Boo & Paco

Little Man and I took a quick trip down south last week to visit with Boo & Paco. LM has been doing more and more crawling and pulling up, so Paco decided to help him do some solo standing.


The knobs on the kitchen cabinets proved to be just the right height for holding on! And please excuse the bright red cheeks - LM had a bit of a cold/teething and was on a steroid to help with his cough. This lead to red cheeks, a little fussiness, and some good eating!


LM also got to play with lots of 'vintage' toys. Mom has held on to all of the classics, and LM took full advantage.


All that play meant a dirty little boy, so into the tub...er, sink he went! He really enjoyed the rubber duckies, and laughed as he splashed water all over me!


He is still a good travel buddy - making friends at the airport is his specialty, and he does well on flights, even when he doesn't sleep.

28-35

Frank and I took a little road trip to Philadelphia this past weekend with another couple who went to college with Frank. We went to the University of Pennsylvania to see Dartmouth take on Penn in football.


The drive up was mostly uneventful, save a little bit of heavy traffic here and there. The ladies took the back seat and we never ran out of things to talk about, which I partially credit to the fact that we're both pregnant! Although, she is all 'cute pregnant' with her bump and I'm still just 'bloated pregnant' with the only bump being the extra pounds I've started to collect.

The game was exciting, even leading to a riveting overtime, but in the end Penn came away with the win. Dartmouth played a great game, and the surprisingly large crowd cheered with energy throughout the entire afternoon. Their record is now 2-1, which is a pretty good start for the Big Green!


One weird thing...at the end of the third quarter, when the Penn side sang their alma mater, they threw toast down onto the track around the field. Frank said it is a tradition based on a pun of "give a toast to dear old Penn," but we all agreed it seemed silly, wasteful, and messy. They even had a zamboni-like vacuum machine that some poor groundskeeper had to drive around during the fourth quarter to pick up all of the bread!


The weather was perfect, if not a little on the warm side, the company was excellent, and the game was great (up until the very end). All in all, a great way to spend a fall Saturday!

Bethlehem, PA

Here are the pictures of the historic Bethlehem area I was able to explore a few weeks ago. I meant to post these a while ago, but I got derailed with the appendicitis the day after we got back from the wedding!

Nearly every front door had a Moravian Star hanging. I couldn't get enough!






Their cemetery took my right back to college, not to mention walking past Sisters' House and Brothers' House!






I'll definitely be going back, and I'll absolutely be going to the Historic Hotel Bethlehem for Sunday brunch - the most amazing brunch spread I've ever seen! Who's coming with me?

Feels Like Home

Frank and I are in Pennsylvania for a wedding this weekend, and it feels like home. Now, I'm from South Carolina and I've also lived in North Carolina and Virginia, so having a small town in Pennsylvania feel like home is a little strange. But it does.

That is because I am currently sitting in the Historic Hotel Bethlehem in Bethlehem, PA.

Is it making sense yet? Bethlehem, PA is an old town that was founded by Moravians a long time ago. In the mid-1700s a young girl named Elizabeth lived here, but left when she was 17 and walked to a new Moravian settlement in North Carolina. Salem, North Carolina.

I am in the home town of the founder of my college. I am once again walking the brick walkways that were once walked by Elizabeth Oesterlein, and it feels great.

There are Moravian stars everywhere, especially throughout this hotel. They are on the doors of the elevators, the floors, and the walls. I was almost moved to tears when we first walked into this beautiful place.

I am impatiently waiting for the shops along Main Street to open so that I can shop for Moravian stars, smell the familiar scent of beeswax candles, and close my eyes to be transported back to my college. There is a cemetery here that is identical to the one that runs along side Salem - it might actually bring me to tears. I woke up to that sight every day of my senior year, and I walked the paths through it on those days when I attended class.

It never crossed my mind to make this pilgrimage, but now that I am here I can't believe I never thought of it before. To all of my Salem sisters, it is a long drive from just about everywhere but it is worth it. I've been here for less than 24 hours and I'm already trying to figure out how I can get back here to soak it up some more.

And to Sister Oesterlein, thank you. Thank you for being such a bold and daring teenager. Thank you for walking away from this comfortable, established place and literally walking to North Carolina to found the place that would become my home 229 years later.

Home, for now

We're back in the weekly routine at home after a successful trip to Charleston, SC for my friend Adair's wedding. Not even the threat of hurricane force winds and rain could keep us away - though it did alter our travel plans a bit. Worked out, though, we got to spend the night with T & Lisa in NC and the hounds got to hang with Guinness, the largest lab they've ever seen.

Here are some pictures of the weekend. We hit the Charleston Riverdogs game on Saturday evening with Hillary, Abigail and Jason. Then the rest are from the wedding itself (which was at the SC Aquarium, sweet!)



Adair and her husband, Dave, dancing at their reception.


Yes, Abigail and Shannon are wearing life preservers. Yes, all three of them look uncomfortable. Blame it on the "Shark Attack."


Frank and me at the reception.

More From Philly

Thanks to a tip from my boss, Em and I hit the Reading Terminal Market for breakfast on Saturday and Sunday. It is a really cool indoor market that (obviously) used to be a terminal for the Reading Railroad! We LOVED it and decided we'd eat there every day if we lived in Philly. They had everything from delis to grocers and a used book store.


The first morning we had crepes - mine had strawberries, blackberries, and cheesecake. Yes, cheesecake. And it was wonderful.


After breakfast we hit the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall. The Liberty Bell took all of 5 minutes because we didn't read any of the exhibit information...oops.


The Independence Hall tour was nice, only lasted about 45 minutes. They open with a little talk from your tour guide/ranger, then lead you into the main building.


First up is the old court room. The King's crest that hung in this room was the same one that was dragged through the streets of Philadelphia and later burned after the Declaration of Independence was read aloud to the public.


