Fun in the Federal Triangle

A little* while back we took a little family trip to the "Federal Triangle", otherwise known as Yorktown, Jamestown and Colonial Williamsburg Virginia. We had a terrific time, and really loved

getting to show the boys some very important American history!

I must first also admit, before we took this trip I had know idea that these three sites were so close to each other! (like within 8 miles) It was very interesting that such important things would culminate in this area. 

We first headed to Yorktown (you know, where the British finally surrendered to the Continental Army and America won it's Independence!) 

Daddy and the boys enjoying the mock camp that was set up. Porter was glad he didn't have to be a soldier like this he said!

                          The boys watching a demonstration of firing the cannon- they loved it!

Porter testing out the different swords used in the Revolutionary War

Mommy and the boys just sitting with General Washington

 Daddy and the boys on the beach at Yorktown-just picture the French Navy out in the water there

We also thought it was incredibly interesting to drive around and see the battlefields, and all the trenches. Each different section was marked with either the American, British or French flags as to the section that army was positioned...very cool in helping you to picture the situation!

(Daddy and Porter representing the French here)

 Remember, this is pre-French Revolution so the flag is different

The Americans!! 

and the British...

 Of course we had to get a picture of Bacon St., pretty sure this is where Noah would choose to live if we could choose!

Porter practicing a little diplomacy, negotiating treaties?

 The visit wouldn't be complete without a trip to a Powhatan village

Porter grinding some corn

Then, we headed over to Jamestown!

This was the boy's favorite part of the trip, 

as there are the three replica ships that landed here back in 1607.

Only Porter and I toured the ships, and I must say- I am SOO glad that I never had to make that journey on one of these boats. They were MUCH smaller than I had assumed, and I am still in disbelief that these guys made it all the way over the Atlantic Ocean! It was truly a miracle!!

 The last great thing about Jamestown was the costumes! Who doesn't like to see their little boys dressed up like Conquistadors? What a silly boy!

 Hmm....maybe we should give Porter some more chores? 

He seemed to be pretty good at this!

For his part, Miles also really enjoyed himself

And lastly, we enjoyed downtown Colonial Williamsburg. It is such a fun place, and we really enjoyed all the people in costume and fun shops. This was taken in the Merchant Square, highlights including the toymakers shop and the Christmas shop! I didn't get many pictures here, but we'll be back another time I'm sure as well as there were also awesome outlets to shop at and plenty more to see. 

 It was a beautiful area, full of history- which we LOVE as a family and we are SO glad that 

we made sure to squeeze it in this time we were in DC. I am pretty bummed that we waited this long to go! It was great. Good times.

The Cutest Heroes in a Half Shell Ever!

This year we let Porter take the lead, 

we told him he could pick whatever he wanted to be.

He chose Ninja Turtle!

I actually had a totally different plan for the rest of us, 

but the second that Ronan saw Porter's costume- he had to have one too!

We decided to just go with it, and it was fantastic!

One of my favorite years yet, I think!

These are definitely the cutest Heroes in a Half Shell that I have ever seen!

Although I loved all my cuties,  but I was partial to this guy!!

Seriously!!! How cute is he??

Trick of treating with the buddies

Miles has discovered the beauty of Halloween

They had a Trunk or Treat and Carnival at our Church as well, 

and everyone had a great time! Ronan is always a fan of the bouncy house.

And here Miles is demonstrating his amazingly awesome Ninja Move!

He's a natural!

He loved trick or treating almost as much as the big boys!

Happy Halloween everyone!!

Fall Fun

We had a bit more fun in the month of October that I just had to make sure we included.  We had Chili and Pumpkin night with our pals C & B, and had a great time! Everything turned out great, and we were all set then to decorate our front doors for Halloween!

Porter decided to go with his version of

"Perry the Gord-o-pus"

It turned out SO cute, 

and he got to enter it in his school's pumpkin competition

Of course we had to have a pretty pumpkin to 

appease the only girl in the household!

And everyone had lots of fun just painting! 

What's not to love when you are a little kid?

C & B's fantastic creations! C is a great artist, 

look at her rocking all those characters from scratch!

 Even Miles totally enjoyed himself.

