Cone Mansion

In May, Scott and I stopped off on the Blueridge Parkway, near Blowing Rock, to visit the Cone Mansion. It is a breath-taking landscape, and the house is now used as a finecraft outlet.

3rd Annual Laurel Hill Highland Games

Saturday, April 24, 2010

Ferris Park: A Birthday Picnic

For Scott's birthday back in April, we began festivities with a relaxing, Saturday afternoon at Ferris Park. The weather was great and the view gorgeous, especially overlooking the lake and watching ducks.

Mayfest 2010

Annually, we attend a festival in May, held in Pilot Mtn, NC. We enjoy food, music, performances, arts and crafts.

Here are views from around Main Street during the event.

Raleigh, NC

Catching Up with Friends

Around the weekend of April 11, Scott and I met some friends in Raleigh. Lauren and Kristin are friends from college, and over the years, we both have gotten to know them and their husbands and families. Over the April weekend, we visited the Arboretum in Raleigh, which is sponsored and supported by NC State University. The Arboretum is a facility with indoor rooms and activities as well as many outdoor displays of unique plants, shrubbery, trees, and bushes.

Aaron & Kristin of Kristin Byrum Photography & Bamboo Studios

...................Bennett, Aaron & Lauren

The Arboretum .............................................Aaron, Aaron & Scott

Most of the photos were taken at the Arboretum, but the group photos were taken in Aaron and Lauren's front yard. Check out more photos of Raleigh and the Arboretum here.

Visiting Relatives in Virginia

Just after Christmas 2009, we visited relatives in the Northern Neck area of Virginia, which is along the northwest coast of Virginia. It is a rural but historical area with coast line, bodies of water, large forest areas, and many old churches. We spent a little time sightseeing but mostly just visiting with family.

The Streets of Kilmarnock, particularly Lee's Restaurant (serving excellent, homestyle cooking)

Uncle Jim, Cousins: Elizabeth, Melvin, Bill, Mindy, Mike

St. John's Episcopal Church of Warsaw

Hanover Baptist Church

Ella, Colin, Scott, Clare, Cindy, Cathy (more cousins) in Westmoreland Park

Chris is helping the kids hunt for fossils in the sand!

The wind was cold coming across the water and between two cliffs.

The Northern Neck of Virginia and general northern Virginia area covers several small towns and communities. For the most part, it is flat; you can see land, water, and forests for miles and miles. George Washington was born in this area, and Robert E Lee lived in this area as a child. It is an area with traditional cultures and dialects reflective of "southern gentlemen and southern belles." For more information on the Northern Neck of Virginia, see our older post here.