Day in Washington, DC

April 24th - Friday

While we were at Andrews Air Force Base we decided we would spend a day and drive around Washington, DC.  Lou was stationed at Andrews for three years and at Bolling Field for three years so was very familiar with the area and I have had the pleasure of visiting Washington on many occasions, but never tire of seeing the area.

Lou had donated money towards the Air Force Monument but had never gotten to see it and I had seen it on my last visit to Arlington National Cemetery so I suggested that we drive over to that area so he could view that.  We put Maci in the car and off we went.  I apologize for the picture being at the wrong angle, I fixed it in my camera, but when I post it, I can not get it correct, you will have to use your imagination.

This is located on a hill overlooking Arlington National Cemetery.

I also took a frontal picture of the men that I thought was good,

Notice how the  trees are just beginning to leaf out.

I am going to post the rest of the pictures that I took while we were traveling around.  I took many more, but I am running out of time, as Lou has gone into Carlisle to pick up our drugs and when he returns we will begin the end of our journey.

This was taken from the Hill over looking Washington

Can't miss the Monument!

Looking down on a small portion of Arlington National Cemetery.

Construction every place we drove.

Another one of the front of the Capitol.

It was a nice day, and a day that I was glad that Lou was driving and not me.  I thought New York City was bad!!  Although the men don't seem to mind!!

Day with Casey - Savannah, GA

April 19th - Sunday - Rainy

We spent the weekend in Savannah, GA with Lou's grandson, Casey and his girl friend, Allie.  We always look forward to this time and this weekend was special.  We had severe weather; however, with all that Casey had planned for us, we were able to do all of it in between the weather.

Casey has an apartment in downtown Savannah in the historic area and it is just a beautiful place.  At this time of the year, the spring flowers and shrubs are blooming and even in the rain, it was so pretty.

Casey has a raised garden and he has already harvested his peas and we were amazed at the height of his potatoes, hopefully what is under the ground is as large as what is on top of the ground.

They took us to Carly for breakfast and it was a wonderful place to eat.  Allie stood in line for us and while she was waiting for our place, Casey took us on a quick tour of some of the historic homes around the area.  Lou and I had taken the Trolley tour last time we were in the area last year, so a lot of it looked familiar, but Casey was able to point out interesting areas to us.

After breakfast we went on a driving tour of the area, going out to Bonaventure Cemetery, which is huge.  Many well known people have been buried there, one is Johnny Mercer.

Confederate States of America

These were all monuments of railroads employees.

We saw so many wonderful sights and I find that I really didn't take a lot of pictures, as it was rainy and I was sitting in the back seat; however, we had a great time as we always do and the time went very quickly and we left after having dinner at a seafood shack, where the guys enjoyed fresh oysters and we also had fresh shrimp salad sandwiches all of which were served on newpapers.  Great food and the rained stopped for a few minutes and had a beautiful sunset.

National Museum of the Marine Corps

April 21st - Tuesday - Quantico, Virginia

Actually, the museum is located in Triangle, Virginia and we had the perfect day to visit.  The cherry blossoms were beautiful, the day was cool and we were able to park the motor home in the parking lot and leave Maci inside with the windows open and she was perfectly happy inside while we toured the beautiful area inside.

The Museum is divided into eight areas starting with Making Marines, then to Leatherneck Gallery, Defending the New Republic, Global Expeditionary Force, World War 1, World War 11, Korea and Vietnam.

It is dedicated to the core values embraced by the United States Marines, Honor, Courage, and Commitment.  This global expeditionary force has been protecting American interests since 1775.  It was dedicated on the 10th of November 2006 on the 231 st birthday of the Marine Corps.

The Museum's design is evocative of the World War 11 flag-raising scene on Iwo Jima, and its galleries are dramatic and energetic.  The central-most space, Leatherneck Gallery, is circular like the building itself.  Two concentric outer circles accommodate eight galleries in the 120.000 square foot first phase.  A second phase holds the promise of more adventure, along with the opportunity to provide professional stewardship to thousands of artifacts that tell the story of Marine  Corps history.

