Moving Trip (Part 2) - Day 4

Our last day together as a family for awhile - Nicky and the kids leave for Mississippi in the morning and I have to go back to work for a few months until my official day for transfer. We spent our final day in the area at Sun Valley Beach - a Christian water park near Powder Springs, Georgia. We have been here before - and that made the day a little more bittersweet. We had great fun, even though it was a little cloudy with some sprinkles. The kids had fun in the water and we went back to Anna's tired but happy. We'll miss our little town (Douglasville) and can only hope to have such a nice place to live in the future.

Moving Trip (Part 2) - Day 3

We spent a lot of the day at the pool in our old neighborhood. It was good to see a lot of our friends one last time. We drove over to Marietta Square tonight and had a meal at a really good Slovakian place I had eaten at before - the kids liked it. We went back to Anna's before 2100.

Moving Trip (Part 2) - Day 2

We took advantage of our membership at the Fernbank Natural History Museum today (1200). The kids have enjoyed going there for the last few months and will miss the chance to do it again, I think. We spent nearly the whole day there. One of Nicky's friends, Anna, has graciously offered to let us stay at her house for a few days - that was nice. The kids love the multi-night sleepover parties!

Moving Trip (Part 2) - Day 1

After a couple of days to get the rest of our stuff settled, mow the grass and finish my term paper, we departed from Virginia Beach.  Nicky wanted to go see her parents in Mississippi and I had to attend my last Human Factors (Grad School) class at NAS Atlanta. Also, I had to complete the last few months of my military orders in Georgia as a "Geo-Bachelor."  Using US-58 and I-95, it was actually a pretty easy drive - and the kids have been doing a great job with all the car riding lately! Stopped for gas at Exxon in Fayetteville, NC (1055).  Picked up some Dairy Queen Blizzards just before we reached Marietta. We arrived on base just in time for my class and, after it was over, the family came to retrieve me. Afterwards, we all drove to Douglasville for the night (we are using a free night at the Holiday Inn Express).

Wedding Trip - Day 6

Checked out of the Homewood Suites in Peabody at 0730 and got on the road.  Fortunately, we avoided a majority of the traffic on the way out of town. Stopped for gas at a Mobil Station (Route 128) in Newton (...).  Drove down I-95 all the way to New Jersey (crossed Hudson at George Washington Bridge). Kids saw some of New York skyline. Took Jersey Turnpike for some of the way - changed to I-295 until Delaware Bridge. Took DE-1 all the way down to US-13 - used Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel to get back to Hampton Roads. Kids liked the trip home - faster and more relaxed. We saw signs for the Chincoteague wild horses - we'll have to try that someday! We stopped at the visitor's center near the end of the crossing. Good visibility and we could see the coastline of our "new home" (strange to say that!) for a while before we actually arrived in Virginia Beach. Home around 2000.

Wedding Trip - Day 5

We drove back over to the hotel to see everyone off this morning - they are all going home. It was sad to say goodbye but we hope to see them at Thanksgiving. Later, I drove Nicky and the kids down to Hanover so we could visit Katie, John & their kids. Katie had been able to attend the wedding but had to leave quickly after the service. We spent the whole day and had fun in the kiddie pool.  After I made a quick grocery shopping trip to the Shaw's near Katie's house (1820), we spent the rest of the evening eating good cook-out food. Katie and John helped me with my last project for the Aviation Physiology class. At 2100, I drove our family back to Peabody for the last time on this trip. It's been a nice vacation; we'll drive home tomorrow.

Wedding Trip - Day 4

Tim and Elizabeth were married late today at the Catholic Church. The entire morning was spent preparing for the occasion - twins take a lot of work to get ready!!! The service was spectacular - with our girls as flower girls, especially. Mollie and I sat in the back and enjoyed the summer weather. The doors were open and the breeze came through... Gerard and Dottie were there - nice to see them. Afterwards, the couple was whisked away by a horse-drawn carriage. Photos took a little while - and our kids were center stage for everything. The reception was at the Hawthorne - lots of great friends and relatives. The kids even got a nice getaway with their cousins. We stayed until very late and then drove back to the hotel. Everyone is leaving in the morning, so we'll try to come back to say goodbye...

Wedding Trip - Day 3

Started out the day with a visit to the Salem Witch Museum. The kids found it interesting - the program hasn't changed at all in the last 20 years... Other relatives were with us but practically no one else. After a nice lunch on the harbor with the group of 40 (!!!), we went back to the Hawthorne to prepare for the Rehearsal Dinner. The affair was very nice and we were able to visit with lots of people we don't see often. The twins were a big hit - they'll probably be even more so tomorrow...

Wedding Trip - Day 2

We went over to see everyone at the Hawthorne in Salem today. It was good to visit, but afterwards, I had to go back to the hotel to work on my Term Paper. It sucks that I couldn't go with everyone else, but I have been so busy with the move and the other stuff relating to making sure Nicky and the kids are all ready for school and my geo-bachelor experience... I buckled down and got a huge portion done. Just a few finishing touches during the next few days and I won't have to think about it again. Around dinner time, Nicky came back to get me and we had a nice dinner with the rest of the family. They went to a nice beach house in New Hampshire for the day - complete with Maine lobster and some boating. Sounds like fun. I'll be able to play for the rest of the trip, luckily.

Wedding Trip - Day 1

Heading to Massachusetts for a family wedding!  We left early but, being a weekday, it wasn't nearly early enough...  We used I-64 and I-295 to reach I-95, stopping for lunch at Burger King in Mechanicsville (...).  Unfortunately, we hit a monster traffic jam south of DC. When we were finally on our way past the mess (DC to Baltimore), we had already used up about five hours. This delay made the already difficult drive much worse... Our trip up I-83 to I-81 was OK and we were finally on I-84 just as the sun went down. The drive through Pennsylvania, New York, Connecticut and Massachusetts was painful but we made it to Salem by 0200.  We checked into the Peabody Homewood Suites (Newbury Street) and finally got to sleep. Glad that drive is over - we're going to have to go home another way...

Moving Trip (Part 1) - Day 1

I've been up nearly continuously for about 20 of the last 24 hours and I slept on the floor the last time I had a chance (in the old house in Douglasville). Worked on trying to fit everything into the U-Haul and weighing things before quitting around 0300 last night... Woke up early this morning and tried to stuff a few more things in the truck (had to leave a few things). I finished everything and left the new owners all the information I could about the house. It was very bittersweet to leave the place behind - I put a lot of work into it. Hope we have a chance to own something like this again someday... Left around 0800 and had no trouble getting through Atlanta on I-20. No traffic all the way to I-95 - then got busier. Weighed the full truck after getting into North Carolina - it is about 700 pounds heavier than the recommended weight on the side of the truck (oops)... I had no idea we had so much crap!! Made it to Virginia Beach around 1700. Going to bed early tonight - we have lots to do before the kids have to be in Salem (MA) at the end of the week. Still have a paper to finish, too...

Guantanamo (Cuba)

[Atlanta - GTMO - (Jax ?) - Atlanta - with Geoff]