First days in VA

This has been such a whirlwind of a move. It feels like we've been here for so much longer than a week. Monday, we bought a new car. Tuesday, the boys and I explored Mt. Trashmore (who named it that?) an awesome park in Virginia Beach. Parker made some friends... we're not in San Diego anymore:) 

 There was a huge grassy hill and I just knew something cool was on the other side. But Parker DID NOT want to walk all that way up to the top. After an hour or so of playing, I convinced him to run up it with me. Sure enough water was on the other side (not full on ocean, but some body of water). The trees were also very beautiful.

 Looks like you're on top of the world.

And this was the park below. So cool. The boys have been wanting to go back, but it's not super close to our house. Definitely a plan-ahead kind of outing.

 Tuesday night I found a washer/dryer off Craigslist and had it delivered. I'm not super pleased with the set, because the dryer is both too hot and too cool to really dry the clothes in a reasonable amount of time. Hopefully I figure out the best way to use it soon.

 Wednesday Parker had school again. He loves it and has made friends quickly. there's another Parker in his class. He says his best friends are Jaden and Owen. His teacher is very nice and I've had only good reports so far:) That night we went to Pete's soccer game. He plays on base with a team of other JAGs. They were playing a team from an aircraft carrier (this is my life now:)) The boys loved running around the track during the game. Though Austin wasn't such a fan when he'd get to the other side and see how far he still had to go.

 We arrived on Sunday the 12th, and our stuff was due to arrive by Oct 22. In the meantime, we were put up in the Navy Lodge close to the base. We are so thankful to have had a place to stay. While I did spend some time at the house doing odds and ends before our stuff arrived, going home to a comfy bed at the end of the day was always a treat. Parker is such a character these days...

Thursday I took the boys to the MacArthur Center which is a very nice mall in Downtown Norfolk. As ghetto as Norfolk is, this mall is VERY nice. They have all my favorite stores and a large kids play area. So we spent a few hours there.

Friday our stuff still hadn't arrived, but we thought it would be here Sunday, so in the evening, we headed out to Charlottesville to visit Scott and Abbey. They have such a nice home, with plenty of space to accommodate us. Saturday morning we played at home and then headed out to lunch at a delicious Thai restaurant. Parker loved the soup! Then we took of driving tour of UVA and then headed out to Scott's boss's farm. He has an amazing property, and I had only seen it previously in the dark.

Trying the coconut tapioca... not a fan. 

 Austin on the other hand loved it.

 Now this is what fall looks like!

 The farm...

 Playing tag on the farm.

 Feeding the ducks at the lake (on the farm). This place has it all!

 And then Scott brought out his birds. He is a falconer, and has a hawk named Fox (Fawkes... don't know). The boys were so fascinated and not at all scared.

 We went into the barn, and Parker got to hold the bird. He said it was very heavy.

 Then it was Austin's turn. I was so surprised by his willingness to hold him. Even when he started creeping up onto his shoulder, the boy didn't flinch.

 There is also an owl... didn't hold that one:)

 Then we went to one of their favorite parks for a little hike. Can't take the California out of the girl... still wearing flip flops.

We BBQ'd that night and then drove home. Thankfully our stuff arrived the next day. But that's for another post. Thanks to Scott and Abbey for hosting. They're so great and we are so lucky to have this family close by.