VACATION!!!

No, I didn't fall off the face of the earth. I haven't posted anything for so long, do I still have people who check out our blog? We just got back last night from out summer vacation. Adam's cousin, Julie, got married in Pennsylvania last weekend so we spent a few days with his family there. The wedding was beautiful, though someone there described it as Little House on the Prairie meets The Godfather. It's kind of true! Adam's aunt, uncle, and cousins have a more conservative family and come from a very "normal" christian family. Justin (Julie's fiance) comes from a very New York/Italian family which means loud and party it up!!! Not in a bad way, it just describes the difference, they're a great family and really fun to get to know a little bit! We also got to celebrate the upcoming marriage of Adam's other cousin Lori and her fiance Dustin since we won't be able to fly back in September for their wedding. It was great to get to see where Adam's Uncle David and Aunt Cathy live. They live in State College, where Penn State is located and are the regional directors for the Navigators (kind of like Campus Crusade around here). Cole got his first look at lightening bugs and caught some in a jar!We did some scenic hikes in the Nitany Mountain area and went to Bellville and tried to check out how the Amish people live. I felt a little weird knowing that we were going somewhere just to "stare" at other people but it was really interesting and such a different culture than what we live in! We saw some of them out on the road in their horse and buggies, in the field cutting hay with equipment pulled by horses, a lot of black suit pants and blue shirts on the clothes lines, and some really cute little Amish girls in their bonnets and aprons. They don't like to have their pictures taken so we don't have any pictures of that part of the trip. Cole got to get reaquainted with his Nana and Popsie (Adam's grandparents) and loved them so much! What a treasured memory!

After Pennsylvania, we went to visit my sister Missy and her husband Jason in Arlington, VA (right by Washington D.C.). We stopped at Gettysburg on the way there and looked at the monuments and battlefields. Then we spent a couple of days touring Washington D.C. We saw the presidential monuments (Washington, Lincoln, Jefferson), war memorials (Vietnam, WWII, Owagima (?)), toured the White House and capital, and hit the Air & Space Museum, Museum of Natural History (where the dinosaur bones and Hope diamond are), and the National Archives (where the constitution, declaration of independence, and bill of rights are). Adam hadn't ever been there so we wanted to hit the big things! Then we spent an afternoon at the National Zoo with Missy and saw the giant pandas, elephants (one was named Shaanti), and oranga tans. Another morning was spent at the D.C. Eastern Market (like a big farmers market) eating blue-bucks (buckwheat blueberry pancakes) and french toast and browsing through the fresh flowers, fruits, and vegetables. We swam at the pool at Missy & Jason's old Condo and did some eating out! My favorite restaraunt now is Il Mee, a Korean BBQ and buffet near their house. It was soooooooooooo good!!! I had gone to a Korean BBQ last time I was there and loved it but it was closed this time and we found this one. It was even better and I can't wait to go back next time we're there:-) Cole even ate about 2 plates worth and learned how to use chopsticks (somewhat!).

Overall we had a great trip! It was really fun to kind of do two vacations in one and made it seems like it lasted longer. As always though, it's good to be home and get back to life as usual. Hope you enjoy all the pictures and have had a great past couple of weeks!