Monuments, Memorials, and More…

We started off our tour of Washington in style.  Our first stop was the Lincoln Memorial.  It has to be one of my favorites, but I have decided I have lots of those.  You might just hear that frequently!  It was neat that Uncle Dale had a name we could find on the Vietnam Wall, and I love how the reflection was captured in the photo too.  We also walked past the Washington Monument.  Boo, that it was closed for repairs due the recent earthquake.  I am saving pictures of our trip to the World War II Memorial for the day we went at night.  We also saw the Jefferson Memorial and the FDR Memorial.  There was so much information to glean at all these locations.  I loved reading all the old quotes from some of these very great men who were so instrumental in our nation being so successful.  One of my favorites is from Thomas Jefferson: “If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, then it expects what never was and what never will be.” Wow! That is quite a statement, and it truly historically applies. So here are just a few, and I do mean few, pictures of our memorial visit.

We took a slight break and visited the Smithsonian of American History.  I got so tickled as to the decision as to which side to visit.  The museum has an east and west side.  What my dear hubby did not know was that the girls had already been informed that the west side had all the famous dresses and inaugural gowns from many of our first ladies. Dan went so dutifully to read the the map to see which side we should tackle.  He came back and to tell us the east side was the most practical.. you know all the war stuff and such.  The girls had already decided we should see the west! He he! He just loves having a houseful of women.  Here are a few pics of our wonderful exploration through this amazing museum.

There was an awesome hands on science center.  The kids really enjoyed trying out several new ideas.  We all had a blast, and I highly recommend the American History museum.  There is truly something for everyone.  The inaugural dresses were truly amazing.  I loved the red one (bottom rt. corner) that belonged to Laura Bush, and the one above was a Nancy Reagan and Barbara Bush.  These ladies truly arrived in style.

To Mayberry and Beyond…..

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I have to say that I am a huge Andy Griffith fan.  I remember as a kid we all crowded around the TV to watch the show together.  I remember when the Return to Mayberry movies came out, and we got to stay up late to watch them.  Oh the memories.
Well, what does that have to do with vacation? As we were driving up Interstate 77 on our way to Virginia, we say this sign for Mt. Airy.  We had time, and we decided it was worth a stop.  We had a blast as we visited the museum.  I had no idea how many movies Andy G has starred in.  It was like reliving my childhood as we saw the old Matlock office stage and the Mayberry jail stage.  We oo’ed and aw’ed over all sorts of memorabilia.  We got to see Andy as a baby, a teenager, and then the actor.  I was so sad we couldn’t take any pictures inside the museum, but I did manage to capture a few outside…

Then, we began to tour Mt. Airy itself.  We started by visiting the birthplace of Andy.  It was such a modest little home.  His parents bought the home for $600 in the 1930’s, and they sold it for $6,000 in the 1960’s when they moved out to live near Andy in California.  It is now available to rent.

We then moved on to the Mt. Airy jail and the little Mayberry community that has been recreated there.  I got so tickled since it even had the home of the Darling family located there.  I think the thing that made it the best fun is that my kids are all huge fans of the Andy Griffith Show!  I just love it!!!!  We even got to eat lunch at the Barney café!  It was just a quick pit stop with some great memories.

Home safe and sound!

We made it home safe and sound midnight on Friday!  Phew! What a full week of sight seeing we had.  It was a wonderful trip, and I have to give a huge shout out to our Uncle Dale who made this trip possible.  He heard Dan and I talking about wanting to go, and he made it all possible.  Here he is in our photo from our trip to Mt. Vernon. 

I will be posting here on many of our activities and thoughts.  We saw so much, and we learned so much. It was so humbling to walk and stand in the same places that some of the greatest men ever have been.  I was totally in awe!

Washington, DC Bound!

We are on our way to DC. We have all been counting down for this trip. We were all loaded and ready to head out by 8:00 am. Can you tell we are prepared for travel and vacationing with kids?

We took a little travel break in Mt. Airy, NC. It was neat to see sights that were all popularized on the Andy Griffith Show. We chose to dine in at Barney's Cafe, and we visited the remake of the jail from the set of the show. We all had a blast.

Hhhmmm..it is time to hit the road again. Next stop, who knows! I have even been sent to the back of the car for this trip. I am trying to keep my backseat driving in check :)

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My Journey: Part 2

There is so much that goes into being successful at weight loss.  For me the recognition of just how far out of hand the situation had become was a necessity.  I had many excuses. Of course, no one ever wants to say, “Yes, you really do need to lose weight.” Naturally, there is never a good time to begin weight loss. 

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For me, I truly had to recognize what carrying around all this extra weight was doing for me.  That was ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! I was so miserable that I could not truly enjoy life.  In the spring, we went hiking to Table Rock, and I literally had to will to make it up the mountain.  Wow! It was a real taste of truly how out of shape I was. It was so embarrassing.  My kids were miles ahead of me.  I was constantly bringing up the rear, and I didn’t enjoy that.  I knew I had to do something.

It is amazing to me how much like a different person I already feel.  In June, we went hiking at South Mountain, and this time I was hardly winded.  It was a great hike, and I was able to enjoy it all.  I am dying to go hiking again.  It is so great to feel in shape, and I still have soooo far to go.

I also had to recognize how this affected my family.  How was I as a mom to teach proper diet to my children?  How could I tell them they needed to watch what they ate as I kept adding pounds year after year?

The affect my weight loss has had on my family has been so positive. We are all eating better, and my kids understand that it is a choice.  It doesn’t mean they can never have cookies or chips.  It just means that our choices have to be balanced.  It is great to see them contemplate what to eat, and I love for them to ask me how many calories something has.

I still have sooo very far to go in this journey, but it has been a fun ride.  My first few weeks, I didn’t seem to be losing the weight, but I never calculated the loss in measurements.  It was unreal when I began to realize that I had lost inches.  Losing the first ten pounds felt like I had lost thirty!

I remember the devastation I felt when  I one day decided to just measure my waist!  I was in shock, and the only image I could see was the little girl who turned into the blueberry in Willie Wonka’s Chocolate Factory!  Wow!  It feels so good to fit into skirts and such that I haven’t worn in years, and the best part is that they are beginning to feel quite roomy!

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If you know someone who is struggling and working to lose weight, please please be an encouragement!