Boston Harbor

Summer in New England! Boston is wonderful! There is so much to do...so many neat American sites to see. We took a boat ride in the inner and outer harbors of Boston.










We rode the train into downtown this morning so we started the day off in Boston Common. In Boston Common they have this Frog Park for the kids to play in. Ben and Madi needed some fun like this.

Madi skipping and running after we got off our cruise around the Harbor...look at that view! This is on Long Wharf....the place were the last British soldiers left.

Paul Revere's home.

See the Old North Church...Paul Revere went there to warn the country of the march of the British troops coming....most of us know that story. Both the kids have learned all this in Social Studies and may have known more about this stuff than Steve and I.

Paul Revere's home and the Old North Church are in Little Italy. If you want to visit Italy all you have to do is come to Boston...their little Italy is HUGE and has everything you could want.

Boston is the place to have a summer home that's for sure.

Salem, Massachusetts

We made it to Boston!!! We had fun driving through New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island and into Massachusetts. It feels New England and I love it! It's beautiful everywhere you look...especially by the water. We are using our rewards points from our credit card to get free hotel nights so we are at the north Boston Colonial Sheraton...it's really nice just not downtown but that's okay....we are 10 miles from Salem. If you know me at all I LOVE LOVE LOVE Halloween. And if you have heard about Salem you it's a real Halloween town from their witchy history. We went and what a neat place. I HAD to get a picture of my two pumpkins with the town sign...won't this be cool framed for Halloween. Witch Heights is the name of the elementary school there and the football team is The Witches. There is a celebration the whole month of October there....I want to go...can you imagine how pretty with those homes and trees in the fall.


I liked this sign too.








Here was a marina in Salem...Madi didn't like the extreme fishy smell.

Today is Steve's birthday. When we were planning this trip Boston was the #1 place he wanted to go...so for a birthday treat we planned to arrive in Boston on his birthday. Back in 1960, Dunkin Doughnuts was born in Boston. Today they are on every street corner. So we picked up a dozen to celebrate Steve's birthday...you gotta do what you gotta do when your on the go. It was funny, Ben and Madi could hardly sing they were laughing so hard. Tomorrow...Freedom Trail downtown Boston, Harvard and Boston College...do you have any suggestions of must do's here?

Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island

Today we enjoyed walking all over lower Manhattan. What a wonderful time we had viewing the Statue of Liberty...felt like we were living a dream with our kids.

At the entrance of Battery Park.

Waiting in line to get on our boat.

We rode on Miss Liberty.

Ellis Island was our stop after Liberty Island.

Look at the view of the southern tip of Manhattan as you head out into the harbor towards Lady Liberty.

Today we also enjoyed a few stops on the upper east side of Manhattan. See the kids and I in front of The Plaza....look at the Eloise flag right next to the American flag. Man we have been on the go in this city for two days...my legs! We have one more full day and then we head north east for a few days. When I get back home to Atlanta I will post ALL of our stops from Washington DC, New York, Boston and our ride home. I can say NYC is the BEST!!!

Philadelphia....WOW!

Yes we are in the City Of Brotherly Love. But first thank you to our family in Virginia and Maryland we just left, for all you did for us and the wonderful memories!


To see the best sights of the city we hitched a ride on the double decker bus tour.

Ben and Madi in front of Independence Hall...where the Declaration of Independence was signed. Isn't is beautiful.

The Liberty Bell!!! This was the best picture of the kids with the bell I could get...the place was PACKED...at least 200 people in line ahead of us to get in.

For me going to Betsy Ross's house was a highlight...she was the person who made (not designed) the first American flag.

Philadelphia Museum Of Art aka "the Rocky steps". It was so hot we did not run up them.

I am no art buff but I do know The Thinker. Here is Philly is the largest collection of Rodin outside of France...I didn't know that before today.

The streets of Philadelphia.

Yes for dinner we ate at Sonny's...'real' Philly cheese steaks. What is your favorite steak place here. We polled....Sonny's was recommended the most and then Jim's.

This is looking outside our hotel window. We are in the Marriott one block from that MASSIVE City Hall. Macy's is across the street on the 3 bottom floors. Did you ever see the movie Manican? That is the window down there from the movie.

Philadelphia I knew would be nice, that is why we slotted a stay here, but there is so much more to it than I ever knew! We could use more time here. We drove 95 from Baltimore to Philly and tomorrow we will get back on it heading north...I can't wait.

Washington DC

We made it to Washington DC. I LOVE this place. We enjoyed the evening outside...it was a fun, hot summer night. We have a few days here visiting family before heading north. Tomorrow we are going to Air and Space with our own personal tour guide...our Aunt Onalee...she works there!

