Jun 28, 2010 - Cambridge, England

Good morning as all of you sleep at 4:00 in the morning back home! Yesterday's outing was a day trip to Cambridge, England. What a beautiful place. We took a punting tour which really helped us understand what we were looking at and just how many Colleges are a part of Cambridge. It is unlike the states where we have the college of business, medicine, etc., within the one university. Cambridge has 31 colleges, which are universities, that are all part of the Cambridge system. Cambridge is 801 years old and one of England's most prestigious...

Jun 27, 2010 - The Cliffs of Moher, Galway Bay and other seaside villages

Good morning Fam and Friends, This afternoon we will fly back to London and will have dinner with friends at one of those steakhouses with the wine fairies that do the acrobatics suspended on a cable 40-50 feet high. The kids will love that, and we will all enjoy a nice steak tonight! Waaaaay to much fish and chips these days. Ireland was great. If you only have a short time here, the train tour is definitely the way to go. We were able to see so much of the country on a high speed train all the way to the west coast. We got off the train...

Jun 26, 2010 - 15-hour tour across Ireland!!

Good morning Fam and Friends, This afternoon we will fly back to London and will have dinner with friends at one of those steakhouses with the wine fairies that do the acrobatics suspended on a cable 40-50 feet high. The kids will love that, and we will all enjoy a nice steak tonight! Waaaaay to much fish and chips these days. Ireland was great. If you only have a short time here, the train tour is definitely the way to go. We were able to see so much of the country on a high speed train all the way to the west coast. We got off the train...

Jun 24, 2010 - Dublin

Flew to Dublin yesterday so it was mostly a travel day; not much to post. We arrived at around 4:00 and you can see in the pics how excited Jack and Sam were to have their own bed! They have been sharing a queen at Brandi's house. So in both the Paris and the Dublin hotels, I booked the "family style rooms" which have multiple beds. Kelly called it on the Dublin thing. She didn't think we'd like it, and we don't. It reminds me of the French Quarter in New Orleans. Very dirty, dumpy, skanky people everywhere and we didn't feel all that safe....

Jun 23, 2010 - Today was the English countryside--another great day.

Today we had a wonderful day in England's countryside. Brandi took us to a village called Dedham. We drove through the beautiful countryside, explored the shops in the village, ate in a quaint little inn, and toured through a church built in 1492. A gentleman came out of the back of the church and asked if we would like to climb up the tower and ring the church bells. We were a little reluctant but he seemed nice enough. Brandi and I knew we could take him if we had to! It ended up being an awesome learning experience. He knew everything...

Jun 22, 2010 - First 2 days in England!

What an unbelievable 72 hours! We've gone from theme parks in Richmond, to North Potomac, Baltimore, flying over the Atlantic, landing in London, train to Colchester, and back into London today for 13 hours of touring and walking. It was so fun! The city is beautiful and there is so much to take in. Brandi was super helpful teaching me the train system before we left for the day. I had at least 4 people asking me which train they needed to take throughout the day so I guess I appeared pretty confident! And yes, I was able to help them! We...

Jun 20, 2010 - Baltimore in the afternoon

At Baltimore we headed into the old downtown waterfront, which over the years has had a rebirth as a center for activities – old buildings have been turned into shops, restaurants and hotels, an aquarium and a floating maritime museum added, a lighthouse moved in, outdoor stages built, and the World Trade Center there (the world’s tallest pentagonal (5-sided) building) as an observation deck near the top, on the 27th floor. I’ve included some of my photos of the historic ships and the surrounding areas – the whole area was very well done...

Jun 19, 2010 - Richmond, Virginia today!

Hi Family and Friends! We had a great time in Richmond, Virginia today although it felt as hot as Florida at the theme park, Kings Dominion. The roller coasters there are GIANT. Of course Jack went on everything including the one with a 305 foot drop that went 90mph. Good ole Uncle Hartley went on it with him. It actually accelerates all the way up the 305 climb and down the other side--no pausing at the top. There was also one that shot us out of the top of a volacano and spun us around so much you couldn't even focus. Why do we do this to...

Jun 18, 2010 - All together in North Potomac

This evening was great. Kelly and Hartley made awesome lamb chops on the grill with asparagus, zucchini, squash and other fresh baked vegetables. Oh, and not to forget the monkey bread. The weather was perfect; sat outside in the 70 degree evening and sipped on some red wine while the kids chased lightening bugs. Got a few pics of the little ones swinging. All afternoon the kids played on the slip and slide and the 15 foot inflatable water slide the Adkins have in their yard. Off to Kings Dominion tomorrow for some serious rollercoasters....

Jun 16, 2010 - Baltimore & Annapolis Maryland

We moved yesterday to a new site on the outskirts of Washington DC. Huge campground very closely packed in but excellent facilities and organisation. The DC tours pick up right here in the campground, there is doggy daycare very close by, we have excellent phone reception, free wifi and cable TV on site – just the job. So today we dropped off the dog at the kennels and headed out to explore Baltimore and Anapolis, each about 30 miles away. No sooner had we set off and the heavens opened, I was glad I told the GPS to avoid the motorways, the...

Jun 15, 2010 - Ft. McHenry

Hello everyone! We had a great trip to Fort McHenry today. Wow, so much to learn. The Battle of Baltimore would have only been remembered as one of a few American victories in the war of 1812 if it were not for Francis Scott Key! He was so moved after seeing the smoke/haze clear during the early morning after about 25 hours of bombardment, to see our flag was raised and the British ships defeated and sailing away. He began to jot down his feelings in the form of a poem that later became the Star-Spangled Banner and our national anthem in...

Jun 14, 2010 - Inner Harbor - downtown Baltimore

Hello from Baltimore! We had easy travels--a very quick flight from Jax to Baltimore. We checked into the beautiful Marriott Waterfront, and the view is incredible. We are overlooking the inner harbor, the Ravens and Orioles stadiums, downtown and the aquarium. We had a great evening walking along the harbor, eating in an outdoor cafe on the water, and seeing the floating museum which is the last surviving warship from Pearl Harbor. Then we headed over to Little Italy for some gelato. Great first day! More tomorrow....until then..... D,J and S