What a cutie. He was actually really trying!

 And last, but definitely not least in our October fun-

we celebrated our favorite Daddy's birthday!!

The boys are PROS at helping to blow out candles…

look at that technique!

 We celebrated with favorite restaurants, date night, and a delicious Cheesecake!

Happy Birthday Sweetie! We love you!

Frankenstorm Sandy 2012

Porter checking the storm out, as the rain really started to come down yesterday

So, as I'm plugging along in catching up on our fall activities for the blog-

I felt it only right to include a little snippet for all those who have been 

wondering about how we fared yesterday in Hurricane Sandy. 

We actually feel it is a good lead in to the holiday season, as the weather forecasters
 said it was a "Hurricane wrapped in a NorEaster"; kind of reminds us of a Turducken! 

In anycase, it has been a horrible storm for so, so many people a little

 further up the Eastern Seaboard. We feel terrible and are praying for all of

 those who have been more severely effected. For our part however, 

we feel blessed to have really been only slightly effected by comparison.

 We got hit by the southern part of the storm, and it was the worst yesterday 

afternoon into the night. The lights flickered at times in the afternoon and throughout the evening, but the power only went out once briefly and came back on. 

School and work for Noah was canceled yesterday and today as well, so we've been enjoying some time as a family and with our neighbors!  I've done all the laundry and dishes

 in hopes of having it all taken care of incase the power went out! Today now, we are set to go with all of our "chores" now out of the way! We played multiple board games yesterday,

 and I anticipate more today. It was a good distraction last night, 

especially as the storm really picked up. I was most concerned about our windows.

 The big one in our living room, being the biggest concern. They were rattling, and the glass kept bowing in and out with the wind, but thankfully they did not blow out! 

We also had a good amount of water that started seeping in all

 around that big window as well, but we just put down towels and waited it out. 

I'm not going to lie, I was not a huge fan of that 

(being that it was the window that was rattling a lot), but we made it through 

the night and maintenance will come and re-seal the whole window soon we hope. 

All in all, we can't complain. We are safe, dry and happy and the storm thankfully left us far better off than so many others. 

Take Me Out to the Ball Game

One of the the things that we were most excited about being back in America (DC in particular) was that we were going to be able to catch the end of baseball season! If you know Noah well, then you know that he is a HUGE Phillies fan, and baseball in general. We love that the Nats play the Phillies on a regular basis, so we try to catch whatever games we can. Growing up for the most part of their "American" experience for the boys, we (I more so than Noah) have also decided that we can become moderate fans of the "home team" too. Notice the mix of fan attire?

In anycase, we jumped on the chance to take the boys to one of the last games of the regular season, and had a fantastic time!! The weather was perfect, and all of the kids enjoyed the game the entire time! Are we possibly entering an era of being able to enjoy a sporting event like this without too much hassle from the kiddos? Fingers crossed! 

We had also purchased an extra ticket for Miles, then figured out he didn't need one.

 Porter was stoked to get to bring his buddy L along! 

Also, he has officially learned the "bunny ears" in pictures at school this year I guess. Oh joy.

Nothing says a good baseball game like enjoying the ballpark favorites. 

Hot dogs all around, and they were delicious!

 Ronan is also a big pretzel man-

Had to include some shots of the stars of the show:

 And of course, some Chase Utley- he's always been my favorite

Whew, he made it on base!

 You looking at me? 

Yes, I am ADORABLE. And having a great time!

Heckling/flirting with the Nationals fans behind us!

 Porter had such a great time with his buddy L! 

Thanks for coming with us buddy!

(They wanted a picture with Teddy in the background,

 he came up in the stands right by us)

Our Family MVP of the night goes to Ronan!

He was in SUCH a great mood, all night long!

It was awesome, he never sits still thru anything, but he was calm and interested the entire time

except for a few potty breaks. Great Job Roni!!

 Guess he was just in his element, huh?

 He was even being really cute and actually trying to 

smile and pose for the camera! 

Yay! He is unfortunately in the "fake smile" stage though.

 A for effort anyway!

 On the Metro home after a wonderful fall evening! 

(And even on a school night, we are the coolest parents ever I tell ya!)

Love these boys, and the fun memories we made!