Christmas in Washington

Erin, Stacy, Jessi & Rachel enjoying the White House Christmas tree, you can't tell by the picture, but apparently half of the country was there to enjoy the tree with us!

The White House

The White House Christmas Tree

The Treasury Department -- this is just a small example of how beautiful all of Washington D.C. is at Christmas.
A few of the 50 Christmas Trees that surround the large White House Christmas Tree...1 for each state. Oh, and you know all of those Nativity scenes that have had to be removed from government property across the country? There is one front in center on the Ellipse.

Last Weekend Home

The weekend of November 4th was Drew's last weekend home, so we decided to make the best of it and went to Annapolis, Maryland. It was a great weekend, sunny weather (though a little chilly), Drew loved the sailboats and yachts, I loved the beautiful old houses and charm of Old Town, and we have a fun memory together to last us until Andrew comes home.

Maryland's State House is the oldest still in use today.

View of Annapolis

Annapolis really is a must see for anyone who likes history, architecture, sailing, shopping, oh yeah and a lot of sailors! :) Sorry girls, I didn't get any Naval Academy cadet pictures, what was I thinking?
A signer of the Declaration of Independence once live here

On the drive home...this is the Shenandoah Valley

Not Annapolis...

I don't know what this bush is, but it was fun to see Spring-like pink buds next to the fall colors!


This is just JMU's arboretum in Harrisonburg, but Drew and I had a nice little autumn "hike" just 5 minute from our house.

The long awaited trip has begun..

Drew left for his trip Down Range on Nov. 8th, I know it's been a while, but you can now check out Drew's Journeys for his updates! He already has one, as they have gotten as far as Iceland at this point, but are held up due to a storm.

A BASEBALL GAME IN THE BRONX

At last I've arrived! A baseball game in Yankee Stadium...it was well worth the wait. I bought the tickets back in April, and was hoping it would be everything I ever dreamed it would be. I thought it would be something I could cross off of my "before I die I need to.." list, but it only wet my appetite for more! I couldn't think of a better way to spend our 4th anniversary, and considering sports aren't Andrew's favorite thing in the world I felt very special that he was willing to come.

The visiting team's dugout is conveniently located next to Monument Park, so they remember who's house they are in...Lou Gehrig, Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, shall I go on? They're also frequently reminded of the 26 World Championships.


Happy 4th Anniversary!
If you can't make out the final score it is Yankees 16, Orioles 5 -- if only the post season had turned out as well.

Liberty & Ellis Islands

In those names somewhere may be the very person Andrew needs to thank for making the trip across the Atlantic so he could be born an American.


Southern Manhattan from Ellis Island -- I'm sure the skyline has changed since the hayday of Ellis Island (especially that helicopter), but one can only imagine what the immigrants thought as they looked across the Hudson River over to New York City.

A Morning in Southern Manhattan

Taking a rest in the graveyard of Trinity Church.

St. Paul's Chapel, directly across the street from where the World Trade Towers once stood, considering the damage that happened to all the other neighboring buildings , it's amazing to see that the oldest of them all (by a considerable margin) went unscathed, except for 1 tree which fell in the grave yard, but not one of the VERY old tombstones were damaged. This is the church George Washington came to pray after being inaugurated as our first President.


If you look at a map of Manhattan and see where the City Hall stands you will appreciate that the back of this beautiful building was not finished in marble, as the rest of the building was, because the architect felt it wasn't worth the cost since the city would probably not grow any farther north.

The Empire State Building

Chrysler Building from the top of the Empire State Building

I personally love the Chrysler Building for her architecture most, but there is something special about the Empire State Building, I don't know if it's because she's the tallest (since the loss of the World Trade Towers) or because of the movies, but she does hold a certain romance. In fact I was a little disappointed to find I had taken very few pictures of her, I guess it was because our hotel was only a block away, and though I remember gazing up to her spire many a time, I guess I thought I'd already taken plenty of pictures.

Images from around New York City

The New York Public Library
The Chrysler Building

Grand Central Station

Central Park

Broadway District, Last Night in NYC

We thought this was a fun picture -- New York City's Finest

Our last night in New York City, we did what you're supposed to do...dinner and a show. Despite many grumblings from my poor husband forced into this situation, even he admitted afterwards that it was a fun experience and he'd do it again! (That's very good for me!) Our friends Justin & Laurel had drove in from Philadelphia to join us for the day, we convinced them to come to dinner with us, even if not dressed for a show -- we had a wonderful time.

Freedom Walk Sept. 10, 2006

The group + Stacy (taking the picture)

181 blue lights spotlighted the Pentagon, 1 for each person lost in the Pentagon on 9-11-01

Ok, Ok, I know I'm a bit late on this, I was scolded for not having NYC pictures, and I realized I'd never put the Freedom Walk pictures on! These pictures are all courtesy of Stacy, who unfortunately was always behind the camera, and not in front..Andrew had stolen my camera, so I was without, and felt quite out of sorts..thankfully Stacy made up for my slack.