Summer Fun in DC Part 1

Before we got settled in, we tried to see as much of the DC area that we could.

The Kennedy Center as we drove in to see Mary Poppins with JD's parents.

Historic Jamestown- such a neat place! You feel like you've walked back in time.

This is where Jamestown actually was. The bricks mark the foundations of the buildings.

An original Jamestown church

This was an area in Jamestown where they represented the Revolutionary War.

They shot the cannon for us and I was soooo excited! I've never seen a cannon shot in real life.

All that smoke is from the cannon shot.

This guy talked about the medical procedures they used back during the Revolutionary War.

JD says that he carried water in one of these things on his mission.

We celebrated Dad Santini's birthday with an arrowhead cake I made.

It was a hit- Dad usually is not a cake eater- but he couldn't resist a cake representing one of his favorite hobbies.

We toured the National Cathedral- a beautiful building.

Here, at Yorktown, we were able to see original tent structures from the Revolutionary War that belonged to George Washington.

Yorktown is where America won the Revolutionary War.

This is an example of the earth structures that the soldiers built to hide behind as they fought.

The town of Yorktown is quite charming.

We headed over to Redskins Spring Training one Saturday morning so JD could enjoy watching the players and I could enjoy watching JD watch the players. He was like a kid in a candy shop.

I don't know this dude's name, but he's my favorite player. He spent quite a bit of time with the boy with Cerebral Palsy after the practice.

One day we were flipping through the channels and found out that Glen Beck was going to have a rally. I've never been to a rally before. We had to go. It would be too cool to miss. I was absolutely SHOCKED at the number of people who were there.

So many people that I got claustrophobic and we had to leave early. But I can say we went!

Back to August

Am I really THAT far behind with my blog updates?! Where I last left off, minus the random posts I threw in, was back on our journey across the country. After we hit Memphis, we drove to Louisville, Kentucky.

Our first stop was Louisville Slugger, which is where most of the baseball bats are made for major league baseball players and teams.

They let you right into the factory where the bats are made.

Louisville Slugger made Babe Ruth's bats.

This is one of Babe Ruth's bats.

Next we went to Churchill Downs- home of the Kentucky Derby.

A lovely display of fancy hats that derby goers wore.

I think I need one of these.

They were training horses on the track while we were there.

Here is one of the race horses.

This is in the jockeys' locker room.

Not exactly fancy digs.

The jockeys warm up on this mechanical horse.

They even let us go check out where the millionaires hang out.

 

We got to go into where the announcer sits. Here is his script left on his desk.

The Christmas Spirit

So I’ve got a confession to make. I’m not in the Christmas spirit. I know what you’re thinking- does this chick have a candy cane up her tush? I know, I know….but this is unusual for me. I love  Christmas everything- the lights, decorating the tree, the music- in fact we get a Christmas ornament from every place we visit. I actually tried to get in the Christmas spirit early. I put up our tree in November. I hunted down my favorite Yankee candle so that smells of Christmas would dance around me. I’ve made myself listen to Christmas music on the radio when I’d really rather listen to NPR. I’ve killed my diet to consume Christmas treats knowing full well I’d suffer the painful consequences.

But it isn’t doin’ it for me. Even the adorable gingerbread house JD and I made- not working. To be honest, life is not quite handing me the winning hand at the moment. I don’t write this looking for attention or “Atta’ boy” comments. I wouldn’t probably post this kind of thing at all, but I read something the other day that really touched me.

In Elder Holland’s book Shepherds, Why This Jubilee?, he says:

“As happens so often if we are not careful, the symbols can overwhelm the symbolized. […We] need to remember the very plain scene, even the poverty, of a night devoid of tinsel or wrapping or goods of this world. Only when we see that single, sacred, unadorned object of our devotion, the Babe of Bethlehem, and understand his mission to save all mankind will we know why ‘’tis the season to be jolly.’

“[…] In these very last and most painful hours of her ‘confinement,’ Mary had ridden or walked approximately one hundred miles from Nazareth in Galilee to Bethlehem in Judea. Surely Joseph must have wept at her silent courage. Now, alone and unnoticed, they had to descend from human company to a stable, a grotto full of animals, there to bring forth the Son of God.

“I wonder what emotions Joseph might have had as he cleared away the dung and debris. I wonder if he felt the sting of tears as he hurriedly tried to find the cleanest straw and hold the animals back. I wonder if he wondered ‘Could there be a more unhealthy, a more disease-ridden, a more despicable circumstance in which a child could be born? Is this a place fit for a king?’

“[…] With only Joseph’s inexperienced assistance, [Mary] herself brought forth her firstborn son, wrapped him in little clothes she had knowingly brought on her journey, and perhaps laid him on a pillow of hay. […] Except for heavenly witnesses, these three were alone: Joseph, Mary, and the baby to be named Jesus.”

When I’ve pictured the nativity, I’ve always pictured wise men, shepherds, fluffy sheep, and little kids banging their wings into each other. But this year, I feel more of a connection to the manger scene as it is so accurately described by Elder Holland. Christ descended below all things so He can be there for me. This year the tinsel doesn’t have its usual sparkle, the wrapping paper isn’t shimmering quite as brightly, but because (for whatever reason) the magic of Christmas has been stripped away, it has left me feeling the light of Christ shining in my heart more than ever before.

I look forward to the lifetime of Christmases that will be full of magic. I will always love candy canes and stockings. But this year I'm thankful for this lesson. I’m thankful to my Savior for coming. I need Him.

I suppose I’m filled with more of the Christmas spirit than I thought.

4 Years

I've seen so many cute posts from women on their anniversaries, sharing special thoughts, and those cute poems like:

4 years
3 basketball injuries
2 pets (except for the dead goldfish)
And a partridge in a pear tree

........ or something like that. And who can resist the opportunity to post a pic or two of the wedding dress? Seriously- I don't think I've ever looked so fabulous! (I've declared it ok to be vain about how one looks on one's wedding day).

But this year, it seems lacking. I am quite emotional as I look back at the 4 short years we've spent together. I'm in awe at how much living we've done. It's been happy; it's been sad. Late nights, early sunrises. We've been stretched and made stronger. We've shared happy moments that have made lifelong memories and we've shared the fear of one of us parting from this earth. I can't believe I've been blessed to be with my best friend for eternity.

I love you!