Flashback Friday: Washington DC with The Girl Scouts

 2005

Washington DC- Flashback Friday on a Sunday

I have been busy cleaning out my old things as well as completing a scrapbook for my daughter (which I should have completed several years ago) and recalled our trip to Washington DC.  Aware that many of my scrapbooks will be placed in storage, and maybe forgotten for some time, I have been attempting to take photos for this blog for future visits. The pictures are taken from prints. (I think these were taken even before digital camera's- remember using film? The quality is not perfect, but the memories are real and since I never did any journaling (I am so angry with myself for thinking that I would follow up with this on so many of my scrap pages.)  I also want to note that I did not take nearly as many pictures as I would now simply because one of the chaperones had taken pictures and gave all of us copies on a disk, I unfortunately cannot find the disk.  I wish I had more pictures of the actual places we visited, but I am going to try and recall the experience here in the blog.

The Washington DC trip was through my daughters girl scout troop and I was fortunate enough to be invited as a chaperone. The scout leader Mariquritta (I am totally killing her name) had developed a 4 day 3 night excursion to Washington DC on a shoestring budget. (She should so be a travel planner). I want to say, I think I even got money back. 

We had 10 girls in total with 4 chaperones. (sadly I cannot remember the ladies names or most of the girls that went with us.)

The 4 of us in the middle went with 2 mini vans and 6 hours of driving. Our first stop was for bathroom breaks and Dairy Queen lunch just outside of PA.

Once we arrived in the Washington area we made our way to our home away from home at a boyscouts camp about 30 minutes outside of the DC area. 

Our first night was one gigantic slumber party sleeping in bunks. Each day had been specifically planned out and color coordinated (red, yellow, blue, and one day was noncoordinated as we went to Gettysburg). 

Our first day was a blue day and it was fully packed with fun. 

We started off our adventures at the local METRO, where we all purchased a transit card for the duration of our stay. (I simply LOVE my Girl Scout travel agent, she thought of everything.) Riding the Metro was so much fun. The girls were super excited, and I'll admit, I was too. When something like the subway is so foreign to you, it really does make it part of the experience. 

We had scheduled times to tour the White House. 

I'm not sure if you can even do this anymore. I anticipated something very different then what we got to see. I pictured the possibility of seeing the president (I know I'm stupid) I really expected to see the Oval office and business as usual sort of like what I had seen on West Wing. Well the tour does not grant you access to the daily going's on. Instead, we were lead under very tight security (we did see the sharp shooters on the roofs) East wing of the house to the rooms with names like the red room, blue room, china room, green room. Could they not get more creative for the big house they call white house. (Pictures we not allowed, but I borrowed a few from the internet below)

Certainly lovely, but I'll admit I was not that excited about it.  Still what an amazing opportunity to actually get to go inside the White house. 

We were going to attempt to inside Washington Monument, but the daily tickets were all taken. I've been to DC three times in my life and have missed this iconic tourist destination each time. I may have to go back to DC. It was a bummer, but believe me when I say we did not miss any of the big DC must do's after that.

Up next we did the National Mall. 

We enjoyed The Smithsonian Museum of American History,  before having a late lunch bagged lunch on the green.

I have enjoyed this museum during previous DC trips. I have also explored the National History Museum and the Air and Space Museum.  I need to go to the National Zoo someday. It looks like I just might need to make another trip to Washington. BTW- they are all free admission

The day did not end there, we went to the top of the Old Post Office Tower (also free) and had an amazing view of the city.  

Dinner was pizza from CeCe's. Of course this was a HUDGE hit. We ate there twice. 

The next day we headed out for a cruise along the Potomac River. From this view we were able to see several of the monuments and stopped a a few outdoor resturants and shopping. I don't recall the name of the cruise we took, but the staff was very nice and accommodating.

(pictures from the internet)

We had a picnic lunch and visited the American Indian Museum. I absolutely loved the museum. After the museum we found a free shuttle (I wish I had more information on this) that took us to The John F. Kennedy Center. This was interesting. We spent a little time exploring before we headed back towards the camp and dinner.

The next day was one of my favorites, we work up early to be the first to enter the National Botanical Gardens. 

We enjoyed this place rather quickly as we had scheduled times for perhaps my favorite place we visited The Capitol building. This place was really a surprise to me as I had no interest in visiting in the past. My thoughts were that it must be incredibly boring. However....it was insanely beautiful. 

