Leaving DC-Wednesday

Today, we spent our last morning in DC getting in whatever we could....April got in some extra sleep...Joan and Gary walked the area around the hotel including seeing the Old Post Office, Ford's Theater, and the house where Lincoln died among other buildings around 10th street.....Josh walked about 8 miles going from the hotel to the Jefferson Memorial, back up to the mall at the Washington up Capitol Hill around to the Supreme Court to pick up a book, down the Hill to the old DCFD on 3rd street and back up Constitution Avenue to meet everyone at the National Archives....


We toured the National Archives, where sparse crowds made it very nice to see the Big Three documents: The Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights.....After another 30 minutes, we headed back to the hotel to check out....April had everything packed, Gary loaded up the bell cart, and Josh trekked eight blocks to get the car...

Next, we headed for Mt. Vernon...After a quick lunch in the Food Court, we strolled up the hill to see George Washington's Estate...What a view of the Potomac from the back porch.....So much history to view and what an estate he had....He made a tremendous living on land specualtion and made sure he, his family, his friends, and even strangers were welcome when they came to Mt. Vernon to visit....He is buried on the south side of the Estate in a brick tomb beside his wife, Martha....They have a great "Education Center" that goes through Washington's life although we moved through it rapidly.....Mind is on history overload.....




Our time at Mt. Vernon caused us to miss the closing time at James Madison's Montpeleir we thought, so we stopped for a brief history lesson at the Chanceorsville Battlefield Visitor's Center....However, when we got to Montpeleir the gate was open and we were even able to visit the welcome center and get a few pictures of Madison's House and his rotunda/gazebo he called his Temple.....The Father of our Constitution lived on a vast estate that now includes a horse racing track that was added when it was sold to the DuPonts.....Oh yeah, in between we stopped several times to try to get an Eric Cantor campaign sign for Mickey......


We headed out of Orange south towards Charlottesville taking a very scenic route down Hwy. 20....In Charlottesville, we got a good dose of life as a Cavalier on the campus of the University of Virgnia as we shopped and ate on "The Corner"....After dinner, we drove around the outskirts of UVA's campus and then, out to the Monticello area and our hotel for the night.....

Tomorrow brings an end to a great week of travel with lots of history....We plan to go to Monticello in the morning and then head south with stops at the Appomattox Court House and Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, NC before rolling into Winder, Ga later tomorrow evening.....

History Musuems Day

Today, we slept in a little bit then took the metro to Foggy Bottom and had breakfast in the George Washington University Bookstore....While in the Merlin Student Union, we stopped by the bookstore and got Josh another baseball T-shirt....

We then took the metro back to the National Mall and visited the Musuem of American History....April viewed the First Ladies' Dresses and got some pointers on quilting before heading over the the Musuem of Natural History, but Gary got his money's worth on American History as we spent 4 1/2 hours learning new US History....Then, we headed over to meet April at the Science Smithsonian, where she lead us around the "hot" spots....We were able to enter the butterfly greenhouse, which houses butterflies that are native all over the world....April ran into Sheri Landon, a Lassiter colleague, who was touring DC with her family....What a small world....After seeing the Hope Diamond, dinosaurs, oceans area, and the mammals, we headed back to Hotel Harrington....

One more dinner and after visiting the National Archives tomorrow, we are off to Mt. Vernon and Montpeleir before spending the night in Charlottesville.....More history, but no way we can get as much as we got today...What a trip---legs are tight and sore, but well worth it....

Monday on Capitol Hill

Yesterday was a long day but we made our rounds on Capitol Hill and beyond. We had breakfat at union station, then trekked up the well secured Hill to the Russell Senate offices where we were able to go in Saxby's office. We then went over for a quick tour of the Supreme Court and next door to the Library of Congress-Jefferon building. We met Ben Miller at Tom Price's office and gave us a thorough tour of the Capitol building. What a nice kid! Then we had another hot dog on the corner before quickly going through the Musuem for the American Indian. Gary danced with some young kids who were performing tribal dances. Gary and Joan went on the the Air & Space museum while Josh & April headed to College Park to see Amanda Kary. We finished off the day with our best college tour ever as Amanda walked us around her beloved Univ of Maryland. We had dinner at a very swanky restuarant inside the student union. Amanda is very proud and really is the top of the class type college kid.

