Virginia- the start of good things

Well, I'm a little behind. We were so busy the last six weeks of the year and didn't have internet in many of our camp sites so I fell behind on updating my blog. We toured Virginia the end of November so here's where we left off~

Our first stop in Virginia was Jamestown. Here we learned about the first colony in America. There’s an archeologist on site that's found many artifacts. They recently found evidence that Pocahontas was married to John Rolph in this spot.

Nearby is Yorktown where the American Revolution ended. The kids had fun make believing on the war field.

I was born in Portsmouth, VA, four decades ago. We moved when I was ten days old and I’ve never been back. I thought it would be fun to be there for my birthday, especially with my mom. She remembered our address and we put it in the GPS. Unfortunately the house wasn’t there, but there were homes on either side of the lot. We drove by the hospital where I was born and had a wonderful lunch.

We made a full Thanksgiving dinner the next day with turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, and cranberries from Massachusetts in the RV. The only change we made was having a turkey breast instead of a full bird because it wouldn’t have fit into the convection oven. Everything turned out great and the only complaining I heard was from people that had eaten too much!

One bummer about visiting Virginia in time for my birthday was that I missed visiting a couple of friends. I hadn’t thought of them being gone during Thanksgiving.

The last areas we covered in Virginia were Shenandoah National Park and the Blue Ridge Parkway. It was beautiful up there, but I can only imagine how much more so it would’ve been if we were there a few weeks earlier. I’m not complaining though- we have wonderful fall color for months all over the east coast.

Merry land

While visiting DC we stayed at Ft Meade in Maryland. It was a great base with a wonderful commissary and exchange. I loved the track because I ran my fastest time there- and the longest distance up to that point. The weather was pretty nice and the leaves were turning.

We didn’t “officially” do anything in Maryland other than relax and enjoy. We didn’t go to Baltimore, Annapolis or anywhere else. When we took a day off it was a day off! It’s exhausting to tour around DC. On one of our days off friends that relocated from WA to VA came to visit.

I’ve known Sharon longer than Becca's (or Parker's) been around. Our kids played together when they were really little. Becca and Parker went to school together before we moved to Italy. Faith was happy to have fresh blood for her quiz- Sharon was a good sport! Seeing friends and family is a great bonus as we travel around.

Our last day of learning in DC

Did you know John Smithson was an English scientist that died and left over $500,000 to our country to be used for education in Washington? He'd never been to our country, but believed in what we were doing. This started the 19 Smithsonian museums, nine research facilities throughout the US and world and the national zoo. It's pretty awesome that he did that. It's also awesome that we can go to the museums for free to learn!

Our last day in DC Mom and I had plans to do more sight seeing. The rest of the family stayed home. The Dallas Cowboys were playing the Washington Redskins, but the game wasn’t televised so that was a bummer for Rick.

Mom wanted to see the Native American museum and I wanted to see the postal museum. I didn’t realize how many different Native American tribes there are/were in North and South America- more than 1,200 indigenous cultures! They had performers demonstrating dances, displaying crafts, etc.

In the postal museum it was interesting learning about how the mail system has evolved, but even more interesting were the displays on dealing with identity theft, bombs in the mail, the unabomber, anthrax, etc.

The post office's mascot- Owney. He was a good luck charm- every train he rode on to deliver mail didn't crash. He was given tags and medals to wear as he traveled the country and even to Asia and Europe by steam boat. His owner made a harness for the medals and tags. He jingled when he walked.

Off and running

Months ago a friend asked me to be in her wedding and wear a halter dress next March- yikes! That combined with my desire to be fit and healthy lead me to search for something that would challenge me and keep me interested in fitting into my dress. I downloaded a “Couch to 5k” app on my phone where I alternated running and walking for thirty minutes three times a week.

A few weeks later another friend said that she was going to run a half marathon at Disneyland in Jan. I have never been a runner. The words “run” and “hate” were used together in any sentence I formed most of my life, but I started to ponder this challenge. Hmmm. Disneyland is the happiest place on earth. If I was going to do something like this surely Goofy and Mickey would make it easier. Hmmmm. Then the race filled up. I was bummed, but I still wasn’t sure I could complete the task. Then I noticed there was a half marathon at Disneyworld in Feb. That would give me another month to prepare so I decided I would keep running and walking and see how this was going to turn out. I trusted in the process. The Couch to 5k program said I’d be able to run 5k (3 miles) in nine weeks and it was pretty close to being correct. I was quite surprised at the results, as was anyone else that knows me and my distaste for running.

I signed up for the half marathon. It’s scary, but it’s something that keeps me moving forward. I switched to their training program and trusted in their process. I ran five miles in PA and it was hard. I usually run in the area where the RV is parked and in PA it was a hilly location. I ran and walked and finished, but it had me second guessing my decision.

In Maryland we were on base. I haven’t run on a track and I haven’t run on a treadmill it’s always been the road dodging cars, people, animals, etc. Mom and I found the track and I ran my fastest mile ever and I ran three miles without walking! It was such an accomplishment for me that I changed our plans so I could run my six mile day on the track.

It was a little chilly that morning, but we had things to do so it was time to run. There were a few people on the track, but I got in the outside lane and started. Mom walked while I ran. Then a bunch of military people came to do their physical training and run a mile and a half. I hoped that they wouldn’t kick me off the track because I was only half way through. They didn’t and I completed six miles. I ran the whole way and wasn’t exhausted at the end. I think I can do it. This is crazy!

