlefields have guides that you can hire to drive your vehicle around and teach you all about it!  We received a thorough account of the battle, and many details that we didn't find in our books.  Our guide was amazing- he taught for the entire 2+ hours- the 5 of us have never been so quiet!  He answered any questions we had, and made it all very interesting for us...

Our next stop was Hershey, Pennsylvania- where the city smells like chocolate and the streetlights look like Hershey's Kisses!

 

Antietam Battlefield

Our first stop on the U.S History portion of the trip was the site of the bloodiest one-day battle of the entire Civil War.  Being there was so good for us in realizing the reality of war, and history in general.

The structures, fences and artwork were amazing, but the photos and sketches that were made during and just after the battle are what hit us the deepest.

There were drawings by a sketch artist who traveled with one of the regiments.  This one is of a tree (much smaller than it is today) that we were able to walk over and stand next to for a family picture.  Interacting on that bridge, and next to that tree made history come to life! 

The clothing changed, the bridge had to be rebuilt, the National Park Service information kiosks weren't there on September 17, 1862- but that tree still stands- and we were there to touch it!









*Cliff Clavin little known fact: The bridge in the drawings/pictures above, is called Burnside's Bridge.  It's named for General Ambrose Burnside- a Union General who had unique facial hair...and why we use the word sideburns today! (you can see him in the drawing if you look closely)

Back to tent camping!

While we are in Georgia for training, we are depending on our website to provide our income.  Replenishing stock on the site comes either by what animals we mount, or by collections that are bought for resale.

We haven't been tent campers since we were newly married- so the experience was new, novel and fun!

During the move- literally- while we were in the moving truck barreling down the highway, we learned of a taxidermy collection that was for sale in New Hampshire.  We crunched numbers of shipping costs, fuel costs, and factored in the opportunity to explore this region of the U.S, and decided to drive to New Hampshire and study American History along the way! 

We have always dreamed of a motorhome trip up the East coast, looking at battlefields and spending an entire summer to study!  The modified version was more doable: a tent, an enclosed trailer and lots of books to study about the Civil War, Revolutionary War, Government, Geography, as well as Andy Griffith 101!?!

Our first night we camped in Mt. Airy, North Carolina.  It's Andy Griffith's hometown that is said to have been the inspiration for Mayberry, and it's been fixed up to honor the quaint town from one of our families' favorite shows!  They had Floyd's barbershop and the catchy Andy Griffith theme song was being whistled from speakers along main street!  The kids re-inacted their favorite scenes, and we even saw the Mayberry Jail.  It's a beautiful area, and a fun little pit-stop if you are in the neighborhood!

Our Camp-Out

Some of our little fish

Uncle Aaron and the fishing crew

We celebrated our nephew Silas' 8th birthday by going camping on a lake in the Savannah River valley.  We had fun fishing, swimming and "marshing mallows", as the Jones kids used to say!  We had the campground to ourselves, and there were virtually NO mosquitoes!!  Jana especially enjoyed a welcome reprieve from the little pests! 

 vintage Airstream trailer + pontoon boat + 2 Easy-Ups= Southern Ingenuity

Lance The Turtle

The Eastern Box Turtle.  We named him Lance!  He was cruising in the back yard, and he was our first new friend in Georgia.  We kept him, loved him and fed him for 2 weeks.  I think that I may have learned a little too much from him, though.  Hence- no communication with the outside world for a while!  Our first month of training was full of fun, learning and busy-ness- therefore, time management, or a lack of management made for 5 tired people who yearned to hide inside of their shell!

We just returned from a wonderful road trip studying American History and visiting friends and family.  Photos will come, so you can see how the kids are growing, and some of the amazing things we were able to see 'in-person'!!