Flat Stanley

My darling niece Grace recently asked me to help with her Flat Stanley project. I took him around, showed him the sights, and took some pictures together.




You can view the rest of the pics here. A special thanks to Connie, Lacey, Laurel, and mom for taking pictures!

Parental week o' fun

Hey y'all! I know I haven't posted in a while; My parents were here for a little over a week, and we kept pretty busy. They arrived on a Saturday, and the following morning we drove down to Norfolk. Their friend from high school is the manager of the Norfolk Tides, the AAA affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles (boo!). They play their home games at beautiful Harbor Park, right on the water.

I have to admit, I was pretty excited. I was hoping to get some kind of behind-the-scenes tour and maybe meet a few baseball players. But it didn't exactly happen that way. We arrived early and talked to the manager for a few minutes at the dugout, and we did meet one of the players (a native of Clovis, CA). Then we watched the first game of a double-header. But it wasn't good baseball weather; It was cold and rainy the whole time. So we went back to the hotel to warm up. And guess what? The visiting team was staying in our hotel! That definitely provided for some excitement.

I made my parents stop at the Mariners Museum on our way out of town...because I'm a total nerd.

They have a brand new Monitor Center, which was pretty darn fascinating. Basically, they dug up the gun turret of the USS Monitor from the ocean floor and built an exhibit around it, focusing on the role of naval technology in the Civil War.

The whole thing is actually upside-down, because that's they way they pulled it out of the ocean.

See, the gun is upside-down. Pretty neat.

Ok, enough of the nerdiness. Our next family activity was a night out at Nationals Park! My dear father splurged for the expensive seats down on the field. And they. Were. Awesome.

Yes, that's my boyfriend Ryan Zimmerman warming up before the game. He couldn't really talk to me at the time. Had to stay focused.

There was a beautiful sunset that evening.

Me and the parents.

The following weekend we drove out to Shenandoah to do some "light" hiking. The mountain region hasn't really experienced spring yet, so the trees were bare and there weren't any flowers blooming. Boo!

Like I said, we stayed pretty busy the whole week. So ever since they left I've been trying to take it easy and get some rest!

Opening Weekend 2008

The big event has come and gone...but there is plenty more baseball to be played this year! Laurel and I went to the exhibition game vs. the Orioles on Saturday and we got there early so we could walk around and check everything out. I think the coolest moment was walking out of the metro and turning the corner, and being faced with this:

I know it's hard to tell in this picture, but the stadium looks like a behemoth - when before there had been nothing there. It literally took my breath away and I was filled with giddy excitment. It was also fun watching other people's reactions as they saw it for the first time.

The main entrance at center field.

A view from the field - the largest scoreboard in all of baseball.

The main concourse as seen from the top of the stadium.

You can see the Capitol from the top level.

And you can see the Navy Yard!

A view of the field from up top.

The fire department decided to give us a show. (I think it was the fire dept.)

The new Nats Dogs are reportedly modeled after the famous Dodger Dogs, though obviously not as good. (GO DODGERS!) Nothing beats a Farmer John hot dog.

The restaurant and bar in center field.

The exhibition game gets underway, and the Nats beat the O's 3-0. That's what I'm talkin' about!

The following night was the big Season Opener. We had to get there early because of the heavy security due to the President's visit. Normally I don't mind sitting at a ballpark for an hour or more before the game, but it was so flippin' cold!!

The DC National Guard unfurls two huge flags during pre-game ceremonies.

Player introductions are made.

This is the only picture I got of the president, and of course it's blurry. Doh!

The bullpen is fired up and ready to go!

The presidents' races are still going strong. And Teddy is still clueless.

Trying to keep warm. The older gentleman next to us had the right idea. He had a flask. For reals. Apparently Secret Service isn't as picky about alcohol as the stadium employees are.

We left during the 8th inning when the Nats were up 2-1. It was late and we were freezing. I couldn't feel my toes. But now I'm kicking myself. The Braves tied it up in the 9th and my boy Ryan Zimmerman came through with a walk-off home run. But, like I said, there will be plenty more exciting baseball this summer. GO NATS!

You can see more pictures here.