Tomorrow, it's off to the History musuems....running out of gas....

Arlington Cemetery and west end of National Mall

Today was a big day of sight-seeing and walking...Everyone made it fine, but after more than 6 1/2 miles of walking we all decided it was the perfect time to order pizza and hang out in the hotel room tonight....We got to see Arlington National Cemetery and the west end of the National Mall....Below is the path we made today as we had an exciting day as the weather was perfect and Gary was the leader of the pack....

Left the Hotel Harrington and took the metro from Metro Center to Foggy Bottom-GWU...Had breakfast in the GWU hospital cafeteria (actually right at the metro station and very good--good, unusual find).....Took the metro to Arlington National Cemetery....Used the tourmobile service which stopped at JFK's gravesite (also saw the Supreme Court Justices' graves in the same area), then at the Tomb of the Unknowns (viewed the memorial sites plus Audie Murphy's grave in the same area), and then the third stop at the Lee-Custis House where we toured Robert E. Lee's old home that the Union stole from him at the beginning of the Civil War (also Abner Doubleday is buried behind the house)....We we got back to the visitor's center, we decided to walk the 1.5 miles across Memorial Bridge to the Lincoln Memorial area....Gary won the race across the bridge, but said he would have paid $15 for a cold Dr. Pepper....After getting some water, we strolled up through the Korean War Memorial then up the steps to the Lincoln Memorial....Making our way northeat, Gary finally got to see the long awaited Vietnam Memorial Wall where he found a name he recognized....We grabbed a hotdog on a corner stand by The Fed before heading to the best memorial of all, World War II Memorial, which is fairly new and located between the Washington and Lincoln Memorials.....Gary and Joan both made some new friends as a group of WWII vets from Wisconsin were being escorted by a group called Operation Resolve (Mr. Wink said he was in a submarine that got stuck in the mud and the rocked the sub until they got out of the mud 130-plus feet deep in the Pacific).....Next was the best part because we got Gary to ride 500 feet up the Washingotn Monument to get a bird's eye view of the Nation's Capital (What a View!)......Although we were wearing down, we finished with a trek across The Ellipse up the the south lawn of the White house, then around the Eisenhower Executive Office Building and then east on Pennsylvania Avenue to view the north lawn of the White House in the daylight.....We concluded our day with the six block stroll back to the Hotel Harrington.....According to Google, we walked 6.6 miles.....Below are a few pictures from early in the day....

Tomorrow is going to be spent on Capitol Hill, where we plan to visit a few offices, Supreme Court, Library of Congress, and the Capitol.....Another day of walking but plenty to do and see....Weather is suppose to be even better tomorrow.....

Fall Break DC Trip

We have been blessed once again to embark on another trip of 2010....We left yesterday with Joan and Gary for a visit to Washington DC....Our trip consist of about 4 legs; two of which are complete....

Friday we left Lassiter and drove to Winder to pick up Josh's parents before heading to Hillsborough, NC....We made a pitstop in Spartanburg, SC, then stopped for a delicious dinner at Lexington BBQ in the Barbeque Capital of the World, Lexington, NC...Gary had seen this place on the Food Channel many times, so we stopped and it lived up to the hype...We made it to the Microtel Inn and Suites at about 9:30 Friday night....

We awoke early this morning to pack the car and have breakfast...One of our former students (and Lassiter softball great), Kelli Wheeler, met us at one of her favorite eating places, Elmo's Diner in Carrboro, NC....What a great kid to get up early on a Saturday morning to have breakfast with a former coach and his family...If all our meals are as good as this one, we are going to be so fat when we get back to Georgia....We drove around UNC's campus, but it was hard to get a good feel of the campus due to their noon football game against Georgia Tech...But as always, Josh did add another baseball T-shirt to his collection....

