And then...

it was time for Danna to leave. I know Alyson was really anxious for her to get home, but we hated for her to leave. The boys are already planning their next trip to Montana....

As happens around here, we moved quickly onto the NEXT THING.
That weekend we took our Cub Scout den on a tour of the county's Free School, established in 1724. Amazing, isn't it? We've been wanting to go there for quite some time and finally were able to get it scheduled. The school is open for tours through the summer and by appointment in the fall and spring. It's run by the Retired Teachers' Association and we had just the sweetest couple of teachers there to lead the boys on a tour.
First they had to line up outside and be called in to the school with a bell, just like they would have in the old days.

They got to hear a little bit about the history of the school and then got to use old-time slates and slate pencils to do some cipherin'.



inside the giant fireplace



the boys got to try their hand at some old-fashioned games

so did the adults

a little time for recess

It was a lot of fun and I think it's something the boys will remember for a while!

Other Danna adventures

Honestly, we didn't do as much as I wanted to while Danna was here. It seems like the time went by quickly! We went shopping one day, I thrilled her with a trip to my favorite fabric store, and took her to piano lessons with us, and out to dinner, and she got a tour of the Pentagon. We couldn't take pictures inside the Pentagon, of course, but I wish I had taken some outside or on the Metro! boo.

Saturday, though, we had an awesome day. We headed to Gettysburg since she had never been and there is a certain history "buff" in our family that never turns down a chance to go to a battlefield.

It was a windy day that day, but a beautiful one. We ate lunch at the very historical Ye Ole McDonalde's and headed out on our tour.



Getting the big picture



Up on Little Round Top





We got a GREAT workout in with all the hiking around we did!

There were lots of costumed interpreters that day



overlooking Devil's Den



Super fun day! The drive there and back was gorgeous and although we know Papa would have LOVED the trip, we were so happy to be able to share it with Danna. 

A belated birthday and Chuck Testa

Wednesday we finally got around to celebrating the Army guy's birthday. Are you on Twitter, by the way? Follow him at Armydavesays.
Anyway.
We went out for barbecue--no pics but we had a great time! Then home for presents and to finish off some of the desserts we had laying around. I forgot to mention that we had made fake Mexican fried ice cream on his actual birthday...plus we had pumpkin bread, some caramel apple cupcakes, and assorted other goodies hanging around.
Look at these nuts:


Dad's number one!!!!

And now we're to Chuck Testa. If you don't know what we're talking about, all I can tell you to do is to google Chuck Testa. heh-heh. Has me chuckling just to think about it. :-)

I've gotta take a break now. Come back later for the rest of the visit. Looking over all of this insanity, I'm surprised Danna stayed with us as long as she did...

October 11

October 10th was actually Dave's birthday, but a crazy work schedule, trips to the airport and lots of houseguests had us push the celebration off a couple days.
Never fear! Because while we waited to celebrate Dave's big day, we got to celebrate Rachael's birthday! Jarrett and Rachael came up for the week (to meet Danna, who was our airport trip) and Jarrett took her to the zoo for the day then out to dinner. We had cupcakes together when they got back and she opened a few presents.

The Boy Scouts had their quarterly Court of Honor and Nick inducted 3 young men into the Order of the Arrow. Although not his favorite thing, he is an excellent public speaker....

October 9

On this day, my Army guy got up early and headed into DC to run the annual Army 10-miler. We didn't go with him since I had a Sunday School class to teach, but he said (after a nice afternoon nap) that it was a great time and he's looking forward to next year!

If you like Where's Waldo books, you can try to find Dave in the picture below. :) No bonus if you find the wizard.....

Oh, there it is!

Don't you hate it when you can't find your camera? Me too. I finally found it. In my jacket pocket. Huh.

So now I have a bit of catch-up to play! We had a lot going on the last couple of weeks, so you may want to get a cup of coffee before you start reading...

First up, wayyyy back on Oct 8 we went to the Armory in DC to pick up Dave's packet for the Army 10-miler. They had an awesome Expo going on and the boys had a blast with all the vehicles and weapons. There were lots of vendors inside the Armory, static displays everywhere, nutrition and exercise experts giving talks. It was a fun day!

Dad helping him get his sights



Scuba gear weighs more than Joshua!