(lifted from the internet) Above is the art inside the dome. There is art everywhere. There is also 102 statues throughout the building  gifted from each state in forms of important people though out time. Some of these include Helen Keller, Fredrick Douglas, Sam Adams, Robert E Lee, and George Washington. 

Inside is Capitol building is also (although it is no longer) the geographical center of the Capitol district. 

This stop is high on my list of must visits.

A quick lunch outside the capitol and we made our way to the next stop, and another one of my favorites. The International Spy Museum.

This museum does cost money and is not  associated with the other museums we had visited. But so worth it. The museum has everything you could want to know to become a secret agent. Think old time spy movies: secret lipstick tubes, umbrellas that house guns, pens that eject poison, 007!

It was really really really cool. The girls had some fun becoming a part of the "inner circle".

It had been such a long day, but we had a few more activities before bed. We then took the metro to China Town where we got to view Friendship Arch before finding a Chinese place for a nice dinner. 

Back to camp for a nice rest. 

The last and final day in Washington: 

We drove to Arlington Cemetery.

This place is quite big and we walked to everywhere we wanted to get to and it started to RAIN and RAIN and RAIN. Not recommended if you can not sustain the long distance walking.

Its a pretty amazing sight, graves stretch for miles and miles and miles. 

Our first important stop was to John F. Kennedy's grave site then on to The tomb of the Unknown Soldier.  Did you know that there is a guard that stand watching this site everyday, all the time 24 hours, 7 days a week. And they guys are serious about this job. We were fortunate enough to witness the changing of the guards. No quick time card punch in and out here. The changing of the guards is a long formal ritual that we watched in pouring rain.

Very impressive. 

(Picture of the rain rushing down a stairway like a waterfall)

Wet, tired and ready to hit the road we got back to the vans and headed north towards home, but on the way we stopped at Gettysburg and got some more history. 

It was most indeed an amazing trip that I was so fortunate to have time with my daughter and her Girl Scout members. TTFN

I bought a 1997 Casita Travel Trailer!!!!

 November 2020

WHAT HAVE I GOT MYSELF INTO????

For several years I have dreamed of owning one of those adorable vintage "canned ham" trailers. I have visited blogs, watched endless YouTube videos, read books and fantasied for some time about the day when I too could be just like those talented individuals who had glamed up their traveling home. Initially I had longed for a vintage trailer to fix up. This idea seem to be what everyone was doing. I searched craigs list, local sales and online, but living in the North East, these types of trailers even in the worst conditions are far and few and cost an insane amount. I also know I don't have the skill set to redo to the bones or the finances to buy one fully renovated.  I then started pricing out the new retros thinking this would at least give me the look I've been longing for. BUT..these babies are pricey for such a small space. One thing I knew was that I wanted some way to travel on my own and not pull a big trailer solo. 

My search was redefined over the years from a vintage to anything I could tow myself and was financially friendly. After looking at what was available and within a budget I started thinking about pop up trailers, small travel trailers, I fell in love with the teardrop, the r-pod and the T@b trailer, and even found the most adorable SCAMP on Marketplace for an insane deal only to find out it was a SCAM. (I did blog about that heart break).  

Feeling that I would never find the "right" TT for me, I happened upon the new NoBoundries TT while visiting Gander Mountain for winterizing supplies. Even my husband was impressed. Although still pricey for the size, I felt it had all the features I was after and BONUS....my Husband and biggest financial supporter was into it. I simply knew it would be a while before such a unit would be mine so I would have to wait patiently HOWEVER....read multiple reviews and the construction was rated very poorly.....I do not want issues. SOOOO with the NOBO off the radar, the r-pods, t@Bs, vintage and smaller trailers either to expensive or needing so much work, what was a girl to do. 

One thing I have learned from most of  research on traveling in the fashion I long for is start with what you have. Soooo.... yes I do have a 37 foot travel trailer at my disposal BUT I am absolutely terrified of pulling her myself and the camping (glamping) I want to do is to places off the grid, dispersed or in National Parks where a 37 foot rig would not fit. 

I guess I could wait for my husband to retire and have him pull the TT, and I really do not need to stay in off grid places or in national parks....BUT I really don't want to wait, and I really do want to live these boon docking experiences. 

This started me thinking...why not camp out of my car? I started watching youtube videos on car camping. I even attempted to lie down in my RAV4 just to get an idea of how comfortable this would be. Realizing this might not be as easy as I'd like and seeing that many people live in a van more comfortable as well as multiple van conversions, I started leaning towards doing my own van conversion. 