The second room is the State Assembly room, mostly known for being where both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were signed. The big chair at the front table is where George Washington sat and the table in the foreground is likely where the PA Delegates were seated.


The structure and details of the building were beautiful. I really wish people still used the kids of molding and detail in their homes and public buildings.

Already Worn Out

Too tired for words, here is a photo montage of what we did last night and today.

I'm Excited About: Emily!

I'm headed off to Union Station this afternoon to catch a train to Philadelphia to spend the weekend with Emily! I haven't seen her in way too long so I'm very excited to get to spend three whole days with her.

We chose Philly because neither one of us has ever toured the city. I'll be sure to take lots of pictures and tell you all about it when I get home on Tuesday!

Have a great weekend!

Crossing the Mason-Dixon

Frank and I set out for a northern adventure on Friday, complete with visits to Gettysburg, Vestal, NY, and the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Gettysburg was a surprise stop, we didn't realize we'd be driving right past it on our way to Vestal. We hopped out of the car and into the visitor's center for a bit, then drove out to the eastern side of the battlefield. After walking up a small hill we found ourselves on cemetery ridge, the position of the Union Army, looking down onto Seminary ridge which is where Pickett's charge originated.

It was neat to see the actual layout of the battlefield, though it seems impossible to comprehend 6,000 men charging from the other side of the field.

We decided to return at a later date, when we would actually plan to see the entire area - also maybe in the fall or spring when it isn't a billion degrees plus 100% humidity.

Back in the car we continued our trip up to Vestal. We were headed up that way to celebrate Aunt Pearl's 70th birthday with Frank's dad's family. It was fun to see everyone, most of whom we hadn't seen since the wedding. It was a really nice gathering, complete with a performance by a female barber shop quartet (one of AP's favorite hobbies)! We got to hang with the family a little longer at Aunt Rene and Uncle Rick's after the official party.

Frank and I called it an early night, though, and headed back to the hotel to get ready for the next day's adventure: Cooperstown!

We drove to Cooperstown to the Baseball Hall of Fame around 9am. It was a nice drive through the mountains and a few cute towns. Cooperstown (technically a "village") is adorable! Clearly exists only for the Hall, but the stores and restaurants are well kept and tourist friendly without seeming too tourist-trappy.

The Hall was pretty cool - we got the AAA member discount of $1.50 off - full of old memorabilia and educational displays. The two upper floors are a baseball museum; pictures, letters, bats, paychecks, and jerseys everywhere. It was really neat to see the evolution of the game right there in front of you. The actual Hall of Fame is on the first floor and holds all of the plaques. I was amazed at how consistent the plaques seem to be, even though they have been in production for so long!

It was a great day, and a great weekend, but we were glad to be home after that 8+ hour drive!

Loving Well

I just returned from a weekend in Front Royal, VA with my church's women's retreat. We did a Beth Moore study on "Loving Well."

First, Beth Moore is a total trip and I wish she were my aunt or something. She is one of those people that you just want to know! What an infectious passion for scripture and for teaching!

It was great to spend so much quality time with other women in the church, I came away with some new friends and strengthened relationships with old ones.


I highly recommend any studies with Beth Moore, and I also recommend going to the mountains with some awesome girls for a peaceful weekend!

I'm Excited About: Party and a (friend's) Baby Edition

First - this weekend I'm off to celebrate my friend Mary Eileen. She is such an awesome lady that I'm getting on a plane to NC to hang with her and some of her best friends for the weekend as we excitedly celebrate her upcoming wedding. I'm so very happy for her and thrilled to be able to count her as my friend.

We're all going to have a blast and I'm hoping that this weekend only comes in a close second to her wedding weekend in July.

Second - I get to meet a sweet little girl this weekend and I can't wait to get my hands on her! She belongs to a sweet friend of mine that I don't get to see nearly as much as I'd like. What a treat to get to celebrate two huge life changing events with two different friends in one weekend!

Off to the airport, what a great trip!

Ditto

I've read a few friends' blogs that say how they were bad holiday bloggers, so I'm just tagging along with that.

Frank, Hamilton and I went to South Carolina for Christmas. It was great to spend some quality time with my brothers and parents, although the weather was not as heavenly as I had hoped. We saw a handful of high school friends and lots of friends at church.

Hamilton had a blast playing with Barnabas, though at times I think Barn would have liked it if Hamilton had an "off" switch. They ran and played and wore each other out over 5 days.

Our next big adventure is Las Vegas in January and then moving at the end of January/beginning of February! I'm really excited about the move, Frank is really excited about Vegas. I've started getting ready for the move - a little packing here and there and priming the rooms that we painted. I have a feeling it is going to be awful no matter how early I start, but I'll give it my best shot anyway.

For now I'm up to my neck in work, I still haven't unpacked, there is another room to prime, an apartment to clean, and endless packing to do...

Happy New Year to everyone (and Happy Birthday, Dad!), I promise to try harder in January than I did in December! xoxo

And just in case you thought your December/January was even close to being as crazy as mine, let me list the birthdays/events for you:
Dec 6: Papa's Birthday
Dec 15: Frank's Birthday
Dec 25: Christmas
Dec 28: Chuck's Birthday (Father-in-law)
Dec 30: Webbs' Anniversary (In-Laws)
Jan 1: Dad's Birthday
Jan 3: Mom's Birthday
Jan 21: Rob's Birthday (brother)

This year you can add in MOVING to Jan 28, too. No one in our family is allowed to have a wedding or a child in the months of December or January.

oh, and I left out all of the aunts, uncles, and other anniversaries because I didn't want this blog post to go on forever - but if you think you can challenge me, I'll be happy to post all of the Dec/Jan dates for you.