Hurricane Irene

This last week we had a bit of rain and we had a mushroom growing in our backyard.  I took a photo of it...I know, I know, I'm a bit crazy!  But it turned out to be my before photo.  Before what?  This is what the mushroom looked like before Hurricane Irene.

And this is what the mushroom looked like after Hurricane Irene.  Poor thing, it got pushed over.  Now I'm not trying to make light of the devastation in other areas of the East Coast.  But we really didn't have any problems.  But I was prepared if we had to stay here without power for several days.  I'm just glad we didn't have to use the flashlights and bottles of water.

Our new place...before and after

Our new place is great...but it took me a couple weeks to realize this.  And it's because the town house was full of boxes.  I wasn't sure we had room for all of our stuff.  Here's the before photo of the guest room.

And the after photo of the guest room.

And this is a different view of the guest room.

This is the before photo of the master's bedroom.

And the after photo of the master's bedroom.

The before photo of the dining room and a bit of the kitchen.

And the after photo of the dining room.

The before photo of the basement/living room.

And the after photo of the basement/living room.  I have to add that the house feels now like a home with all of our stuff out of boxes.  I love feeling like everything has a place...I like order.

Here's my cute little kitchen!

And the photo of the front of our townhouse.

And finally, here's the backyard.  This was the weeds/grass that I cut with scissors to make the yard look more orderly and nice.   I've also planted some basil, parsley and rosemary.  I hope they come up quickly.

Earthquake

Before the earthquake...

After the earthquake...(and here's the story)

Tuesday Aug. 23, 2011, 1:50pm.
I had finished eating my dinner (sorry, I mean lunch...I called lunch dinner) and was on my laptop at the dining room table.  I started feeling a vibration, like a large truck going past the townhouse.  But after a small amount of time, the vibration didn't go away but got stronger and stronger.  My first thought was "this is an earthquake, but Virginia doesn't have earthquakes, but this is an earthquake."  And as the house began shaking harder and harder I wondered about the structure of the townhouse, enough that I walked to the front door and stood in the doorway.

And as things began falling and banging I left the house.  I walked out on the sidewalk, hoping that others would come out of their townhouses.  And after a short period of time, they did.  My neighbor came walking out with his 4 month old baby and dog and asked me "what was that?"  I told him it was an earthquake.  He said he'd never been in an earthquake and proceeded to tell me that he was Skype-ing to the UK when the earthquake hit.  His dog didn't react to anything.  Crazy.  About 5-10 minutes after the earthquake, the sirens (police, ambulance, and fire) began and continued for about 20 minutes.

I talked to him for a short time and then went back into the house.  I tried calling SM but the call wouldn't go through, so I called my mom.  I wasn't calling to tell her that I was okay, I just needed to talk to someone because my nerves were on the "hyper" setting.  I spoke to her for about 10 minutes before the call was cut off.  The power wasn't out and so I got onto the Internet to learn more about the earthquake.  I was able to talk to SM over Facebook and soon got some text messages and was able to let my family know that I was okay.  And in the end I was able to Skype with my mom and I ended up showing her our new place.

And as I was Skype-ing with Mom, showing her each room, I noticed the things that had fallen and yet not broken.  I had a picture that I had placed on top of a bookcase that fell onto a dining room chair but the glass wasn't broken.  Drawers in my cheap dresser had worked their way open.  A couple things had fallen off the TV and CD's had toppled.  A large salt shaker had fallen down.  And everything was okay.

I had been in a couple other earthquakes in Chile.  It was crazy but I knew this one was at least a five or six on the Richter Scale.  I even mentioned that to my Mom before finding out how large the earthquake was.  And after talking to a few people, my nerves settled down and I was able to have a normal evening, remembering every once in awhile that there had been an earthquake earlier that day.

As for SM's point of view.  He didn't tell me too many things other than he was in his office, felt the earthquake and realized he was in an earthquake.  The law school was evacuated so that the building could be checked for any structural damage.  SM eventually snuck back into the school so that he could be on his computer and do some work.  And eventually they found him and sent him home from work.  And that was that...no big deal.  I'm just glad that no one was hurt and damage was minimal. 

My "green" thumb

At the beginning of this year, we moved from Ohio to Utah.  And, like always, I transported my plants in my van with me.  And when we took the plants in from the van on a very cold Wyoming night, the subzero wind killed the leaves, though the plant lived on.

And so, as we moved from Utah to Virginia, I was positive that my recovered pathos plants would like this move a lot more than the last.  And so we drove from Utah to Virginia with a couple planned stops, such as a few days in Ohio visiting friends.  And because the weather was so pleasant, I didn't bring the plants indoors, and the heat inside the van went up and up.  And cooked the top of the pathos plants.

