This morning my mom called to tell me that my grandma passed away. I was very shocked and so sad to hear the news. My grandma taught me to cook, knit, sew and inspired me to become a teacher. It will be really hard not to talk to her again. I love you and miss you, Grandma.

While Judi, Char, and Rebecca were here, we ventured out to Dulles to see the new Air and Space Museum. It was a really neat place with lots for Sam to see. We loved going up into the mock control tower to see the planes land. Unfortunately we got a late start that morning and had to leave the museum a little early to feed a hungry boy (and his hungry parents) but we’ll definitely visit again.

ps-I hate that these pics have such a blue cast but I am too busy to edit the white balance! Sorry!

I am so sorry for my lack of posts lately. All I can say is that I have been very busy lately. As some of you may know, I am back in school! I just started at UVA this summer getting my Reading Specialist degree. It is a program that I started a few years ago and I finally got my act together to complete it. It has been fun being back in the education world and I know at some point in the future, when I go back to teaching, it will be a great resource. I am taking two classes during the summer term. Each class is condensed to about 1 month (instead of the usual 10-12 weeks) so I have been working like a mad woman to get everything done when Sam is asleep. Anyway, I have a lot of catching up to do in the blog world.

A few weeks ago we went to the Outer Banks with my in-laws. We have been taking a beach trip with them for about 4 years now and it is always a fun and relaxing get away. The first year we went to Cape May, NJ. Then we went to Rehoboth, DE for two years. And this year we decided to try Duck, NC. After how hot and humid it was, we are thinking about trying something a little further North (or West) next year!

We had a great time enjoying the beach and hanging out at the house, which was beautiful and had a pool!

On one of the overcast days, we headed to the Wright Brothers Memorial, which was great! There was lots for Sam to see and plenty of open space to run around. The best part was that right next door there was a tiny little airport and we got to see two tiny little planes land while we were there. Sam is currently obsessed with airplanes, so this was a hit.

We also checked out the lighthouse one day. We didn’t actually go up in the lighthouse but there was plenty to do in the park around the lighthouse. They had a great wildlife center with daily classes for kids of all ages. We lucked out and just happened to be there for the 2 year old class. As it turned out, Sam was the only kid in attendance, so he got a lot of special attention.

The highlight of the trip for me, though, was running into John and Sherry from Young House Love. It was actually on our last day, on our way out of town. We pulled over to pick Char up from the coffee shop and I recognized the Petersiks walking down the street. I flagged them down and had a nice little chat! They were super sweet and even introduced me to baby Clara. I’m just sorry I didn’t think to get a picture!

Thanks Judi and Char for another fun vacation!!