Atlantic!!

I absolutely love the beach and the Atlantic coast is no exception. We visited Kitty Hawk, right along the coast on a string of island in North Carolina. All of us ran up the boardwalk and were hit by gusts of Atlantic air. The tide was coming in and it was very windy, and when you add those two components together you have huge unpredictable waves. Kali ran with me towards the water then saw the wave and raced back to Dad. I stood in the ice cold water and posed for pictures when WHAM!A huge wave crashed into my back. The whole back of my jeans and my pants legs were soaked. On the way back to the car I told Dad I was changing. He laughed so hard when he saw why I was changing.
I had fun in the sun and surf in North Carolina!!

Surrender

Today I visited the Appomattox Courthouse and got a good history lesson.
It turns out the surrender papers were actually signed in the McLean family parlor. The Generals wanted to end the war as soon as possible, and because no one was at the Courthouse the documents had to be signed in a home.
The city of Appomattox was actually a stage coach stop with a courthouse. The courthouse burned down in the late 1800's, so a replica was rebuilt.
The McLean house had to be completely rebuilt by only blueprints. The amazing thing is that such a significant document was signed in a simple parlor.
The laying down of arms took over 6 hours. Regiment after regiment stepped forward and piled up their cartridge cases and rifles. The Confederates also shredded their flags and handed them out among the troops. Almost 30,000 paroles were printed in an 26 hour window. After the Confederates laid down their arms they were sent home, often with no money or food for their journey.
I don't know if any of you saw Lincoln, but the recreation of the McLean house was spot on. I literally stood on the porch and saw the movie in front of me.
The tour and facts about the end of the Civil War are so different from what I knew. Who knew a treaty could be signed in a parlor?

Gettysburg

The loss of life in such a small place is saddening. Gettysburg was a part of a horrible, yet necessary war. I learned so much about the battle and the people who fought in it.
The first two pictures are for Mr. Jones and any other musicians out there. These instruments were played by bands, and were the pride of their regiments.
Buckles and pins were a major way of telling who and where you were from. Some belt buckles even saved soldiers life's.
The Civil War divided many families, including the presidential one. Mary Todd Lincoln's father was actually a Confederate surgeon. A poor girl actually had a Confederate husband and a Union father. In some cases brothers were actually fighting brothers!
Both the North and South had reasons to start and end the war. Both sides had interesting demands from the other.
The pictures of all the men were only a few lost at Gettysburg. There were so many deaths throughout the war. All the numbers are staggering.
Amazingly only 1 civilian died at the Battle. Her name was Ginnie Wade. Her sister and niece lived in no mans land and she refused to leave them. She made it through a few days of battle, then while making bread was shot in the back.Civilians that lived in Gettysburg took up arms, too. An elderly man came and fought through the whole battle and sustained many wounds, yet kept fighting.
To be able to describe everything about Gettysburg is impossible, and being able to see this history was a once in a lifetime experience.

Hershey Factory!

Wow, is all I can saw about this place. It is literally a chocolate machine. The whole lower floor is covered with chocolates and even some flavors I had never even heard of. Reese's Hershey Kisses, I mean c'mon! We bought plenty of Christmas presents( wink, wink) and we also did a ride through a replica of their factory. Yes, the cow picture was part of the ride- " it's all about the milk!!!". They make 60,000,000 Kisses everyday! Everyday!
I was in the real version of Charlie in the Chocolate Factory, and trust me, I tried many little Kisses.

Friends and Football

Last Sunday I got to hang out with some family friends that I haven't seen in about 6 years. It was weird not being able to recognize the kids you played with in a pool when you were 9. I recognized only 1 person out of about 20.
We stayed in Boston and ate tons of burgers and chicken wings. We had about 20 people in a house, and it got pretty tight, but no one cared. We watched the Patriots lose, then said long goodbyes, because who knows when we will next see each other. For example Packy, a boy is is only a year older than me, is now over 6' feet tall. Talk about feeling like a midget.
Any who it was awesome to see everyone and catch up, and yes, to gawk at the differences in our appearances.

Acadia National Park

One of my favorite places in all my travels!! Acadia is located on an island off the coast of Maine. The whole park is beautiful. The park has carriage, biking, and hiking trails. Their beaches are pristine and majestic. I absolutely love Thunder Hole! The wind wasn't right so the waves weren't huge, but just sitting and listening was a treat.
The Atlantic stretches on forever. The water is clear, and the waves and currents are stronger than any other I have every seen.You can see the bottom for about five feet then just a cliff into oblivion.
Maine and Acadia are like a home away from home for me. Who knows, I might just live in Ba Haba(New England way of saying Bar Harbor)ine day.