And there goes any thought about having a green thumb.  I love growing things but I guess I'll just have to be more careful at transporting already grown plants.  By the way, the plants are quickly recovering (for a second time) and are looking much better with the black leaves gone and tiny little green leaves growing.

Mount Rushmore

"The purpose of the memorial is to communicate the founding, expansion, preservation, and unification of the United States with colossal statues of Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt." Gutzon Borglum
As we were traveling across the country, we also stopped by Mount Rushmore.  Wow!  What a cool site!

Mount Rushmore National Memorial is host to almost three million visitors a year from across the country and around the world. They come to marvel at the majestic beauty of the Black Hills of South Dakota and to learn about the birth, growth, development and the preservation of our country. Over the decades, Mount Rushmore has grown in fame as a symbol of America-a symbol of freedom and hope for people from all cultures and backgrounds.

Martin's Cove in Wyoming

Here's some information from a small pamphlet about Martin's Cove.  "The Martin's Cove Visitors' Center recognizes the story of the Martin Handcart Company that found itself caught in an early winter storm in 1856.  The Center is located on the historic Tom Sun Ranch near Devil's Gate, and on the Oregon, Mormon Pioneer, California and Pony Express Trails.

Here's Devil's Gate!

"Nearly 70,000 Mormon pioneers crossed the plains on these trails.  Comprised of some 600 European Saints, the Martin Company came through here pulling homemade handcarts on their journey to Salt Lake City, Utah.  They had encountered a devastating storm on October 19, 1856, as they reached the last crossing of the North Platte River near present-day Casper, Wyoming.  After enduring a difficult crossing and nine days of below zero temperatures, wind and snow, they were rescued by a company of volunteers sent from Salt Lake City by Brigham Young in early October.

"It was here, at Devil's Gate, that they were brought by the rescuers, cared for, and taken into an area later known as Martin's Cove in order to escape the terrible storms.  After spending five difficult days and nights in the Cove, the rescuers finally were able to lead them on to Utah, arriving on November 30, 1856.

"During their trek west, the Marin Handcart Company traveled 1300 miles, endured severe winter storms, reduced rations, and as many as 150 deaths.  Their story is one of tragedy and triumph, of determination and great faith."

As SM and I were moving across the country we stopped at Martin's Cove.  Neither of us had ever been there before and enjoyed the break in the drive.  There was a youth group walking through the visitor's center and I got a few photos.  I like this one of a small hand cart made to carry this girl on the trail.

That hill on the right side of the photo is Martin's Cove.  Wasn't that a beautiful day to take that photo?!  I'm so glad I had the opportunity to stop at Martin's Cove and learn a little bit more about my ancestors and my heritage.

Pioneer Day Slip and Slide

Pioneer Day this year with the giant slip and slide.  It's awesome that my BIL and SIL are so willing to set this up slide for everyone.  This little guy gets more speed when he is launched.

My SIL had to work on the 4th of July and was unable to join us for the slip and slide earlier in the month and so she had to try it out this time.  And, what do you know, she's a natural!

Wahoo!

Waiting for a turn on the slip and slide!

Fun was had by all!  What a fun activity!

Family Camping Trip to Moon Lake

My side of the family went camping to Moon Lake last month.  SM and I aren't campers and have never claimed to be and so we were both a little leery about three days in the "wilderness."  We ended up having a wonderful time and are excited to go camping again in the future.

Camping and lots of food always seem to go together.  SM and I were in charge of breakfast on our first morning there.  We made pancakes, sausage and scrambled eggs.  Oh, so yummy and so much food!

SM spent some calories on cutting up wood.  Later that evening we used it to burn for our tin-foil dinners and smores.  I've got a great husband!

My dad brought his canoe camping and we were able to take it out on the lake.  My brother took his two girls and boy out on the lake first and then later SM took me out.

SM paddled me across the lake and back.  I helped out a bit but I got tired often.  The next day my shoulders were very sore and so were SM's.  I did get sunburned out on the lake and really enjoyed the peace out on the lake.

We  went on a hike and I saw a deer.  We hiked up and around the lake.  It was nice to be out and to be with my family.

Here's my cute and silly mom.  I love this lady!

My other brother came with his family a little later than the rest of us.  What a fun guy...his shirt says "It's not Halloween yet...take your mask off!" 

We also played some game where you toss golf balls tied on a rope over some plastic piping.

Here are the kids...eating some melon.  Let's just say that the cousins were very excited and happy when together.  I love that they are becoming such good friends.

Camping with the family was a success!  Hope we can do it again sometime!