Sunday, December 7, 2008

Philly


Mom and I traveled to Philly about a month ago to meet Dad who was there for a conference. We were so busy over the last month to find the time to post any pictures from our trip. We only had a few days to see the city and 2 of Mom and Dad's friends who live in the area. Enjoy the pictures.


"Your Move" is located near Love Park in downtown Philly. The plaza of oversized game pieces including dominoes, Sorry, Monopoly, Parcheesi, checkers, chessman and bingo chips are scattered around the plaza. The whimsical artwork installation is intended to function as a catalyst for memory between childhood memory and adult responsibility.



Love Park. The fountain is pink for breast cancer awareness week.



The Magic Garden. It was closed when we showed up but just seeing the outside was quite impressive.

The Please Touch Museum

I love motorcycles!



Taking care of a little baby boy who was in the infirmary at the Museum.



Ordering some sausages from the meat monger in the supermarket.

The checkout line was a little backed up.


A big bicycle contraption that powered the flower pedals above.



My feet didn't reach the pedals.



Our friends Joe and Meg and their little baby boy, Luca.



My new boyfriend, Luca.



My other friends Logan and Sharron.

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

A Croatan Thanksgiving



This year we packed up the car and decided to get out of Raleigh and head to the woods for a peaceful Thanksgiving in the Croatan National Forest. We enjoyed a Thanksgiving meal cooked over an open flame just as the Indians would have done with the pilgrims back in the early 1600's.

We spent most of our time relaxing, cooking, hiking and enjoying a warm fire. Our hikes took us through some of the most beautiful Pocosin swamps and longleaf pine ecosystems in the Carolinas. We gazed out over the Bogue Sound witnessing beautiful sunsets and listening to the chorus of migrating waterfowl. Occasionally we would be reminded that we were not the only people in the woods. We made sure we had orange on at all times as the sounds of gunshots were ever so close. The overnight temperatures dipped into the upper 20's but our days were sunny and beautiful with highs in the 60's. We awoke on Saturday to the pitter-patter of rain and packed up our belongings and headed home.

Movie Notes:
When Mom and Dad arrived at the Nannies on Wednesday to pick me up they found me sporting a bloody lip. I had taken a fall from a bike and the result was a puffy lip that looked a lot worse than it was. Every time Mom and Dad laughed about my lip I cried. I knew they were making fun of my undeveloped coordination. When Dad carved the pumpkin he didn't realize that he unintentionally carved a pumpkin with an upper lip similar to mine.

Thanksgiving dinner included fresh cranberries, wild rice, October beans, turkey legs, pumpkin seeds, a pumpkin dump cake and hot peach cider to wash it all down.

The centerpiece for Thanksgiving dinner was a collection of items from around the campsite. We used driftwood, leaves, fruit (ours), fresh cranberries, acorns and pine cones.

Happy Holidays