This was my mind set, …….BUT that's before I happened upon  my new Travel Trailer......I had been scanning Marketplace for used vans. Still, as always taking a look at recreation vehicles...just in case and in this case...I FOUND ONE....

Oh she was so cute....I quickly texted the seller and asked about her availability and searched my maps for distance and directions to her. Yep, she was still available. I asked a dozen or more texted questions and was told that the seller was actually the women's mother in law and provided me with a phone number. I called and it went to voice mail. OH NO.....

A short while later a women called back and I told her of my interest. She reported that she had just spoke with a man from Mass who was interested. Oh I said sadly.....she informed me that she would have to speak with her kids and get back to me. Oh I was sad..... BUT she called me back after some time and asked if I had spoken with her daughter in law, and I said yes....she then said well actually you had claimed her first and if I was still interested she was MINE!!!!! I was so excited.  

My husband and I drove the hour north to give her a look over and make payment. I was so excited about the possibilities, that even if she had a broken vent cover and it really did seem like there was a soft spot in her floor, and even though the seller did not have any answers for me, and we had the wrong sized ball for the trailer hook and couldn't take her home right then and there, I still handed over the cash......We decided to come back the following weekend to pick her up.

As I waited to pick her up I did some research as well as connected to a Casita group on Face Book. This was both a positive and a negative. On the positive side...everyone seemed to love her. I received several she's great etc and tons of support. On the negative side, I got a few comments on the difficulty of fixing any floor damage. This caused me to obsess. DID I JUMP IN TO DEEP?

Well, she is mine now, so no turning back. 

As I awaited the weekend, I did have some adventures during the week. Renee and I got our finger nails done, I had lunch with my friend Pat and enjoyed Tully's chicken dinner. 

My oldest came to visit on Wednesday and he did offer to support/help me on my Casita if I needed it. I gave him and my daughter fun Disney face masks.

He also gave me a Birthday gift. Thursday, my actual Birthday I received 100's of face book wishes, a gift from my daughter, flowers from my parents, Chinese takeout for dinner and a surprise Birthday Cake from my family. I was indeed an amazing Birthday.

On Saturday morning, Mark and I went to retrieve the Casita. The Seller still didn't offer me any additional information about the camper, but she did have some very cute pets….(See below) who came to see us as we hooked her up. 

We were worried about the tires, the lights, and actually getting her home. The left rear light seemed to be out, but otherwise the tires although they will need to be replaced, seemed good. There really was no problems getting her home. We decided to take the back way on slower roads then the highway, but I think we would have been fine. Once we got her home, I realized that most of her broken air-conditioned cover had fallen off some where on our route. Sorry to someone, at least I knew we planned to replace this anyways. My husband took the remaining pieces off and it looks like despite being exposed to the elements, the air condition looks intact and there does not appear to be any leaks.

I had my family and a few friends investigate her inside and out. I was surprised that my youngest son was quite interested and even asked if he could "live" in it. Sorry Kid, this gal is mine. I need to come up with a name for her, and begin taking steps towards addressing her "broken" pieces. We haven't plugged her in to the power as of yet, so that could be an issue. I haven't even looked under the rugs to see if there is any floor damage either.....

Once I had her in my possession and I could really give her a look over, it's clear there is so much more that needs to be done. Dings in her exterior, stains, chips in the door. tears in the carpet. The wobbly table, crushed city water valve, those FLOORS.... I am NOT going to get discouraged. It will be a process and it will take some time, but everything is fixable if I can be patient and just do it. 

Here are some pictures of the visual damage.

Easy fix

Not sure how easy this might be.

Wobbly table, but it does not appear to have any screws in it. Also very rusty. (Could it be water in the flooring?) This could be an issue.

This is the water hook up. Notice it is BENT....Not sure if this will be an easy fix or not. 

Above is the view of the AC before we added the new Shroud. (Already fixed)

Mark and I found a new AC shroud and installed that, at least now she looks less "beat up" and we tried the electric. 

From what I could tell all the lights work except the light over the stove. The fan component of the AC works, but we didn't test the AC itself. There was a component that was running immediately when I pulled her in, but I couldn't tell where this was coming from. I will have to do some research. I also was unable to turn the refrigerator on. It may be propane only, but I am not sure. I also can't seem to lift the table top to create a bed. These bolts also seem to be a bit rusty. There is also a big dent in the outside door.