Then, we headed 10 miles up the road the the enemy campus and made a quick visit to the Duke University bookstore to add a second shirt of the day.....Once again, campus was just about paralyzed due to the visit from number one ranked, defending national champion, Alabama, being in town today....

The longest stretch of the day awaited us as we hauled up I-85 and I-95 to Richmond, VA.....The best treat of the day awaited us at The John Marshall House....Mr. E.L. Butterworth gave us a very insightful, intimate, and passionate tour of the Great Chief Justice's home....

After over an hour there, we walked over to the Virginia State Capital grounds, which is much more prestigous than our state capital....

After grabbing a bite to eat, we made the hour drive to Fredericksburg and saw the Fredericksburg Battlefield Visitor's Center, which is at the location of the Old Sunken Road and the Stonewall, where the Confederate Army held off the Union troops for awhile in 1862.....Very informative, but not too intense---nice place to stop and get some Civil War history to break up the ride...

Finally, we made our way into the nation's Capital from the south.....We got a great view of the Pentagon and the Washington Monument before going under the Mall and up to our hotel on 11th and E streets....We are staying at the 1914 Hotel Harrington...We have a room that has the old 5 panel wood doors and you actually use a real key to get in the door...This place was cheap, but location and history makes it perfect for this trip...We made the 4 block walk over to the White House (actually went north a few blocks to bring Gary in through Lafeyette Park, so he could experience the"WOW" factor of seeing the White House from the north side....The bad part of the trip so far has been the fact that Obama or someone important was out in the north lawn or on the porch, so we could only get as close as the middle of Lafeyette Park....We came back to the hotel and stopped for a late dinner at Mr. Kary's favortie place, Ollie's Trolley, which is actually connected to the hotel....

Check back tomorrow for updates about Arlington and the west end of the Mall.....Forecast is hot, but should be the best day yet.....

It's Official

My degree was awarded from Mississippi State! It's official - I'm a graduate with a Master's Degree!!!

Back to School

Well, the first real week of school is in the books! My classes have pretty much settled in....I've been blessed with smaller class sizes (my largest is around 25) & some really fun kids! Praise the Lord! Some of my students I've had for other classes, so it's fun to have them again...Josh is teaming 4 classes and has 1 small-group Government....we've both been able to get home at a pretty decent hour, which Allie is very excited about! I'm sure that won't last for very long, but for now it's nice!



My bulletin boards are done...I used a lot of my summer pictures to help fill in the gaps...































My advisement seniors helped to decorate my door.....FUN! I can't believe they'll be graduating in a few short months! They've been with me since they were freshmen! Graduation is going to be emotional this year!

Last Blast Before the New School Year - Beach 2010

This summer has been a wild adventure....traveling from the Pacific to the Atlantic Oceans, visiting highest peaks and grand valleys....spending time with great friends and forging new friendships with those from far away...racking up on college/baseball visits (Josh added 6 new tshirts to his collection)....and, of course, completing my master's degree....it's been a blast!

Last week, we were privileged to be invited to go to the beach with some great friends...we celebrated birthdays, had some retail therapy, played golf, rode the waves, and got some sun....all a much enjoyed break before the school year kicks back in!

Along the way, we discovered that the noise of 6 kids under the age of 10 is not so different from the noise we hear daily in the classroom (better if you ask me because of its innocence)....I learned that going with lots of guys and kids who like to ride the waves allows me to NOT be dragged into the water as much (even though the times I did go in were great - except for that wave in the face thing!)....I was reminded of how fun it is to go shopping with the 'girls' & how much damage 6 women can do at an outlet mall!....And we were reminded of how blessed we are to have friends we can call family!

And alas, summer break comes to an end....school starts back tomorrow for teachers, and the students come in a week.....seems like forever since I've been at Lassiter, but I know I'll get back into the swing of it before long....