This was taken in the Leatherneck Gallery

Tribute to the Working Dog.

This was also in the Leatherneck Gallery

Handing shells up

The story of Reddington the Horse.

The six barrelled Ontos used in Vietnam

Future displays to be used regarding Iraq

Reporter in a Fox Hole World War 1.

I took many more pictures and could have taken many more.  Lou bought a book that shows so much more of the Museum.  We ended up spending over six hours there and we both agreed it was the best museum that we have ever visited in the USA.  Semper Fi!

Visit with Daisy

April 17th -  Friday - Cloudy and Cooler

We had a wonderful time with Daisy and we parked in her yard.  It was very hot and humid and we staying inside for the majority of the time we were at  her house.  Daisy loves flowers and gardening and it is very obvious by looking around her country home.  The pictures will tell their own story.  The above  picture is a darling picture of her Maltese dog named Lacy.  She and Maci got along pretty good together.

Maci walking down the drive from the RV to Daisy's home.

One of the flower beds in front of Daisy's home.

A beautiful bed just inside the gate to her back yard.

I thought this planter that she and Cheryl  made was beautiful.

She did her garden in big pots this year.

Her kitty named Molly.

A huge field with irrigation .

A closer look at one of the beds.

A front yard view.

This gives you a quick view of her home and her surroundings, it certainly is a different view of Florida.  We always look forward to our time spent with her.

MacDill Air Force Base - Tampa, FL

April 10th - Friday - 88 Degrees - Sunny with a slight breeze

Today is a much nicer day than yesterday was, it was 93 degrees yesterday and not enjoyable to be outside.  Today we have enjoyed getting outside a little.  In fact, we drove to Camping World to pick up a few supplies and then to Plant City hoping to get a flat of strawberries, only to find that we were too late, there were no strawberries to be had!!

I wanted to tell you a little about MacDill Air Force Base, a little that I know, it is over 70 years old and Major General H.S. "Hap" Arnold was the first chief of the Army Air Force to serve here.  From what I have heard the area was know for the rattlesnakes when Southwest Field was built.  It was opened to become a training  facility for a new bomber the B-26 Marauder.  It was initially slightly underpowered and introduced a new saying:  "One a day in Tampa Bay," as young pilots struggled to master their craft of flying and more than a few ended up in the "drink".

The base was named for Lt. Col. Leslie MacDill, who died in a plane crash outside of Washington, DC in 1938..

Today MacDill has become the nation's most important facilities.  Not only is it the home of an air refueling wing, Central Command (CENTCOM) AND Special Operations Command (SOCOM) are headquartered here.  It is not unusual to see troops from many other countries in their native uniforms when we go out to eat here on base.  We recently ate beside on troops from France and Romania.

One of the tracking planes.

CENTCOM Bldg.

Large Office Bldg.

Memorial in Ybor City

Statues of horses placed on the boulevard along Bay Shore Drive.

Huge statue of a flower  down town Tampa, you drive around it.

A view of the horses from the rear window of the car.

Skyline of Tampa.

I thought the tall building was pretty.

After we got back today, I gave Maci a bath and started putting some things away, as we have to start thinking about leaving here.  I always have mixed feeling of leaving, I hate the terrible hot weather, but I love  being here.  Krista was at out house today and took lots of pictures, and our flowers are all coming up and spring certainly is on the way, so that makes me ready to venture home.  Hopefully, Maci will remember what home is!!

Happy Easter

Easter Sunday - Christ Arose!!    84 degrees - Full Moon this AM and Bright Sunshine this PM

Lou and I set the alarm clock for 5:00 this morning so we could attend the Sunrise Services at MacDill Air Force Base.  It was held on the beach and it was a balmy 70 degrees at 6:00 when we arrived.  There was a very heavy dew and thankfully, I remembered the last time we attended and I took along a blanket to sit on and a quilt to put over our legs, as I knew there would be a breeze coming in from the bay and there certainly was.

