Fredericksburg

Chad, Ryan, Kim, and I decided to celebrate Columbus day by visiting Fredericksburg. (Really, Chad decided, we tagged along) Other than Civil War sites we saw where George Washington grew up. It was a perfect fall day!

Posts?

Turns out I'm not as good of a blogger as I had expected...

Reasons for my lack of posts-

1. Abbey came to visit! So much fun, and she even woke up at 6:00AM to come to school with me. It was so nice to have her here! Unfortunately, we didn't take any pictures, otherwise I would make a whole post out of it.
2. Back to School Night. I made it through my first back to school night as a teacher, it went well!
3. Surprise visit home. (I booked the flight the night before, and Wes and Whit found out when I knocked on their door- I was so relieved to be with them for that weekend)
4. General Conference.
5. I was sick.
6. Columbus Day! I loved having work off.

Old Town

I love Old Town! I have been wanting to spend a Saturday there for a while.

This is why....



















I finally found good peaches, and couldn't be happier!

Metro Moment- The Mall?

I looked like a local today.

At least the lady on the metro thought so.

Big accomplishment right?

Wait till you hear the story....

I get on the metro right by where I work, which is on "The Mall." I was riding home, and had my usual transfer at L'enfant Plaza. Then I got off at Pentagon City. A lady tapped my arm and asked me which direction the mall was. I started explaining that she had gotten off on the wrong stop and that she would have to get back on the metro and go back the way she came. I gave her all of the details of the transfer she would have to make and the stop she would get off at. She looked very confused. Then clarified: "Isn't there a shopping mall at this stop?"

Oh yes, that's right.... There is a huge shopping mall 10 feet from this metro stop, which I pass daily. She thought I was crazy. At least I passed as a local for a couple minutes, that is until I opened my mouth. I'm learning.

The Apartment

Here are a few pictures of my apartment. I didn't want to post too many because I would prefer that everyone come visit me and see it in real life. So, book your flights!

Doesn't it get you excited for fall?

Mount Vernon Trail

For Labor Day, I took advantage of my day off and went on a 25 mile bike ride to Mount Vernon. Who knew it cost $15 dollars just to see the place! We opted to eat our granola bars outside and head back home. So we didn't see the estate (we had seen it before anyway) but we did take a look at the postcards. The trail was gorgeous! We parallel the trail each Sunday on our way to church and I had really wanted to try it out. It was exhausting, but worth it!

Dave also has a bike and was nice enough to come on the ride with me. He grew up with Kim in New Canaan and coincidentally moved into our apartment complex at the same time we did. It has been so nice for us to know someone. Kim is in CT and Boston for the week so it was great to have someone to go on a ride with!

The Metro

The Washington DC Metro is the second busiest metro in the US. There are about 727,684 trips per weekday. Needless to say I have a lot of interesting experiences when I ride. I figure recording some of them would give my blog a purpose. So this is my intro to, "Metro Moments."

I will start with one of my favorite moments from last week. I got on the metro (After taking the wrong metro, transferring at the next station, and getting back to where I was). Next to me was an old man. He was dressed like a gentleman, and wore a nice hat. In one hand was his lunch bag, and the other was a dozen white roses. I thought of his wife, anxiously waiting at home, having last seen him when she prepared his lunch and sent him out the door. He was just as anxious to get home. He looked so pleasant. He quickly exited at the next stop.

I thought it was great.