In all things......Psalms 92:1....."It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High."

Reflections from the Past 18 Days

I made the 'mistake' of opening our vacation/field study pictures this morning, instead of working on my last grad school assignment (oh well).....that many photos take a while, but what a way to reflect on the sights and sounds of an amazing trip.....

For me, nature is God's most prominent voice.....I am amazed at His ability to create and the ability He's given us to explore and understand His world.

Many people ask me how I can be a scientist and claim to be a Christian at the same time...I usually first tell them that I am a Christian because I am a child of God, who's been saved by Grace through the blood of Jesus; and I'm a scientist because I love seeing the things God create and enjoy exploring the intricacies of His creation......The conversation then turns to evolution and all things controversial.....without all the details, basically, I believe that my God is big enough to do whatever He wants, however He wants, and on whatever time scale He decides.....why make it more complicated than that!?! (that usually gets both sides of the debate upset with me! How could I not pick a side and act like I know it all? Oh yeah, I'm not God, so I'm not going to try.....)

On the field studies trip, apparently there was an "is there a God?" conversation that I missed out on, so here's my 2 cents.....from the incredible beauty and majesty of the snow-covered mountains to the powerful carving capabilities of the Colorado River, there is NO DOUBT that God is, was, and will be! There is NO DOUBT of His love and desire for beauty; there is NO DOUBT that He is way out of man's league when it comes to manufacturing things; and there is NO DOUBT that He's given us an amazing gift through His creation.

So, take some time to enjoy His creation this summer and reflect on the amazing love He shows through the brillance of His world.

"The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; for he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters." Psalm 24:1

Day 7 - Yosemite & Getting Home

Entering Yosemite National Park....




Marmot @ Yosemite


Tunnels throughout Yosemite....



Bridalveil Falls @ Yosemite....so much water that up close, you can't even see the falls & you get soaking wet!

El Capitan.....

Deer just hanging out on the trail to Yosemite Falls......8 pointer!

Upper and Lower Yosemite Falls....

Half Dome visible on the right.....

Walked about 3-4 miles in the park today...could've spent at least another day here! Still a lot to see and explore!!!!

The next day, we spent about 5 hours in the car driving back to Ontario....

"Brown Haze" of LA....here in GA, we just call it smog, but heaven forbid an ugly word like that was used in California.

Dinner courtesy of MSU.....the rental vehicles had already been turned in, so we had to wait on the shuttle to get back to the hotel....Jeremy may have been quiet, but when he did say something, it was usually hilarious! Casey, Dave, Susanna, Nathan and Tom thought so too!

Me and Susanna.....Last night with the roommie!

Day 6 - Mono Lake

Well, surprise! We have internet access here in Lake June! Today, we visited Mono Lake and a few other places...Mono was very interesting....I'll give you the details in person later! Tomorrow is a break-neck speed race around Yosemite...hopefully get in about 6 miles of hiking! May not post tomorrow night, but we'll see!

Aaron at Obsidian Dome.....strong man contest (the rock is pumice & is very light).....


This obsidian rock is different in that it's banded....doesn't happen a lot!...and there was snow on the dome, so of course we had to make a snowman...we named him Bully.


Yellow-headed blackbird near Black Point....he's guarding a nest.....

The 'cabin' front porch...Tom, Nathan, Jamie, Steve H, Eileen, and Jeremy....waiting to go to dinner...inside the cabin.....

Mono Lake..... as the sun is beginning to set.....

And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness....And God said, "Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water." So God made the expanse and separated the water from the sky. And it was so.....And God said, "Let the sky be gathered to one place, and let the dry ground appear. And it was so. (Genesis 3-9, shortened)


Tufa on Mono Lake... these figures are basically the result of a 25 foot decrease in water level....the calcium carbonate precipitated out of solution in the water creating these columns above the current lake level.

Our night-time visitor!

-A