Blog | Travel
We went to Virginia Beach this weekend to see Kathy. While there, we went to the Aquarium and the Zoo – Brianna loved it all! She was fascinated by the birds and the marine life at the Aquarium, and was amazed at all the animals at the zoo, especially the big ones (elephant, giraffe, rhino, etc.). She just stared and stared and stared. We even got to see the lion cubs, but unfortunately, those pictures did not turn out as well as I would have liked due to the limited lens on my camera. It never occurred to either Jason or me that he should bring his fancy camera until we were already there, so we had to make do. Here are a few photos from our trip.
This weekend we met up with Grandpa Bill (and all his family) at the beach. We rarely get to see Grandpa Bill, and this is the first time I have met his family, so this was a special treat! Everyone adored Brianna, and she handled the huge number of strangers surprisingly well. We even had a ~2 hour dinner (with 24 people) at a restaurant, and she only fussed at the very end (which coincidentally was her bedtime). The beach was beautiful and very peaceful. In fact, it was much nicer than I expected! Despite the fact that we have lived here for several years, this was our first trip to the local beaches. Jason and I both admit to being beach snobs – it is hard not to be when you grow up on some of the most beautiful beaches in the world. I still love my home beaches best, but I could get used to the occasional trip to these beaches as well, especially since they are so much closer. Here are some pictures of our brief trip.
Jason, Brianna, and Grandpa Bill – this is the view we had from our room. We literally walked a few steps out our door to hit the beach!
This last picture is pretty much as close as I could get to the water without Brianna fussing. She has never minded loud noises, but something about the combination of the noise and the moving water made her nervous. We did dip her toes in the water once – let me just say she did not care for it…So, no pictures of her frolicking on the sand or in the surf. We will try again when we visit the Gulf coast later this year.
We took Brianna on her first real road trip this weekend to Gainesville for Tia’s graduation. Many of you have commented on her “99% Angel” shirt and asked when is she ever less than 100% Angel?? Answer: road trips! Still, she wasn’t too bad. She just really, really fought her naps. But even when exhausted, she was still pretty good. She slept great at Uncle Andy and Aunt Michiyo’s house (thank goodness!). All in all, it was a great trip!
Here are some graduation day photos.
Christina Marie (Tia to Brianna) graduated Summa Cum Laude in Nursing. Yay Tia!!
The siblings:
Brianna in her graduation dress and with her Daddy:
The morning after graduation, we got up really early to head down to campus to reminisce about our college days and to get some gator gear, especially some national championship gear. It was a BEAUTIFUL morning! We started at the Reitz Union and headed down the North Lawn (the Green Banana) to the science library – home of the French Fries and close to Century Tower.
Then we walked a little around the auditorium where I used to perform with the symphonic band, and down to the art library (it is a beautiful tree-lined walk). After that, we headed back towards the tower and saw this fantastic sign – we just had to take a picture!
Brianna will do the TD sign by herself, but generally not when you are trying to take a picture…
After that, we walked up Stadium Rd to The Swamp. It was open, so we stepped inside and took a couple pictures there too.
After that, we went past my old dorm (good old East Hall!) and headed to the bookstore to pick up some Gator gear. The whole family is now all set! We had a wonderful trip. My only regret is not getting a picture of Brianna with her Uncle Andy and Aunt Michiyo. I flat forgot until we were headed out of town.
