Jamestown

We recently returned home from what I call our annual "stayvacation" with family. We didn't do as much sightseeing as I would have liked to but the advantage of living in Virginia is that there is a bit of history around every corner!! So even though Monticello was on my list for this year I can always go in the fall or next year. We did decide to explore Jamestown with my mom though and surprisingly it was a pretty nice tour to take and not for a lot of money thanks to my moms senior citizen discount! lol

I personally could have just set at the waters edge all day and listened to the sea! 

We took our time and leisurely strolled around the compound (even ran into a cute friend on our way back to the car) ending the day with a quick stop at the Glass House which is also on Jamestown Island at the entrance to the the site. 

All I can say is that I now know what it feels like to be near the fire furnace like the three Hebrew boys!! I honestly don't know how these men stood it!! I filmed a couple of clips and had to keep moving because my legs were on fire!! 

Disney plans!!

It's not written in stone yet but I've started pre-planning for two possible Disney trips. One to WDW in 2017, and one to Disneyland in 2018 for Marc and my 35th wedding anniversary!! The fact that we haven't been to Disney in 5 years, add in the fact that we are so close to 35 years of married life and could possible visit two of my dream vacation spots two years in a row is blowing my mind! 

Again we are just in the planning process. Haven't even set dates yet...but I have been scoping out the rooms at WDW, and we are leaning towards a Disney Moderate or the Family Value Suites!! One can only hope!! We have never stayed at a moderate and I've only dreamed about the family suites but with our family increasing this past May we are looking at different options to accommodate not only our growing family but our adult children!!

I've read a lot of reviews from people who have been longtime Disney lovers that the parks have changed. That they are crowded a lot more (although some said it was not the case this pass few weeks) and that they are not holding up or as clean as in the past.

This saddens me, but it still doesn't steer me away from wanting to visit!! 

The one thing I definitely have to research is the new fastpass system and as far as Disneyland I'm completely clueless!  lol

I do have a tentative schedule already set up in my head though. So here goes...Cast of characters will include my hubby Marc, myself AKADisneyqueen my oldest daughter Quisha, my "baby" daughter Nicki and possible her husband B. As of right now my son doesn't have plans to travel with us. I'm hoping that will change.

Right now the plan is to travel early or late fall and stay at a Disney resort hotel (just not sure which one yet). 

We have not been to Universal Studios since the kids were young and if my son in law wasn't a fan of fast rides we probably wouldn't be adding it to the list.  

So as far as WDW this is what I have so far:

Tuesday: Arrival Day 
*Dinner at Ohana's (if we fly in)
Wednesday: Park Day 1: Epcot/Disney Studios 
Thursday: Downtown Disney
*Dinner at Ohana's (if we drive)
Friday: Park Day 2: Animal Kingdom/Epcot
*Dinner at Boma's (if we get meal plan)

Saturday: Park Day 3:Epcot/Magic Kingdom
*Breakfast at Grand Floridian (if we have meal plan).
Sunday: Universal Studios/Island of Adventure
*Breakfast at Chef Mickeys 
Monday: Park Day 4: Magic Kingdom/Epcot
*Lunch at Magic Kingdom (Crystal Palace or Be Our Guest Restaurant ).  
Tuesday: Departure Day 

Most people don't like to do this much planning. But honestly it's my favorite thing to do other then being at Disney!! lol 

So let the planning begin!! 

Hopkins Brothers

We made our way back towards our hotel for the night but first up was dinner at Mallards.

I love the water, but unfortunately I can't swim . I could have sat there all day and watched this scenery!

Maybe the server/greeter could read my mind because she gave us a great table by the window. 

I'm usually disappointed if I eat at a seafood place. As someone who doesn't like seafood I find that most of the time if they are good at cooking the seafood they are usually not good at cooking anything else. 

I can happily say that this place was an exception. 

We really enjoyed our food!! 

I highly recommend the fried green tomatoes (my first time tasting them). 

My mom and cousin BABS ordered the salmon.

My cousin Pat ordered a fish sandwich and chips with a side of cole slaw.

I had a pork sandwich! Even when he brought it to the table I wasn't prepared for the size of the sandwich or the fact that it would be so good. You could smell the baconess (yes, I know that is not a word but I don't know how else to describe it lol) when the server brought it to the table!  It was very GOOD!

