Plantation Parade

Yesterday we explored two plantations, Oak Alley and Laura, along the Mississippi River between NO and Baton Rouge—about an hour from us. Both came to existence in the mid 1800’s and sugarcane was, and still is, their crop. They are located only a few miles from each other, but are very different in style. Oak Alley is a Greek revival style and the arch of live oak trees up the front walk have made this plantation the scene of many movies. The other plantation, Laura, is a creole plantation (hence the bright colors) where the caretakers still speak creole French and very much live the creole culture. The kids and I had a great time learning all about these families’ very different lifestyles and walking the beautiful grounds of the plantations.

NASA Space Center

Today I took the kids to the John C. Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, MS—only about 45 minutes from us. It is NASA’s largest rocket engine test center and all shuttle engines are tested and qualified there before launch, including the engines for the Saturn V rocket that went to the moon. The kids are in awe of anything space related and even sat through a movie about the training that astronauts go through. They have a museum with fun exhibits including a rocket engine test simulator and a shuttle landing simulator. Of course, no NASA trip is complete without purchasing some astronaut ice cream which we enjoyed on the way home.

A Fitting Father's Day

It was a very hot day here on Father’s Day (heat index around 105-110), so after a nice breakfast together and the kids gave Andy his gifts, we spent the day at the pool. Everyone had a great time and after some fatherly encouragement, William went down the slide--many times. Clark also loved the slide, but because of his size had to go down with a parent. Andy was actually off all day on Sunday, so it marked the first day in a really long time that we had the entire day together as a family! What a great father’s day!

Girls Weekend

The oil tried its hardest to keep us down, but we just wouldn’t let it! Laura and I had been planning a girls weekend trip to the beach for this past weekend for several months, and several times along the way it looked like it was not going to happen. First of all, Andy was actually off work and able to be at home with the kids (his first days off in over a month, I think). Secondly, we had originally planned to go to Pensacola, FL, but just a few days before our trip the oil made it to shore there. So, we quickly reorganized and found a great alternative in Gulfport/Biloxi/Ocean Springs, MS. On Friday we went to Ship Island, MS via the ferry boat. The boat ride alone was great as we saw LOTS of dolphins, but the island was WONDERFUL! Just like two kids would, we spent the entire day in the sun going from the water to the sand.

Because of a little too much sun on Friday, we decided to spend Saturday out of the sun and went to a huge outlet mall in Gulfport. It was amazing how much fun it was to shop when we could actually take our time and look. We ate at a neat restaurant on the beach in Biloxi for dinner that night. For a Saturday night it was really not crowded at all. After talking with the waitress we found out that many tourists are keeping away from the area because they think there is oil.

On Sunday we headed out to Ship Island again. This time the water was completely different. There were almost no waves, and we saw lots of different marine animals--dolphins as we were sitting on the beach, as well as jellyfish in the water. Luckily neither of us got too close to the jellys, and we again had a very relaxing day! The National Parks Service, who runs Ship Island, thinks that the oil will be there eventually, but it certainly wasn’t for our visit. Those who run the ferry to the island said that they usually have 900 passengers on a Saturday, but they only had 300 that Saturday. It is so very sad that so much is going to be destroyed by the oil, but even sadder that so many are missing out on the good that is still left—at least for now!

Laura had to return home on Monday late afternoon, so we spent our day shopping and eating our way through the French Quarter. I think we both deserved a bit of a break, and neither of us had ever had the chance for a getaway like this. All in all it was a fantastic time and I hope we get the chance to do it again!

Andy and the boys had a good weekend too. I think Andy mostly just enjoyed being off work and spending time with the kids. Of course there aren’t any photos as I had the camera, but they went to the zoo, which means Andy has now seen the swamp monster, and they went to the pool over at the base.

First Day of School

I know it seems early for such a statement, but William and Clark are participating in the summer program at their pre-school—where Clark officially starts in the fall. However, I thought it was a good idea to have them go a couple of days a week to get Clark adjusted to it since he has never been in any similar environment before. The first day was last Wednesday, and I am happy to report that he did well. This photo was taken after the school day, and as you can see, he was in a silly mood. The teachers were very impressed for how he did and commented several times about how he is such a sweet child. In no way am I feeling that the transition is complete, although he did go for his second time yesterday and it also appeared to be a good day, but at least it is off to a good start!

At the Beach

Here are a couple more photos I just had to share from Dauphin Island.

Grandma's Visit

It was so wonderful to have my mom visit us over a long weekend! The kids and I really enjoyed spending time with her. We went to the zoo, Dauphin Island, the children's museum, and the pool at the base. With Andy gone it was really nice to have a chance to get a few things done around the house while grandma played with the kiddos! Our trip to the beach was lots of fun! No oil there yet, but the workers were scouring for tar balls. On the surf side of the beach, which we avoided, the smell of oil was definitely present. Really the saddest part was that we were there on a Friday and there were only a handful of people there.

Andy did finally return home on Sunday evening and he has actually been home in time for dinner the last two nights in a row--that hasn't happened in over a month! So far, it is looking good for him to be home on Friday and this weekend to be with the kids while Laura and I have a fun girls weekend on the beach (hopefully) somewhere!