Clemson

So today after Ben's orthodontist apt., Madi's diabetes supply got there UPS and the house was cleaned we hit the road Jack. Steve said, "Clemson has been suckin' for the last few years but they are still getting lots of good recruits." So we decided to go check out Clemson for ourselves to see what the big deal was....BEAUTIFUL campus...clean, hilly, trees....BEAUTIFUL!

Across the street from the football stadium there is a park dedicated to all of those who have fallen in the line of duty.

If someone has attended Clemson and then been killed in action their name in engraved somewhere at this park. I LOVE THAT! Who would have thought Clemson has so much honor.

Howard's Rock. If you are a Clemson fan or just college football people like us....there is that landmark. And that hill the guys run down into the field on game day is STEEP. I wouldn't want to do that on national TV.

Look at Steve....Georgia shorts with the Clemson stadium in back.

There are tiger tracks up and down all the streets.

Dinner...we were starved and this was a hit! MMM

I took this as we kept driving after dinner. It's the north side of Greenville, SC...did you about this? We didn't. This was on 25 heading north.

What a day! Our first day of our almost 3 week adventure. Steve got the Crowne Plaza in downtown Asheville on Priceline.com for fifty bucks!!!

Great American Adventure

Wide open spaces huh?!? Boy am I going to miss this house!!! It's my most favorite house we have ever lived in...of course it's the first time we have lived off-base. We are all most out of here....36 hours or less! We don't leave for Korea until the middle of August. Between now and then...Our Great American Adventure! First stop? Hint - mountains, Vanderbilt's, BIG house.












Now to get to our second stop we want to drive the Blue Ridge Parkway. They say those mountains are pretty high and the road is very curvy, you can only drive 35 MPH or less...Steve is driving!!!!!!!!!



I have been hexing and loving every minute of it. This hand quilting is the perfect summer/moving project...you can easily do it everywhere. I have a long way to go.

Georgia room to Buckeye room!!!

CRAZY! Tonight we had some people stop by and asked about renting our house...we have a sign out front. They were really nice. They went upstairs to our red Georgia room first...they liked it. While coming back downstairs they said they needed a house in this area because their son was going to Union Grove but was switching to ELCA and they had to be in a new house by the 1st of Aug. to get him enrolled...okay. Then they said he was a football player. I told them Steve knows a lot about the High School football players and that he has even worked for Scout.com So they turned to Steve and said they were avery walls parents. Steve took a step back...he knew who he was. Avery is only 16 and one of the best and has been offered 32 football scholarships. They are from Ohio, Avery was born at the hospital at Ohio State but has not gotten an offer from them...they are pretty full. The parents got serious with Steve...what did he think. They had just gotten back from Tenn., LSU-didn't like Les Miles, didn't care for Nick Saben, liked Ole Miss, went to UCLA, Stanford and Cal already, went to Oklahoma and Texas, but still really like Michigan...but their coach is about to get fired. The mom asked Steve twice if it was his kid where would he push...Steve being his normal self who never says anything that isn't nice only said not Florida at first. Oregon is the only other negative thing he said....they take kids who can't get anywhere else sometimes. They gave us their numbers just in case Avery does decide on one of the California schools they could get us football tickets...the parents said they would only go to maybe two out there so they can get plenty to share. Steve is freaked out that if they do rent our house in a few months when Avery picks his top 5 schools those coaches will come to visit this family living in OUR house...we require a picture of each one in here. And if Avery picks Tenn. his parents may find themselves evicted. Avery can commit now but he really wanted Ohio State or Georgia and they are not on the table so he may wait until his deadline in November. So the dad said being that they are from Columbus, Ohio they will enjoy the buckeye room and will proudly fly their Ohio State flag out front...well of course that is just fine with us!

Georgiamobile

Now you might have known we had a georgia room but did you know we also had a Georgiamobile...it's Steve's car.

Even that thing you put air in the tires has a "G" on them. This is the car we are taking to Korea...I bet we get some stares?

This is just a fun picture of Madi living it up on that boogie board she loved playing with at Tybee Island. She looks like Madi Duke...doesn't it look like she is letting out a big YE HAW.

Today is Steve's last day at work. Monday is his final out. Steve is a Weather Forecaster in the Air Force but does the weather for the Army. So the Army had a little thing for him since he is leaving and Steve has to say a few words. His words: "He has enjoyed every minute of his time here but he is taking his talents down to South Beach." HA HA HA HA!!!!! There is never a dull moment around here!