The whole crew together!! 

After dinner we were already for our hotel room and looking forward to settling in for the night before exploring some more the next day!

An ambulance and fire truck passed us on the highway half way to our hotel. 

When we finally arrived to check in we were informed (actually we learned from listening to others conversation) that the hotel had no power. Apparently there had been an accident near by that had caused a power issue. Keep in mine the last few days here in VA have been in the 100s. We were able to cancel our reservations (believe me four women in a small room with no air would not have been pretty and we had no guarantee from the staff when their status would change). 

I was certain we could find another hotel either near by my home or as close as possible.

That did not happen! Even with my girls (and hubby) along with my mom and I searching on our phones we could not find any hotel with vacancies! For the first time I understood what Mary and Joseph felt like when they could not find a room at the inn!! And imagine we were not even offered a stable!! Lol 

In all my years of traveling I had never seen no availability for rooms at any hotels!!! We tried at least 6 cities within our area and checked as far as Williamsburg Va and got nothing! My husband called at least 6 hotels himself...again nothing!! I'm not sure what was going on but for some reason we were not meant to stay away from home that weekend.

The last picture I took on my way home was of the sun setting over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. Needless to say as much fun as we had the end of the day was kind of a let down. But this morning I tried to see the good in the day and the fact that I got to spend time with my family made up for the trip ending so abruptly (well sort of lol). We are already planning for our next get together!! 

Scenic tour of Chincoteague Island

The little bit of the island that we saw from the car seemed beautiful (granted a bit busy and just a tad more crowded then we really wanted to deal with). But I'm glad we got a chance to see it since it turned out to be a first for all of us. Not sure how I've lived in VA this long and never been!! lol 

Unfortunately most of the vendors were closing up shop when we arrived. So it really did just turn out to be a drive by ride!! 

Silly me never put the two and two together that NASA was in the area!! 

By the time we got back on the main highway we were ready for dinner and looking forward to checking into our hotel for the night! Boy would we be in for a surprise! 

Ker Place

Originally I had planned for us to visit Onancock VA the next day but my mom thought we should work our way up the Eastern Shore and catch Cape Charles VA the next day after we checked out of our hotel.

And since this trip was about being spontaneous and just enjoying each other's company we headed to the stop originally set for Sunday. 

The only thing I had planned for Onancock was Ker Place and dinner on the water at a local restaurant in a historical old store. 

We scoped out the dinner spot first and told the waitress at the front that we would be back later that day (I'm not sure she believed us because she kind of gave us a funny look). In all honesty I original thought the store still existed and that the restaurant was just an extension of it! So when we walked in I was a bit disappointed that there was no shop! 

We drove back down the street to park near Ker House. Again because this trip was all about being spontaneous (well at least as spontaneous as I can get considering I plan everything down to the suitcases) I had not done a lot of research on the place with the exception of location, the times they would be open and the cost of touring. I had no idea who the Ker family were.

But I do like history ( just not the reading it in books kind of history lol). I like seeing the places people talk about in books rather then trying to envision it in my head. 

Our tour guide was a sweet lady and very informative but half way through the tour (which was pretty long lol) I could tell my family were getting bored. 

Salt!! 

This room reminded me so much of my grandmothers dining room. Not so much the architecture but the furniture and the China.

A silverware case!

The wine "cooler".

Spice rack!

Not sure if the doll was suppose to depict a slave, but I do think we took our tour guide by surprise when we arrived. Not sure many blacks frequent the area (or the house). I kept getting the impression that she felt she had to apologize for mentioning slaves. The thing about my family is that it not something we shy away from and we were not insulted. I appreciate the fact that she even knew any history of it since sometimes its something that is swept under the rugs.

My mom even made a point of telling her that we had a relative who was a Union soldier who was honored with a plaque in our hometown and was highlighted at one of the welcome centers in Yorktown (near the battlefield).

This old sewing machine definitely reminded me of my grandmother!! 

Apparently there was a Blueberry Festival that weekend on the Chincoteague Island. On a whim we decided to ride the 30 extra minutes set to check things out!