The Summer and Fall of 2006

...and boy did we have fun!

As the photos show, Hans and Cindi's visit was a blast! They came in on a Wednesday, we had a great dinner at Fahrenheit in the District and first thing Thursday morning we packed the car and headed to Virginia Beach!

After a day in Virginia Beach we headed over to Colonial Williamsburg where we learned quite a bit about the history of our country and the former capital of Virginia.

After the girls got their beach and culture in, we packed back up and headed over to Russ' favorite place in the world...VIR! While the boys were bonding on the track, the girls took the opportunity to bond over a spa day at the nearby Blackberry Spa in South Boston.

We wound up the trip with a little dinner back at our place to celebrate Hans' 39 th birthday.

...with the McLeod Family and friends!

Labor Day Weekend, 2006 - The weather was rough with a hurricane watch all the way up I-95 but it is going to take a lot more than a storm called Ernesto to keep Maxine and Russ from the beach on Labor Day weekend! We drove all night, through Tropical Storm Ernesto and arrived safely at our family's reconstructed beach house at 4:30 Saturday morning.

It was a long drive, but boy was it worth it! Friday we got to spend some quality time with Lydia before the boys took off for Charleston and took a cruise from the Charleston back to the Edisto Marina, Saturday night we christened the new house with dinner on the deck with family and friends and shrimp from Bell Buoy seafood.

Sunday we spent a lovely afternoon on the beach and wrapped up with a cook-out at Mullins' house.

...the best pig-pickin' in the Blue Ridge!

Every year Maxine's Uncle Dexter and Aunt Nancy put on one heck of a party at their place in Banner Elk, North Carolina.

Having a reputation for a party where the food is plentiful, the spirits are high, and the music is simply outstanding, friends and family and even a few people we do not know come from all around to enjoy the Blueridge Mountains in North Carolina's High Country. Located near Boone, NC and the Sugar Mountain Ski Resort, Dexter and Nancy's little piece of paradise is quite the draw, even without the promise of a great party!

We got some photos of the sights in Banner Elk, dinner, the great cabin we stayed in, and of course some fun photos from the actual party.

...twenty-two miles, a few class two rapids, and a sandy beach for camping.

Shenandoah River Canoe Trip It had been a while since we dusted off our Ally canoe so, on the third weekend of September Steve, Russ, and Maxine coerced Rita and her daughter Ashley into joining us on a little 22-mile paddle down the Shenandoah River.

We headed out past Front Royal to Bentonville, VA and enjoyed a really nice trip down the river. Despite an overturned canoe and Rita getting stuck with a wet sleeping bag, everyone had a great time! We even caught a few photos of Ashley smiling!

...Lordy, lordy Russ is forty!

We celebrated in style on an 11-day Holland America cruise to the Southern Caribbean. We rode horses in the ocean, hiked through a rain forest, swam in the Caribbean, and just had an all around fabulous time. Thanksgiving was spent in San Juan and that was a bit odd but Russ had turkey for dinner that evening and we called it Thanksgiving Dinner!

For Russ the highlight was all of the fabulous photo opportunities. For Maxine, it was winning the ship's Blackjack tournament!