The Service was well attended by all ages and all nationalities; young and old.  Two different chaplains took part in the service,  Chaplain Johnson did everything with the exception of the message and Chaplain McIntosh delivered the inspiring message based on the scripture from John.The praise and worship music was lead by Joe Carrender, he sang Sea of Crimson and Overcome, both were done very well.  The sound system was wonderful and every word could be understood and heard well.  Lou said that he had trouble with the wind whistling in his hearing aid.
The final hymn or praise song was a favorite of mine, one of Bill and Gloria Gaither's, Because He Lives, which I always feel  is very appropriate for Easter or any time of the year for a Christian.

Chaplain McIntosh

Joe Carrender.

After the service everyone was invited back to the chapel for breakfast that was prepared by the Base staff which we felt was very generous for them to do for everyone.

After we returned home, I quickly changed my clothes and took Maci for a walk, she didn't know what to think when we woke her up so early this morning and took her out while it was still dark, so I thought I owed her a nice long walk; however, she pooped out on me and I had to carry her home.  She has problems with the heat and likes the A/C!!

When we got home Kris called and told me that they had snow, but the best thing was when they awoke this morning a live rabbit was sitting at their back door, so they quickly awoke Matthew and told him that the Easter Bunny was there, and you talk about an excited little boy......  This will be an Easter for him to remember, with real bunny tracks.  I can remember making tracks for the kids oh so many years ago.......

We have enjoyed doing FaceTime with them today and I was able to show them the green grass and trees here and they showed us the snow at home!!  She has a big dinner planned for today and I think she said 15 people coming, so will be a busy day for them.  I was glad to hear the plans for Michelle's graduation, we are so proud of her.

This is going to be a busy week, have many things planned, seems like we wait for the last minute to accomplish the last things.  We want to get to Plant City for berries, Camping World, Beach, visit some friends, Maci  back to the doctor, get our taxes done along with the regular things that need to be done.

We are going out for dinner late this afternoon, will use one of our gift cards that we received for Christmas.

Sunday Blessing

At MacDill Air Force Base - Tampa, FL

April 4th - Saturday - 84 degrees - Sunny

We arrived here last Friday and it has been lovely, we were able to get a site and it is a great site, we are close to Sea Scapes Beach House, and we love to go up there to eat, or pick up food to eat at home.  We can sit on the deck and watch the ship come and go on Tampa Bay.  The first night, Lou walked up and picked up their Friday night special which was Crab legs and shrimp and we had a feast.

This is one order and we split it.

When we got here, it was cool for several days, and I actually wore jeans and a sweater for two days and it was a wonderful break, but now the weather is back to being hot again, I try to get my walk in during the morning and stay in during the afternoon and enjoy reading.  Lou enjoys the heat of the afternoon, but Maci and I just can't take it.

Maci has been having problems with diarrhea off and on since we got her and our vet at home suggested that we have her checked for parasites so we did that here on base and she tested negative for  that; however, the vet did  put her on Flagyl for ten days and a good probiotic and a bland diet after a day of no food or water.  It was interesting the base vet found that she has two microchips and suggested that I report that to the Yorkie Rescue, which I did and they were very glad that I did that and they recorded the additional number.

We have been catching up on some things that we have put off until we could get here.  We have an appointment to have our taxes filled out on Monday.  We have been shopping at the commissary twice, as it is a large and well stocked one here.  We purchased an iPad Air at the BX, I had been looking at them for some time, and Sue convinced me that I would be able to work it.  She helped me with the Facetime and I think I am going to like it.  Going to need some help with the e-mail portion of it when I get home, but think Michelle can help me with that.  Want to get my blog posting set up on it as I can see that will be much easier on it.  Love the camera.

Lou grilling our dinner of sausages and peppers.

Can you see the Manatee?

Double crested Cormorant.