Elizabeth River Skylines
Our wedding reception last month was held in Norfolk. The view of Portmouth from our hotel each morning. The view of Norfolk as we’re cruising on the Elizabeth River. Even a shipyard looks pretty in the right light.
Author: Connie H.
Assateage Island Sunrise
The quiet before the storm that came later that day.
Summer Walkabouts : Arlington Cemetary
Summer has been busy here. We’ve had family visiting from other places, gone to visit family ourselves, and had a wedding reception. Most of that was within one month! It’s been a great summer! We took an opportunity when family was visiting to go with them to some of the sights nearby. One place we visited was Arlington Cemetary. The view of Washington, DC from Kennedy’s tomb is spectacular. We also went to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. And saw the changing of the guard. It was 95 degrees that day. Not including the heat index. There is someone guarding the tomb 24 hours a day / 7 days a week, rain, sleet, snow or sun. The qualifications for the assignment are intense and those that receive it, take it very seriously. We didn’t complain about the heat.
Street Art : Via Colori
Via Colori is of my favorite events each year in Downtown Fredericksburg. They block off Sophia and Charlotte Streets and artists from around the area are given a section for a fee to draw with pastels on the pavement. The fees go to benefit The Grace Oughton Cancer Foundation. They have some excellent programs for families of pediatric cancer patients in the Fredericksburg area. I LOVE this event! I think the process is fascinating and the colors simply leap off the pavement. There are artists of every age. On of the featured artists, Iryna Hamill. The attention to detail is amazing. She was rather gleeful that her character looked “slightly off his rocker”. Art with a message. You can see some of the finished art on the Via Colori-Fredericksburg Facebook Page. With all of that creativity I didn’t even care that it was hot.
Photochallenge : Animals
I spend my life surrounded by animals. With 3 labs, a couple of whom are around 100 lbs., it’s difficult not to be. Dogs everywhere. And when it starts to warm up for the summer one place you can find Jackson is lying on top of the vent. If his tongue is sticking out, then he’s really OUT! However, if the dogs then go to get up and get up too quickly, turn their head or ….. Whatever it is they do, then their tags will get stuck in the vent. Then they end up wearing the vent like giant bling. Sometimes they need to be rescued (like Maggie did here). Others, they figure it out on their own. We have come home to vents in strange locations.
Photochallenge : Orange
The sky during golden hour. We have also recently RE-discovered peanut m&m’s. We don’t really care what color they are. And the peanut m&m kick follows a mint m&m kick, which follows a peanut butter m&m kick….. We REALLY like m&m’s around here. What’s your favorite?
Spotsylvania : Wilderness Battlefield
Fredericksburg and the surrounding area saw some of the worst battles during The Civil War. The Civil War, like any war, is about more than one thing. It’s complicated and messy. At times brutal, others inspiring. There was good and bad on both sides. It was sad note in our history. The Wilderness Battlefield was the site of the beginning of General Grants Overland Campaign. Nearly 30,000 soldiers died during a battle that lasted 3 days and it led to another battle a few miles away at Spotsylvania Courthouse where another 30,000 would die. The Battle of Wilderness is the 4th deadliest battle of The Civil War. Whenever I visit it’s impossible not to imagine them walking across the fields And wonder how they felt.