It was hard for me to run in Tennessee. It was really cold- below freezing every morning. I would get shin splints when I ran and I didn’t know if it was because it was cold, because I was on the road instead of the track or if it was my new shoes. It brought me down.

In Arkansas my first run was in warmer weather- just below 50 degrees- and I ran better than I had in a week. That was a relief!

In Oklahoma it was cold again. I found the track and had to run 8 miles. I miscalculated so I ended up only running seven because we had to leave the base and move on to Texas. I was happy with the progress though. I could've run the last mile, but it's probably good that I didn't because I had a big blister.

In the past four months I’ve run in 17 states. I have 55 days til the marathon!
I'm looking forward to running in warmer weather at the start of the new year as we stay in the south.

Bureau of Engraving and Printing, Museum of American History, more memorials

My great aunt Lucille worked at the Bureau of Printing and Engraving in DC. This was another fun tour where we were able to see stacks of millions of dollars. They print a value of $900 million a day! Ninety five percent of what they print goes to replace what’s in circulation, but is worn out. Our paper dollars are made of 75% cotton and 25% linen. In 2009, the US mint lost $22 million printing making pennies and nickels because it costs more to make them than their face value- 1.5 cents to make a penny and 6 cents to make a nickel. When we lived in Italy the base didn’t accept pennies because they cost too much to ship so everything was rounded to a nickel.

$100 bills stacked means Becca is worth $1.4 million

It was a beautiful sunny, but cool, day in DC and we were able to see the memorials left on our to do list; Vietnam, Korea, Lincoln and Martin Luther King Jr.

Faith completed her Jr Ranger book and the ranger said it was the most complete book he’d seen. Months ago Faith commented that history is so interesting. Faith is just eating all this up. She loves learning all this information and loves quizzing people on what we’ve learned (name the first four presidents and first ladies; how many children did Davy Crockett have; whose face is the statue of liberty; name four things Ben Franklin invented, etc)

Our last family stop in DC was the American history museum to see the flag from the war of 1812 that inspired Frances Scott Key to pen the Star Spangled Banner; Michael Jackson’s fedora and glove, Dorothy’s ruby red slippers from The Wizard of Oz; and other interesting things from our history.

Archie and Edith Bunker's chairs

Victrola museum in Dover

We took a break from DC and headed to the country’s first state- Delaware. There are some interesting state parks there, but they were closed for the season so we chose to visit a Victrola museum in Dover.

Eldridge Johnson founded the Victor Talking Machine company after creating a spring motor for the inventor of the gramophone. We saw various Victorla’s and saw the progression of the invention. We also learned where the phrase “put a sock in it” came from when our tour guide handed the kids a pair of socks. It muffled the sound.

The second floor of the museum was a donation from one man’s collection. There were many different horns, many little white Nipper dogs, etc. Johnson sold the business in 1929 just before the depression for $41 million dollars! He didn’t invest in the stock market so he didn’t lose his money.

The White House, Ford’s theatre, Spy Museum

My girlfriend that lives in the DC area suggested that we apply for tickets to tour the capitol and white house. I’m so glad she did! There’s so much to do in DC, but these tours made our trip even more fabulous. We triple checked our list to head to the White House- our government issued ids, no cameras, water, purse, lip gloss, etc. As we were going to cross the street for our tour several fire trucks came down the road. Jacob spotted a building that was on fire. They quickly put it out. We heard sirens throughout each day in the capital.

We saw different rooms, photos, paintings, china, etc on tour. The state dining room can hold 140 guests, but we couldn’t figure out how they could get that many in there. The east room said it was 3,000 sq feet, but my eyes couldn’t see that size of a space either.
The entrance foyer and hall is used to greet visitors and also for dancing after dinner. There was a photo of Princess Diana and John Travolta dancing there.

The White House has 132 rooms, 35 bathrooms, six levels, 28 fireplaces, eight staircases. The only president married there was Grover Cleveland. James Polk’s wife had the band play Hail to the Chief when the president entered the room because he was short in stature and not always seen when he entered a room. It has been associated with the president since.

Our next stop was Ford’s Theatre. The theater is still in use so we were unable to see the theater because they were rehearsing A Christmas Carol. There’s a museum downstairs that covers the President’s life and a time line for Lincoln and John Wilkes Booth that infamous day. The revolver he was shot with is also on display; it was very small. Things I learned- Lincoln had been shot while riding his horse although it went through his hat. He found it humorous- no one else did. The second was that he’d had a dream that the president died just days before he did. When he left his driver that evening he said Goodbye instead of Goodnight. He had a bodyguard that evening, but at the play’s intermission he left to get a drink at a bar and didn’t return. It makes you wonder if the country would be different if Lincoln would’ve finished his second term.

Cool display in the women's bathroom

Another fun place we visited was the Spy museum. Rick, Mom and I had been there before, but we knew it would be fun for the kids. When you enter you need to pick a secret identity and have three minutes to commit to memory your name, where you’re from, where you’re going, your education, etc. Throughout the museum you have to check in at kiosks and are questioned about your visit in this foreign country. You also receive more information from your country about your mission. It's pretty fun. Plus you can crawl through an air duct and eavesdrop on others in the museum, see how spies leave messages for their contacts, tools they use and more.