What would be a vacation without some pictures?

Here are 10 of my favorite snap shots from our vacation to OBX last week. As most of you know Irene tore through and really left some people and businesses hurting, but our amazing rental company, Sun Realty, managed to move us from our original condo to another condo and didn't charge us any extra for the upgrade and we got an extra day. Such a wonderful company!

So this was the boy's first BEACH vacation. We were so excited. I used to vacation down in OBX every year until I was 18 or so, because my grandparents owned a vacation home down there. Stephen and I tried to honeymoon there in 2003, but Isabel had other ideas. We did make it down for our first anniversary though. :)

There are so many good memories associated with the OBX that I wanted to share them with the boys, so here are the pictures. They're in no particular order either. :)


These pictures were at the Wright Brothers Memorial. Harrison and Steve got to spend more time there, because I had to take Devlin to the Outer Banks Hospital, because we thought his pinky was broken after a gust of wind slammed the car door shut on his hand, but thankfully the pinky was not broken, just very badly bruised. The bruise did not stop him from enjoying the park though.

Here is the view of the Atlantic from the top of the hill at the Wright Brothers Memorial. Love the salty sea air and the breeze we had all week, but I'll tell you what - it did nothing for my very curly hair. :)


This was taken from the car while leaving the waterfront of Manteo. This boat is usually about 50 yards back in the parking lot of one of the stores. There was so much damage in this section of town. Only two businesses were open on Tuesday after the hurricane, and both were restaurants. We ate at  the Full Moon Cafe where I had the best sandwich of the week. Yay for French Dips!


 Here's Harrison at the NC Aquarium on Roanoke Island. I don't think he's too sure about the alligator behind him. :) The aquarium had a really nice exhibit on Sea Turtles that the boys enjoyed. It was really interactive and they had fun toting their 'turtles' around for examination and recovery.

 We saw this little guy at the entrance to the Queen's Rose Garden at the Elizabethan Gardens. Love all his colors!

 This was also taken at the Elizabethan Gardens. They had a fun Garden Detective activity for the kids to do, which Devlin really enjoyed. There is also an ancient living oak in the garden that was alive when the first settlers arrived which would make it over 400 years old.

 This is by far the best  picture of the trip! We went on a Dolphin Tour and during the trip Harrison came up behind Devlin and hugged him and rested his head on his shoulders. They stayed like this for a few minutes.

 Here's one of the dolphins we saw! We saw a ton of them, including a new one that was just born in May. Baby dolphins are more adorable than full grown dolphins. We took our tour through Kitty Hawk Kites, which experienced a lot of damage in their store in Manteo (it had to be gutted) and at their store just before the causeway to Roanoke Island  from Nags Head. The dock was destroyed, but they were very courteous and went with the flow and had all of the the tour customers drive across the causeway to the public boat launch on Roanoke Island. They were even good-natured when Harrison went nuclear because he was tired. :) Good thing the motion of the boat put him to sleep pretty quickly.

And finally, one of our only beach pictures! Harrison was chilling up with Stephen on the dunes, while Dev played in the surf and tried to convince me to roll around with him. That did not happen, but Devlin had a blast taunting the ocean, and then the ocean tumbled him up the beach and stole his sunglasses. Dev learned that it might not be a good idea to taunt something so much larger than you, but that didn't stop him from playing in the waves and surf. :) Harrison was a little nervous of the waves, but as long as he was on our laps he pretty cool with the water coming up and getting us every so often.

I'm sad that our vacation is over, but oh so happy to be sleeping in my own bed again!

See you guys tomorrow!

We got a late start - 10:30 to be exact.
And decided to take a  road trip that was 12 hours long.

Maybe not our best thought since it was 11 when we got home, but we saw some terrific things along the way.

View Directions to Nashville, TN in a larger map

So you guys know Jamie from C.R.A.F.T.  She's got a series on Create Really Awesome Free, Trips!
There's a linky party today. I'm participating. Aren't I the cool one? Totally.

Anyways! Some of you may know that I live in Gainesville, VA, which is 40 miles from Washington, D.C.

We are so blessed to live in the area, because having a Stay-cation here is so easy. The first major land battle of the Civil War was fought 5 miles from our house, at the Battle of Bull Run (or Manassas - if you're a southerner) :)

So let's get on with the list of free things to do in DC!

1) Smithsonian Museums
On the north side of the National Mall are a bunch of the Smithsonian Museums, and all of them are FREE!!! I would advise you to plan on having lunch on the Mall, because the restaurant prices inside the museums are a little steep.

The T-Rex at the Museum of Natural History. This is from Dev's birthday visit in December.

Here's a list of the museums in DC.

