Gettysburg.

We're on the move again... We put the Lillie-Dog on a plane to Utah and headed north! Monday we drove from NC, through Virginia, Maryland, and into Pennsylvania to see Gettysburg. Ben has been SOO excited to see Gettysburg! He even rented the Gettysburg movie again. I'm not much for battlefields but it was really amazing!

First we saw a short movie narrated by Morgan Freeman (who I've nicknamed God cause he always plays Him in movies) with Sam Waterston (Jack McCoy from Law & Order) as Lincoln's voice. It was a great movie and got me interested. Next we went to the brand new museum where Ben drooled over all the relic weapons. After that, we walked around part of the national cemetery. It was a very solemn experience, seeing the trench graves and the hundreds of unknown grave markers. I've never seen anything like it.

See all the cannons? Cool.

We climbed a lookout tower with a million stairs. My legs were sore the next day, but the view of the valley was so amazing!

I'm awful at history and knew about nothing about Gettysburg before we went. I learned so much and really gained an understanding and appreciation for what happened there. I'm so glad we went!

Happy Holidays!

What a crazy year this has been! Ben and I have spent the last 6 months on the move... Its so bizarre. We've 'lived' in Montgomery, Alabama (6 weeks), NC (8 weeks), Biloxi, Mississippi (6 weeks for me; 10 for Ben), and now back to our home in NC. And we're not done yet! Mid-January, we're heading to Dover, Delaware for 4 months for Ben's deployment.


Because we've been in and out so much, I've had to be selective about decorating for holidays. I didn't even try decorating for fall/Thanksgiving. But I'm super excited to get the house ready for Christmas! I'm almost done already! Oh and I should maybe explain the stockings. Mine is first. I've had it since I was a little girl. Ben's is Scrooge and says, 'Bah Humbug!'. And the other is Lillie's. Can't wait for Santa to come!

Lillie posing by the Christmas fireplace.

And here's a random pic from our little Thanksgiving dinner. We did it all on our own. It was my first time making the whole thing and it was pretty tasty, if I do say so myself!

Going home...

So I'm heading home to NC on Friday. Ben's little bro, James Allen, came out to watch our house and the Lillie-dog while we've been gone. Unfortunately, he had to head home to Utah a little early, so I'm going back to take care of things until Ben comes home Dec 11th. We've really appreciated James Allen's help, allowing me to spend the last 6 weeks with Ben in Mississippi. But I am kind of looking forward to getting back home. It's been really boring in MS. And I miss our house and the Lillie-dog! So here we are, being silly while I've been packing. :)

Will I fit in a suitcase?

Pretty much, yeah. Ha ha!

I made Ben a snowflake sticker and he stuck it on his head.

Halloween in New Orleans!

This year for Halloween, we decided to brave the crazy New Orleans crowds with some friends. It was so much fun! We all dressed up too! We ate at Pat O'Brians and then saw the parade! Here are some pics!

Ben went 'rocker goth' and I was a referee!

He got so many glares. He looks pretty scary though, huh?

During the parade.

Me and Ben after the parade. Look how many beads Ben caught for me!

We really had such a good time! Great food, crazy people and we got to dress up too! :)

Ship Island!

Last weekend we went to Ship Island! It's about 11 miles south of Gulfport, Mississippi and is a part of the islands that stand between the Gulf of Mexico and the Mississippi Sound. On Ship Island is Fort Massachusetts, a strategic military post built around the time of the Civil War to protect the Mississippi ports.

The ferry ride took about an hour each way. It was amazing! There were these dark grey/black dolphins everywhere. We saw them on the way there, at various times while on the island, and on the way back. When we got there, we immediately took a tour of Ft Massachusetts. Here are some pics!

View of Fort Massachusetts from the ferry.

Me and Ben at the giant cannon.

View of the island from the top of Fort Massachusetts. So pretty!

New Orleans!

Yesterday we went to New Orleans! We spent the afternoon wandering around on Bourbon and Royal Streets. We window shopped and then found a fabulous restaurant called Desire. Ben got red beans and rice and gumbo. I got fried catfish. It was all so tasty! Here are some pics:

It was kinda rainy, but Bourbon Street was so much fun!

Best Day Ever!

Since we're in Biloxi, Mississippi for about 10 weeks (for Ben's tech school at Keesler AFB), we decided to spend the weekends sight-seeing. Today we saw a couple places Ben remembered from when he lived here.

First, we went to Gator Ranch. Ben has ALWAYS wanted to go there.

The "baby" alligators live in an enclosure until they're about 6 feet long. Then they are released into the wild. Yikes!

Our crazy guide jumped into gator territory and started pulling their tails. This one didn't like it much... he was hissing and ran into the water.

They were so close to the fenced-in boardwalk!

The guide fed them raw chicken while we were there.

Say cheese!

Later this afternoon, we went to Pascagoula beach. It was kind of cloudy, but warm and beautiful.

Isn't he handsome?

I just love this picture!

Life at the Super 8... again.

We made it to Biloxi, Mississippi - safe and sound. Ben made reservations for the lodge on base about 2 months ago, so when we checked in there, we thought 'no big deal, right?' But according to them, reservations mean nothing and we're supposed to stay in a Super 8 off base for at least 42 nights. Its nice enough: king bed, cable, free wi-fi, mini-fridge and tiny microwave. Not bad, if it were only a few nights. But for 2 1/2 months, we may go crazy here. Besides, with only one car here, one of us will be stranded all the time. So I sent Ben on a mission - find a way to get us on base, where we'd have a kitchenette at least. And where Ben could walk to school. :) We'll see what he could do on his first day...