First Hockey Game

I attended my first hockey game in Augusta, Maine, and gosh was it cold!It was 29 degrees outside, and it was warmer outside than inside. Me being a dummy came in a light jacket and torn up jeans. Even the bleachers were made of metal!It is not a good thing when you can see your breath while indoors.
The game itself was fun. It is kinda like basketball. All if those boys are amazing! They can skate backwards, hit the puck, and take a shove and be able to pop right back up. The game is pretty rough though.
Really fun experience, and just a fun fact, they actually have hockey teams in Florida and Texas.

Grousey Much?

Yesterday we went grouse hunting, and had an amazing hunt. After around ten minutes of pushing through brambles we found tons of bird sign. We continued down to a bog formed by a beaver dam, and yes the beavers were still at work. Amazingly the water was still clean and clear even though it was a bog.
Not more than two minutes later we moved two birds. We couldn't get a shot off, but just seeing them was a welcome sight. They sound like mini helicopters, and they can really make you jump. We tore after them, but couldn't find them. Dad came out with some scratches and so did I.
We continued on over another beaver dam and into an old forest. The tree were huge and gnarled. We walked through a fir forest with a stream running through it. We took some pictures then, went back to the car, much to Kali's displeasure.
The forest was beautiful and unexpected. I always thought of New York as an overpopulated state with no forests or valleys, but I was proven wrong. There was valleys, and orchards everywhere and surprisingly vey little people. I love it when stereotypes are proven wrong!

Snowy owl

This little girl greeted me when I visited the Vermont Institute of Natural Science. The institute houses permanently disabled raptors and heals injured raptors. As we were walking around we heard an odd sound and quickly walked to the snowy owl inclosure . We looked and couldn't find her then we looked down. A big set of eyes stared up at us. She puffed up and let us take some glamour pictures of her. Sadly she could not be released because she was too accustomed to people. We also saw other falcons, and bald eagles up close.

Texas Falls

This place is beautiful!! I can barely describe it properly. The river flowed rapidly then suddenly plummets down a huge fall and into a swirling pool and cave. The water continues down several smaller falls and more rapids. There was icicles hanging on the walls the river flowed through. I climbed around on rocks in the river, and the view of the falls was spectacular! Dad threw several sticks in the river and only one made it over...in pieces. I watched it as it reached the edge and it was like a roller coaster car waiting to go down the big fall. Once it was over it was gone.
This, in my opinion is much more pretty than Niagara. One of my favorite places yet.

Battle of Saratoga

We visited the site of the Battles of Saratoga. There was actually several different battles spanning a 2 week time span. The battles took place in forests and wheat fields. The British were trying to cut off the states across the Hudson by capturing all the forts on the way south. The Americans would not stand for it and barred the British's path. The British set off to the west, hoping to crush the Americans. The Americans fought bravely and were finally victorious. The winning of Saratoga changed history, and the United States would be very different if the Patriots had lost.

Women's Suffrage Movement

What women have had to go through to get to where we are today is astounding. Elizabeth Cady Stanton and several other women realized that women deserved rights just as much as men did. These women assembled and wrote the Declaration of Sentiments, a document that used lines from the Declaration of Independence.Those few women sparked a huge debate, yet it took so many years for women to be considered equal.
The picture with the blue and red pillars is a diagram of the difference between women and men in certain fields of work. The blue is women and red is men. Women dominate the librarian, nurse, and teacher roles yet lack in the roles of doctors and firefighters. It was astounding to see the stark differences.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton and others worked hard for women to have the rights we do today. We, as ladies should be happy to be mans equal, not their inferior.

Erie Canal

The Erie Canal is an great example of the geniuses that inhabit our world. Workers built a canal that went from New York all the way to Lake Erie! It is all manmade and had to be hand dug. Not only is it long, but it changes elevation which means you have to go up locks. Locks are part of the canal that descend or ascend. By balancing water and using gravity you can do down quite easily. We walked along some of the locks and they are huge! The canals are deep and wide, and there was even some water in the canal. All the water up here is clear and blue!
It was fun to see such a huge contributor to the economics of early America.

Niagara Falls

I absolutely LOVE Niagara Falls!It is wet, but the views are so breathtaking! I learned there is actually two waterfalls, the American Falls( the famous one) and Horseshoe Falls. The water is clear and an amazing blue. The current is so swift, and there is many rapids. There were birds gliding in and out of the mist.
It was awfully funny, too! Canada is right across the gorge, and you can see people walking on the street. There were squirrels everywhere! They were all fat and would come up and try to take something out of your hand. Kali didn't even notice them! One little black one followed me all the way across the parking lot. Check out my Dad's blog to see the pictures.
I had an amazing time seeing what I think is one of the seven wonders of the world. Everyone should really try to see it!