Fall colors

Fall really seemed to sneak up on us this year. All of a sudden, I realized the leaves are different colors...I swear they were green just a week ago! Here are some pictures I took around the 'hood.

I got this pumpkin at the orchard/pumpkin patch last week. I bought another small one but it went bad already. :(

This is the Wilkes Tunnel, which I only recently discovered. There's something about it that I really love.

The joys of fall

These are from our annual apple-picking trip to Hartland Orchard this past weekend. More fall pics to come...

Morning workout

I get to work fairly late by military standards (between 0800 and 0830), and that means the only parking spaces left are usually on the top deck of the garage. However, what most people probably don't know is that there's a pretty nice view from up there! I can see all the way down the Anacostia River. And the other day I saw some rowers getting in their morning workout. (I only wish I had a better zoom on my camera.)

I love seeing the rowers glide down the river. It's so quintessentially East Coast!

Great Falls 2.0

Last fall I visited the Virginia side of Great Falls. So this past weekend (on Columbus Day, thank you federal government), Kara and I did some light hiking on the Maryland side, which is actually the C&O Canal National Historical Park. The view of the falls and river is better from the Virginia side, but the Maryland side definitely has its merits. They have the historic C&O Canal!

They give mule-drawn boat rides, but sadly not on the day we were there.

We saw this neat bird. We think it's a type of heron.

I told Kara to get in the hole so I could take a picture. But she wanted to make sure there weren't any wild animals in there, so she threw a stick at it.

Delaware 2.0

About a month ago, Lacey and I went to Delaware to visit the historic houses of the Dupont family. The trip didn't exactly go according to plan, so we had to go back last weekend to tour Nemours. And I'm glad we did; I think I liked it better than Winterthur. The tour of the mansion was much more extensive and informative (unfortunately we weren't allowed to take pictures inside). The grounds were very elaborate and beautiful - much more formal than Winterthur.

This was their swimming pool.

The view from the front of the house.

The house had lots of neat artifacts from different time periods. These gates once belonged to Catherine the Great.

Charlotte

A few weeks ago I flew to Charlotte for my cousin's wedding. It was my first time south of the Virginia border! I had a nice time, even though I was a bit under the weather.

We visited the Levine Museum of the New South. It tells the story of the South, and Charlotte specifically, from Reconstruction to the present. They had some neat interactive exhibits.

My dad always loves to clown around.

We planned on visiting Latta Plantation, but it was closed when we got there. So we strolled the surrounding area for a bit.

Then we did something I love about as much as I love visiting history museums: wine tasting!

And then we discovered our rental car had a flat tire. (Or, as the woman at this restaurant said, a "flat tar.") I was never worried though; I knew dad would fix it lickety-split!

The Seven-Year Itch

Seven years. That's how long it's been since I've had a car. When I moved to DC, I was a poor grad student. Then I was a poor nonprofit employee trying to pay off my student loans. But DC has an excellent public transportation system, so it really didn't matter that I didn't have a car. However, now that I have a cushy government job, I can finally afford one! And here she is:

After being without one for so long, it's still a little surreal.

Boating

Y'all, I've had so much going on I haven't had a chance to update this!

About two weeks ago, our young professionals group from church had the opportunity to go boating on the Potomac. It was a picture perfect day and we had so much fun!

Washington Navy Yard and USS Barry

Nationals Park

Fort McNair

A view of Old Town

The Southwest Waterfront and the Washington Monument in the background