Floors.

Ben had two weeks of leave before heading back to work here in NC. So we took full advantage and went to work on replacing the floors in our main living areas. So we ripped out the nasty carpets...



And started putting in some pretty laminate floors.

Finished up with some trim and touch-ups, and this is the finished product.

It has been some hard work, but it looks so nice now. And, as hard flooring goes, this was pretty easy. So yeah, we're pretty proud. :)

lighthouses.

Last weekend my hubby and I visited a few lighthouses in Virginia. We first saw the Assateague Lighthouse. There were tons of kids on a field trip, so we didn't stick around to climb it. But it sure was pretty!

Later, we stopped by the Old and New Cape Henry Lighthouses. We got to actually climb the old one!

I do love the lighthouses!

Home.

Hooray! We've finally made it back to North Carolina. And we're hoping to stay here for a good long while. We actually got home on Friday night, after some fun lighthouse sightseeing down the coast of Virginia.

Assateague Lighthouse

Old Cape Henry Lighthouse - The first lighthouse authorized by the First United States Congress. Errected in 1791, it lighted the entrance of the Chesapeake Bay until 1881 and was replaced by the New Cape Henry Lighthouse.

New Cape Henry Lighthouse

On Monday, we headed to Onslow Beach, about 2 hours from our house. Unfortunately, it was stormy and cold, so we came home early. But, on the bright side, Ben found a bunch of shark teeth! :)

We're so happy to be home and settling in a bit. And, since Ben has 2 weeks of leave, we're taking on a home-reno project. We're replacing the carpets in our main living areas with a hardwood look-alike laminate. Pictures to come!

Lots of Sightseeing!

Last weekend, Ben got his first days off for over three weeks, so we took advantage of what was probably one of our last chance at sightseeing in this region. We started by climbing a lighthouse at Cape May, New Jersey.

Ben looking confident at the top of the lighthouse.

Me holding on for dear life. It was so high!

Next we hit the Philadelphia area for a few last-minute stops. We started at Valley Forge, then ran up the rocky stairs at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and finished at our favorite spot of Philly Cheesesteak, Blarney South.

The arch at Valley Forge.

Who'd have imagined an Irish pub would serve up the best Philly Cheesesteak? So tasty!

Our next stop was DC. We went to the Jefferson Monument, which had just the most amazing views!

On our walk to the National Mall, we passed this little treasure. It's a monument to WWI and WWII service members from Washington DC. It is just such a beautiful structure. See me in the middle?

The art museum was amazing! I took so many pictures, my battery died. My favorite was Monet. Ben really liked the old christian art and icons.

Oh! And we spent an afternoon in Annapolis, Maryland. At first we just went to see the state capitol building, which is beautiful. But we found some great shopping and a harbor on the Chesapeake Bay. It was so much fun walking around, popping into shops and just enjoying the warm, sunny day!

Ben is working nights now (7pm-7am), which is pretty tricky in a hotel room. But I think we're making it work. With the new schedule, Ben gets this weekend off! We'll see if we can squeeze in one last sightseeing trip. I'm hoping for one last day in NYC. We head home to NC on May 15th and we're definitely looking forward to being back in our house. 14 days to go! :)