Jamestown II (on Land)

After we finished with the ships our young man got a taste of life ashore on the young American continent.  Indian village structures called "yehakins" were a more semi-permanent dwelling than the nomadic tepees that dotted the western and plains states.  A small village typical of the Algonquain or Powhatan tribes is juxtaposed with the high walled fort of the English settlement.  It was one big (historical) playground for the little man.

Dylan thinks the Powhatan yehakin makes a cool tent.

He's not afraid of a little manual labor!

Gotta go...more to see...

Jamestown I (From the Sea)

It was at Jamestown on May 14 1607 that John Smith came ashore with the men and boys who established the first permanent English settlement in North America.  They had set sail in February on three ships: the Susan Constant, the Discovery and the Godspeed.  Using a southern route they past the Canary islands and the Caribbean before turning north and entering the Chesapeake Bay and James River. Unlike many who would follow they came not for freedom or liberty but for profit.

Dylan was very excited - a future man of the sea perhaps?

Master and Commander?

We took Dylan down to see the re-creations of the three ships that brought the first Virginians to the new world.  He loved it - it all seemed a bit too natural for the little man.  He's pretty good on a three hour drive from Maryland but probably not ready for the 3 month sail from England...yet.

Holloween

Dylan enjoyed his first Holloween trick or treating. Our Neighbours were taking their boy (Jack) out so Dylan and Les joined in the fun. Dylan and Jack made a good pair, Jack could say "Trick or Treat" and Dylan would say "Bye bye" it was very cute. Dylan seemed to really enjoy it and even managed to collect some candy, but unfortunately he doesn't get to eat it Mummy and daddy do.

Sugar Loaf Mountain

Enjoying a few local walks while the weather is good. Sugar loaf Mountain is our local mountain around here in Mayland, not much of a mountain, but still nice to walk around, particularly this time of the year.

Happers Ferry

Visiting more places with Dylan and Bernie. We are now in Maryland so took a trip up to Happers Ferry it ended up being a beautiful day.

Touring around Virgina

Dylan and I have been enjoying some time exploring with Bernie. We have been touring around locally in VA, exploring Yorktown and Williamsburg and even got to a game of Hockey which Dylan seemed to really enjoy. It has been great having Bernie around.

Happy Birthday Les

We wish were were able to celebrate with you but unfortuntely we can not. So you will have to just listen to us singing Happy Birthday on this video. We love you and miss you, looking forward to seeing you and celebrating your birthday when you get back. xoxoxo

Family day at Busch Gardens

My sister Bernie is in town so we all decided it would be great to go to Busch Gardens. It was a beautiful day and there were plenty of rides for everyone. There was some pretty Crazy roller coasters and some great rides for Dylan to enjoy too.

The Little Man

I'm back out to sea soon - gonna miss this little dude (and his mother - of course!!)

This is going to sound crazy but I've agreed to run the Baja 1000 off-road race with the Cooley Brothers (High School friends). I've had the motorcycle off-road over the weekend getting a little experience in the dirt (or deep sand in my case!) - although we'll be doing this race on a 4 wheel All Terrain Vehicle (ATV).

This was a line item on Paul Cooley's "Bucket List" (things he wanted to do before he 'kicked the bucket'). I couldn't say no.

So, as far as the Navy knows, I'm "support crew handling navigation" (not sure what they would think of this from a Safety point of view!). But hey, they're the same guys who launched me off an aircraft carrier more times than I can remember so - who are they to object?!

More to follow on our preparations - the race is coming up in mid-November. It's actually a pretty big deal - previous competitors include Steve McQueen, James Garner, Parnelli Jones. We can expect to be passed this year by Jesse James (I think he used to be married to some famous actress), Robby Gordon who spends most of his time running left hand circles on the NASCAR circuit, and Jimmy Vassar (Ok, I do respect the Indy Car drivers). I'm not sure if we really fit in that group - but, hey...why not...it's all part of the Adventure!

At work with Les

I had the day off today, but unfortunately Les did not, so we decided it would be a good day for Dylan and I to go and visit Daddy at work. It was really good to finally see where Les works and get to go on a Carrier, it is amazingly big. Dylan really had a good time, it was like a big play ground for him, we all had a great day.

Summer in VA

The little man has been enjoying his summer, a little tennis, splashing in the water and going for rides to Williamsburg. We have been taking Dylan over to the tennis courts when we are in VA, he likes to push around his bikes and even acts as a really good ball boy. However he decided that he would like to give it ago himself. Mind you he hasn't got the grasp of using the racket to hit the ball, he uses it more as a shovel. We recently went to the Water park near us and there were lots of small water slides that we could take Dylan on, he really seemed to enjoy it and so did we. We have also been spending a few of our weekends biking down to old town Williamsburg where we pick up some produce from the farmers market and then have a picnic on the lawns. It has been a really enjoyable summer

Weekend in MD

Dylan and I are up in MD and enjoying the beautiful weather. We have spent most of the weekend in various playgrounds around our house. Dylan really took to climbing up the little mountain in one of them, he has no fear. Dylan and I have also been going bug hunting with his bug jar, but Dylan decided that he didn't need the jar he could see the bugs better without it. Got to enjoy a relaxing Sunday breakfast on the deck, which Dylan helped cook, before heading out for a hike. We love summer, but wish Daddy was with us more to enjoy it.

Brazil Trip

On the trip to the airport my little man was blowing me kisses, it was so sweet. Had an enjoyable and productive trip to Brazil. Spent 3 days in Rio and a couple of days in Sao Paulo. Rio is such a picturesque city, particularly when you get up onto one of the mountains. I arrived on Sunday morning so was able to get out and do some hiking. This time I only climbed part of the sugar loaf mountain and took the easy route. Saw quite a few monkeys taking in the view, fortunately no scratches from these ones. I enjoyed getting back to my boys by the end of it.

Goodbye

Well, I've got a few weeks at home (rare these days) but Michelle needed to fly down to Rio (Brazil) for the week...so, the boys have the place to ourselves (wish us luck!)

...and so it goes. We dropped her off at the airport this afternoon and miss her already. Already looking forward to her return at the end of the week.

Calls to mind a song by Michelle's favorite Aussie band, "the Waifs:"

"Jet plane, fast train, automobile

sometimes we fly on a wing

sometimes we roll on wheels

'I gotta go,' - I know how it feels

but you know it's just part of the deal.

~

Baby there's no such thing as goodbye

just an interlude on a long wild ride

if you're in my heart then you're by my side

and baby there's no such thing as goodbye"

See ya soon Aussie girl!