We had a really nice dinner out ...

 

We went to Phillips Crab House of Maryland. It was really the only expensive dinner out that we had. We made the most of it :)

Fabulous Night Life!

 

After dinner we walked around the Inner Harbor - there was music and people dancing and shopping and hanging out. It was lovely. Then, we called it a night and went to bed. The next day was mainly driving.

Luray Caverns

 

We had to take a side trip to see a cave... after all, it's a family tradition. What's that, there? Is it a BUNCH OF BANANAS?

We met the Jacksons at the lake

 

...waiting for...

Parrot Cove Houseboats

Our MAIN vacation was renting a houseboat at Parrot Cove Houseboats in Virginia.

 

Anyone who knows me knows that I am not a big fan of boats. I was not really too excited about this part of the trip because I always get seasick. But we had rented a houseboat once, years ago, and I remember that I had a lot of fun and it wasn't bad... so even though I was VERY apprehensive, I figured I'd give it a shot. I had my back-up plan. If the medicine didn't work, and if I still got seasick, I brought a tent. There is a very nice state park along the lake, and I was going to make them dump me off and I planned to sit in the campground until they were done.

Luckily for me, the seasickness patch (it was a prescription) worked PERFECTLY. I wasn't sick at all, and I didn't have to abandon ship.

Smith Mountain Lake, Virginia

 

It's a beautiful place to vacation.
We found little secluded coves all along the lake, and parked it for the day. It was pretty solidly beached, and it didn't really rock. We stayed put at night - no need to go anywhere else, we had everything we needed.

The boys on the boat

 

They had a great time. This was something we'd talked about doing for a long time, and I'm glad we finally did it.

The houseboat was great.

It was so clean and comfortable inside, and completely equipped. We had a TV (which we never used)and a sound system (which we used constantly.) The kitchen had a fridge, a freezer, a sink, stove and oven. They provided linens and pots and pans and plates. The beds were even pretty comfortable. OH yeah - there were TWO bathrooms with showers.

The roof

 

was a really nice place to relax, if the sun wasn't too strong

We also towed a littler boatalong behind us.

 

The kids took this boat out a few times, and they used it for tubing.

We stopped at a "dock and dine"

 

The place sold sandwiches and stuff, but we were looking for groceries. They also sold popcorn by the bag for the kids to feed the koi. It was fascinating.

It was gross.

 

It makes you wonder if Koi are an invasive species. The water was just churning with them. Can you eat them? We had to buy at least $10 worth of popcorn to feed them. Not to mention the case of Coca-cola that cost $10, which was a pretty good price because they don't usually sell cases of soda, only individuals. At first, he quoted me $19 for a case of coke. Wow. Make sure if you rent a house boat, you don't plan on running out of food.

It was a very relaxing vacation.

It was a lot like camping on the water, but with beds and showers. We cooked, fished, ate, and swam. The kids tubed and jumped off the top of the houseboat. And I had some paper and pastels and water colors to play with... but I really don't like anything I drew.

Everyone jumped in

 

...the slide was fun too. They recommended that you use some of the dish detergent to get it really slippery. I was surprised by the suggestion, but it worked really well. (No, I didn't slide or jump. I'm chicken. But I did get in the water once or twice. Very slowly.)

The water was beautiful

 

The last night we fished a lot

...and I caught this one, which wasn't really very big -- but we cooked it and ate it anyway. We had to eat at least ONE fish, right?

 

You'll notice I don't actually TOUCH fish. Or bait.

The End

Here is the group shot on the last day, everyone survived. :)

 

Me, Frank, Nick and Steve separated from the Jacksons and we headed home for Jersey. It was a pretty long ride, but I was happy because I got to eat at a Cracker Barrel finally.

The post script to the vacation is that I've been home for several days now.

And I've been sea sick ever since I took the motion sickness patch off. Bah.

The thing about gardening

that you forget in May, when you plan to spend your entire summer in the garden, is that in Jersey in July it is just too damn hot to be outside!

 

Even so, my garden is doing fabulously well. It is huge and green and getting bigger. What it is NOT doing, currently, is producing anything you can eat. There are huge green vines that should eventually have string beans on them, and huge green leaves and flowers for the zuchini, and huge green plants full of tiny yellow flowers and a few small hard green tomatoes.

I suppose, eventually, I'll start getting a bounteous harvest. I'm a little worried, though. I need to get a LOT of veggies to make up for the money I've spent in the first place, starting the garden. Not to mention the money I spend on the water, watering it every day in this heat.

And I'm pretty sure that the harvest will start coming in at about the same time I decide to go away for a week. And Frankie won't know enough -- or care enough, anyway -- to pick the veggies. So by the time I get home, it will be all past its prime.

Or the squirrels will find the veggies before I do, and start nibbling. I've seen the little buggers hovering around the edge of the garden, just waiting.

Flutterbye

 

Nick was looking out the front door this morning, and found this butterfly floating through our garden. He kept his eye on it for me while I ran for my camera, and I managed to get a few nice shots before it fluttered away.

This is the reason I don't believe in putting weed killers or pesticides on my lawn...

I have to look it up and find out what kind of butterfly it is. We never see this kind around here.

I'll let you know what I find out...

(Jozien, you probably already know!) :D Anyone care to guess?

A Hopi Elder Speaks

"You have been telling the people that this is the Eleventh Hour. Now you must go back and tell the people that this is the Hour. And there are things to be considered . . .
Where are you living?
What are you doing?
What are your relationships?
Are you in right relation?
Where is your water?
Know your garden.
It is time to speak your Truth.
Create your community.
Be good to each other.
And do not look outside yourself for the leader."
Then he clasped his hands together, smiled, and said, "This could be a good time!"
"There is a river flowing now very fast. It is so great and swift that there are those who will be afraid. They will try to hold on to the shore. They will feel they are torn apart and will suffer greatly.
"Know the river has its destination. The elders say we must let go of the shore, push off into the middle of the river, keep our eyes open, and our heads above water. And I say, see who is in there with you and celebrate. At this time in history, we are to take nothing personally, Least of all ourselves. For the moment that we do, our spiritual growth and journey comes to a halt.
"The time for the lone wolf is over. Gather yourselves! Banish the word struggle from your attitude and your vocabulary. All that we do now must be done in a sacred manner and in celebration.
"We are the ones we've been waiting for."

-- attributed to an unnamed Hopi elder

Hopi Nation
Oraibi, Arizona


This post is a repost from Nancy at Life in the Second Half.

...and i have gone onto borrow it from Natalie's blog

Such profound words are meant to be shared...

Go on *You* know what to do

... And I borrowed it from Nolly Posh....