Smithsonian Castle 1000 Jefferson Dr., SW Metro Stop: Smithsonian, Mall exit African Art Museum 950 Independence Ave., SW Metro Stop: Smithsonian, Mall exit Air and Space Museum 7th & Independence Ave., SW Metro Stop: L'Enfant Plaza, Maryland Ave. exit American Art Museum Portrait Gallery 8th and F Sts., NW Metro Stop: Gallery Place-Chinatown, 9th St. exit American History Museum 14th St. & Constitution Ave., NW Metro Stop: Federal Triangle or Smithsonian, Mall exit American Indian Museum 4th St. & Jefferson Dr.,SW Metro Stop: L'Enfant Plaza, Maryland Ave. exit Freer Gallery Jefferson Dr. and 12th St., SW Metro Stop: Smithsonian, Mall exit

Sackler Gallery 1050 Independence Ave., SW Metro Stop: Smithsonian, Mall exit Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden Independence Ave. and 7th St., SW Metro Stop: L'Enfant Plaza, Maryland Ave. exit Natural History Museum 10th St. and Constitution Ave., NW Metro Stop: Smithsonian, Mall exit Postal Museum Massachusetts Ave. and 1st St., NE Metro Stop: Union Station Renwick Gallery 17th St. at Pennsylvania Ave., NW Metro Stop: Farragut West, 17th St. exit Ripley Center International Gallery 1100 Jefferson Dr., SW Metro Stop: Smithsonian, Mall exit

2) The National Mall

The Mall is a terrific spot to enjoy some lovely scenery, its also a National  Park, which is who the hubs works for, so please help support NPS!

So the Mall is free, its big, and its gorgeous. At one end of the Mall is the Lincoln Memorial, then the Reflecting Pool, Vietnam Memorial, Korean Memorial, then the absolutely gorgeous WWII Memorial and the Washington Monument. Then there are the Smithsonian Museums and finally the Capitol. There is so much to see, and you can visit these monuments during the day or at night. Personally, my favorite is at night, because the way all the monuments and memorials are lit up is just stunning.

3) National Zoo - 3001 Connecticut Ave., NW Washington, DC - Metro Stop - Woodley Park-Zoo/Adams Morgan or Cleveland Park


Off of Rock Creek Parkway is the Smithsonian's National Zoo, and admission is free, but unless you're a FONZ member parking will cost you. It's $15 for 3 hours and under, and then $20 for the day, the max you pay is $20.

 You should pack your lunch and enjoy the animals. Right now there are 7 new lion cubs in the Big Cats area. We visited on Saturday and had a wonderful time, despite a bunch of mishaps. The zoo opens up at 6:30, but none of the buildings open until 10, but in the cooler temps of the morning the animals are usually out more.


4) Georgetown
Georgetown is in the NW quadrant of DC and is home to lots of shopping, dining and history. The main thoroughfares are Wisconsin and M Street. Old Stone House is located in Georgetown, and is operated by NPS. It is the oldest standing building in DC. Admission is free to The Old Stone House!

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Georgetown is bordered by Rock Creek Park and the Potomac. More on the former latter. :)

5) Tidal Basin
The Jefferson Memorial and FDR Memorial are both located along the Potomac in the Tidal Basin. The sight of the Cherry Blossom Festival each March/April, the area is really picturesque all year long.  There is also the George Mason Memorial along the Tidal Basin. NPS administers these too, and they're free. :)

6) Rock Creek Park
Rock Creek Park is a wonder in the hustle and bustle in DC. Its a forest park along the edges of NW DC, and borders Georgetown. Its run by NPS and is completely free. There are trails you can walk, or you can just sit and have a picnic while enjoying some of the wonderful views the park has to offer.

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The National Zoo is also close to Rock Creek Park. Isn't nice that everything is connected?

7)The Waterfront
The Georgetown Waterfront Park provides a green space for visitor recreation and contemplation. Cyclists, skaters, and pedestrians have their own car-free pathways with views of individual boaters, kayakers and competitive crews as well as of Roosevelt Island and the magnificent Key Bridge. The park curves along 10 acres of the Potomac extending from the Washington Harbour complex to Key Bridge. This is also run by NPS. Are you sensing a theme yet? 

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8)Union Station - 50 Massachusetts Avenue NE, Washington, DC
This is a wonderful example of gorgeous architecture near the Capitol. It's also helpful that its a transportation hub. :) Its also a mall. Score! There are no guided tours of Union Station right now, but just wondering around would be an experience in and of itself.

My father-in-law took this stunning picture.

9)The Capitol
Located at the end of the National Mall, the US Capitol is an impressive and stately piece of historical architecture. In the visitor's center, you can look up through skylights to see the Capitol's dome. Admission is free to the Capitol, but a tour pass is required.

Another Harry B photo :)

10)The White House
So who doesn't come to DC and gape at the White House? Its behind the Ellipse and can be seen from the Washington Monument. Some pre-planning will be required if you want to take a guided tour of America's House, but self-guided tours are welcome, but only available during certain times and days. You would definitely want to check out the schedule here. I have lived in the DC area almost my entire life and have never been to the White House, which is a shame, but someday I'll get there. :)

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Well I hope you guys enjoyed today's post, and go out and find something free to do in your town. :)
TTYS!