Another wonderful weekend

I went back to our West Virginia cabin this weekend, this time with both parents, plus my brothers, husband and kids. We've had this home since I was 5 years old, but my children hadn't been yet, as it was far from our home in NY. It was wonderful to be there again and to watch my kids do the same things I did as a kid with my brother.

I bought a new camera on Thursday and tested it out over the weekend. I'm really excited about my new purchase (a birthday present from my mom and pop- thank you!!)! It's a Sony Nex-3 Interchangeable Digital Camera  and they say it has the quality of a DSLR without the size. I've been debating about getting a DSLR for months because they are so bulky (I can barely hold one), but I really wanted to take quicker, better photos of my children. So far, I am very pleased with our choice. It's small enough to not be overwhelming, and the photos are very nice. Take a look!

Here's the view from the living room

This is my "littlest" brother on the road leading to our house

Serenity

All ready for a trip into town

Berkeley Springs, WV

Seriously!

My two little brothers with their niece

M had the time of his life running around the springs

After a chilly dip in the springs, it was time for cheeseburgers and shakes!

Here we are back at our house, having dinner inside the net

We also celebrated Daddy's birthday with a little cake!

So, to recap: We enjoyed nature, played in the springs, had a Roman bath,  went to the pool, and last but not least, went to the CIRCUS on Saturday night!  Yes, there was a one-ring circus visiting Hancock, MD, and we had front row tickets (thank you mom!). It was crazy. It was awesome. It was a little scary (I could have touched the elephants as they passed by. And I'm pretty sure my holding L a little tighter wouldn't have saved us if they had decided to rebel at that moment).

Yes, it was an awesome weekend. And I haven't even told you what we did on Memorial Day!

P.S. If you too are looking for serenity as well as fun, our cabin is on the rental market! Let me know.

Exciting day

also, this.

We got a big suitcase.

7 years!

On Sunday, my husband and I celebrated our seventh anniversary!
We also celebrated his birthday on Friday.
My mom watched the kids to allow us to go away for the first anniversary weekend ever since we had kids! Thank you, Mama!
It was really wonderful. We went to St. Michaels , on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, and stayed at a sweet little B&B  right in town. It wasn't luxurious, but it was fine for our needs and the location couldn't be beat.

We spent the day Saturday just wandering around the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, which is impressive. My favorite part of the weekend, though, was this:

 

I have been wanting to eat crabs with my husband for a while. Even though I've probably only had steamed crabs a handful of times in my life, somehow, it was important to me to share this part of my Maryland culture with him. It brought back memories of summers spent at the beach in Lewes, DE with my grandparents. And as we embark on this journey which will likely cause our children to be confused about where they come from, I wanted to get in touch with my MD roots. In my travels over the years, I have often brought crab or Chesapeake Bay related gifts to hand out. Though I didn't grow up near the Bay, its culture and products are things I'm proud of as a Marylander.

 My husband was a bit taken aback when they handed him a hammer and a steak knife. And yes, it was messy. But I think he enjoyed himself.

Here we are after eating 6 crabs each. I anticipated not being full, since each crab only carries a small amount of meat, but we were stuffed! The day was gorgeous and we were sitting on the water...perfection. We hope to come back next time we're in DC, and we vowed to bring the kids to eat crabs.

Here's to another 7 more, sweetheart!

tues

My mama took me away to our cabin in West Virginia for a spa weekend- it was glorious. I haven't been to our cabin in about 5 years, I think, and it was so good to be back and just lie there in the living room, looking at the green, green trees through the huge windows. It's only about 1.5 hours from the DC area, so if anyone is longing for a relaxing, nature-filled weekend, check out this site. And of course, it was great being with mom. On the way back, we spent 4 hours at the outlet malls! Really, it was a perfect weekend- thank you Mama and D for taking care of the kids!

Yesterday was a big adjustment- one of our classmates is gone and we have a new teacher, a young Cuban man. I like him a lot, but it's just a different atmosphere in class now. We spent the afternoon learning more about Cuba and I was totally riveted. I had another Spanish evaluation and my consultant says I'll do just fine on the test. They really gave me a generous Spanish schedule.

Today I attended the 2nd day of the Security overseas seminar. It covered such uplifting topics as WMD, hostage taking, and managing crises. I took the first day last month, but missed the 2nd due to a sick daughter. Frankly, I'm kind of glad I split them up, as it's really an intense and scary two days. I'm glad we are required to take it, though. I think I finally have the motivation I need to get our paperwork in order so that we will be ready in the event of an emergency. I'm totally capable of doing this, but have just been dragging my feet. But I am committed to making it happen. Wish me luck.

the end of a little era

Two big things happened today- the first of my Spanish classmates passed his test (congrats, A!) and today was the last day of class with our Venezuelan professor. We actually had him for 11 weeks, which may be a record of some sort. Usually, the professor is changed every 4-5 weeks, and I have no idea why we had him for so long, but I'm grateful. He is a wonderful and caring teacher who helped me immensely.

It sounds like the 3 of us will remain together and we'll have a new teacher on Monday. But of course, anything can happen. Maybe we'll gain some classmates. I have only 4.5 weeks until I test. My other two classmates test a week earlier- I don't know why I was given the longest training, but you won't hear me complain. Spanish class is wonderful. I love the language, the schedule, the teachers, the music, the food. This week, we had Venezuelan arepas during class! That really brought me back 20 years. 

I'm trying to start getting things done. But this weekend, I'm going away with my mom to West VA for a spa weekend. Looking forward to waking up in our WV cabin surrounded by trees. Hope you all have a good weekend, too.

one step closer

Whew. I am completely exhausted. Just got back from a family trip to Main State to apply for passports. We could have done it at FSI, too, but at Main State they will take passport photos for free, so we went there. Having already dropped like $80 on pp photos (before we learned about HST), we were all over that. Especially since post recommends we bring 6 each.

I think the exhaustion must be due to the cold I seem to be getting, since I really can't blame the process. It was really pretty easy. The photos were quick, even though there were lots of people waiting for IDs (hint: go to the ID office for pics first, and bring your TMTHREE that lists how many photos post wants you to bring, if you need more than the minimum of 6 each). It was a bit stressful trying to keep the kids quiet (ok, mainly my 3yo) while waiting for them to review our pp apps and allow us to leave. In fact, it occurred to me that an ample portion of my future life will be spent worrying about my kids' behavior in front of important people or in important places. Ack! Sure, I've always worked hard to make sure my kids have nice manners and appropriate behavior, but this new life is going to take it to a new level.

Time to go lie down while the little one is napping. More soon, I hope.