It's unbelievable how quickly this month swept along. Aside from still hunting for furniture we're mostly settled in (unpacked, anyway) but still getting used to the area. The first few weeks were a little sad, with leaving everyone we knew in Missouri and the thoughts of the extra distance between us and everyone else.
Then I started my job, and I was too tired to feel anything other than how much I really need to make an effort to get at least 7 hours of sleep every night.
Now that I'm on my third week, things are going more smoothly and Hans has been spending his time applying for jobs and recently, making lasagna for me.
Bunsen started out very needy now that The Humans have more space to float around in, but I think she's adjusting to our around-the-corner absences.
No real vacation plans have been made for the moment, but we are heading out to Shenandoah for Columbus Day weekend and we've been trying to spend our past weekends out at about.
We've made it out to Annapolis a couple of times, both brief visits but enjoyable. I was very taken by the mix of colonial and victorian architecture in the historic down town. It would be lovely to visit again in the winter. The Maryland State Capitol Building is very pretty and sits on a low hill, providing views of the harbor and nearby curving cobblestone streets. The doors to the building are very ornate.
Our second trip to Annapolis gave us a chance to have lunch at the Boatyard Bar and Grill, which I can't recommend enough. On Sundays their fresh oysters are half off before 3 pm. Sold! I tried a few of the chincoteague (sink-o-teeg) oysters along with an open-faced sandwich that had the best blue crab artichoke spread I've ever had. But boy, was it rich. We also made our own six-pack of east-coast microbrews at a wonderful wine store near the harbor and we were impressed by most of them.
One weekend we went to nearby Watkins Regional State Park and enjoyed a rainy 3-mile walk in the woods.
This past weekend we finally made it out to the Air and Space Museum Annex out in Dulles, VA. It is an hour drive from our place, so we stopped for some fantastic thai food before going to the hangar. Hans was excited to see his all-time favorite aircraft, the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird. Other exhibits of interest were the Enola Gay and the Enterprise (the shuttle one, not the Star Trek one).
View from half-way along main hangar,
Enola Gay on the right
The Blackbird
"Fly into the danger zone!"
If you're a fan of aircraft spark plugs,
this is the right place!
I will continue to update as we go on little weekend excursions here and there.