Adventures in Virginia- Petersburg Battlefield

We lived right next to the Petersburg Battlefield in Virginia, so we enjoyed a few Sunday walks around this historic place. It was the site of some major battles fought by Lee and Grant towards the end of the Civil War. The most famous one was the Battle of the Crater where 6,000 lives were lost. Many of the trenches and earthworks have been preserved, so it was easy to visualize what it probably looked like. It was sad to think such a beautiful place was once filled with war and death.

Deacon mostly just liked the "big guns"...

...and climbing on the "big guns".

Scott too for that matter...

Adventures in Virginia- Pocahontas State Park

Our final weekend together in Virginia we spent at Pocahontas State Park. It has a beautiful lake, campgrounds, a water park, and lots of hiking trails. It would have been fun to camp there, but we just spent the day. We took a paddle boat out on the lake- that lasted a whole 15 minutes until Scott wimped out on me... motor boats are more his style. We also took Deacon to the water park and let him splash around and go on the water slides.

Deacon on the lake- pretending he's fishing: 

Scott on the paddle boat- moments before he wimped out on me:

 Dad and Deacon at the Splash Pad:

 Getting wet:

Trying out the water slide- he told me afterwards he was just like Luke Skywalker:

 Daddy and Deacon:

Adventures in Virginia- Busch Gardens

Our next adventure stop was at Busch Gardens. They let Active Duty Military families in for free once a year, so we took advantage. The weather was hot, but overcast and we had a few showers to cool us off. Deacon had a blast! Scott and I had fun just watching him get so excited. He was pretty brave. I was worried some of the rides might be scary for him, but not so. He laughed and giggled the whole time. So fun!

Deacon and Mom on "St. Elmo's Spire" at Sesame Street Town:

Look how little he looks:

and look at that huge grin:

Daddy and Deacon on Grover's Roller Coaster:

The Balloon Ride:

The Scrambler:

Bugs:

Planes:

Dino Eggs:

Drinking Slushies:



Leaving with a sucker in one hand and a pretzel in the other- not too shabby!

Adventures in Virginia- Virginia Beach

For this weekend's adventure in Virginia we found ourselves at Virginia Beach. The weather was perfect and though the beach was crowded the waves were the perfect size for Deacon to play in and the water was surprisingly warm. We enjoyed relaxing on the beach and watching Deacon splash in the water and dig in the sand.

 Mom and Deacon:

 Dad and Deacon:

Getting a bite to eat:

Is there anything better than lying on a beach sticking your toes in the warm sand?