This is where I have stopped for the time being. She needs some cleaning ASAP, but the weather has not been in our favor and it is COLD out. I might have to start doing some projects like curtains, and decorative items that I can do inside until it gets a little warmer. 

What I am finding is although she looks rough, she's actually not in that bad of condition. 

Until next time. TTFN

Trips are far and few as Pandemic continues, but making the best of it.

October and November 2020

Central NY

There has been little to no travel of late. The pandemic has continued to prevent much activities outside  of the necessities and it seems to be getting worse. My husband and I did do a mini vacation to the Turning Stone Casino and resort for a weekend just to RELAX, however and this was the only time we had a piece of vacation for some time now.

We had planned a trip to visit our son in Florida in late October, which would have been the same time of own now canceled Mexican Cruise and since Mark was made aware that should he decided to travel to one of the like 42 (+) states on NY States restriction list. (Yes, NY has nearly all of the county on a no travel restriction right now.) and he returned to work sick (for any reason) he would be dismissed from work for 14 days without pay. We decided as much as we would like to get away and most definitely see Ben, it wasn't worth the risk in pay or the risk in getting sick. Our weekend away was not nearly as exciting as a road trip south, but it was nice to have a change in scenery. We also lucked out and had a jacuzzi suite which I enjoyed nearly the whole time. 

Our balcony was a nice place to have our own safe space and something a little more interesting then our current homes walls. We did venture out of our room of course and did a little gambling as well as had a few wonderful meals. A treat we have not been indulging as much since COVID started. (Eating out)

We had a wonderful meal at the VIP room for dinner on Friday evening and had a late lunch on Saturday of a Buffalo chicken wrap on Saturday. All of the meals were YUMMY!

My husband also got be a surprise massage on Saturday evening. I was so excited. It was an amazing opportunity to relax and with all of the new regulations I had the place to myself. It was AMAZING!

Otherwise we spent most of the time in our room enjoying the private hot tub. That Sunday, my eldest son came to the house to help with the update of the house. He installed the new light fixture and the new pluming. It looks so nice. Now I just had to finish up everything else. (The walls and the floor)

On the crappy cold days my daughter and I spent hours and hours watching Netflix. We completed The Haunting of Hill House and The Haunting of Bly Manor. I enjoyed Haunted Hill better then Bly Manor. Both were an interesting take on thoughts around haunting. 

Halloween is my favorite Holiday and unfortunately this year I didn't do much of anything. I usually have a annual Halloween party but I haven't in the last few years. Last year we were getting back from a cruise and we were planning on being in Mexico this year, no Mexico and with COVID no Halloween happened in our house. I made up for it with Scary MOVIES. One Friday, my daughter and I went to visit my friend Kelly in Auburn and had a mini girls night full of cocktails and horror films. It was nice to spend an evening with a good friend and have a little bit of Halloween. On Halloween, I didn't even hand out candy. 

In November we had a warm spell in the area and this offered an opportunity to get outside. I had a few walks with friends and good conversation. I spent some time with a friend (Brenda) I haven't seen in several years and it was nice to catch up. I got in a voted on election day. 

And received notification from NY state that my recertification was deficient, so I have to get registered for a 30 hour online class and have it completed by March 8th. One good thing about COVID is the State is offering an extension on  when things need to be in for recertification so I plan to register and get that completed ASAP. It will at least give me something to do besides BINGE watch Netflix shows. I'm not really sure why I need to keep my certification as I did not see myself returning to work, but you never know when you may wish you kept it, so I might as well do it. 

November also started my Photography class. I signed up several months ago thinking that the COVID crisis would be over and was actually surprised that the class was still on. I had my first class last week and there are some rules; masks and a questionnaire must be completed before entering the building. I'm excited about finally doing this for myself and HOPE they don't close the school for online before I'm done. Most classroom activities are in some kind of hybrid course work or 100% online. My son has been online all year. I'm not sure if he is getting what he needs. I just hope he completes as it is his senior year. I can't even imagine being a teenager during these times.  He is struggling with heighten anxiety and has fears about catching the virus. It has definitely been difficult for him. 

My friend Renee has been off of work for the last few weeks, so I have made attempts to visit with her during the week. We hit the Disney store and I got my traditional Disney Ornaments for the kids Christmas, she got me a pedicure for my birthday. It was a nice day to spend together and my feet feel wonderful. 

My Birthday hasn't even happened yet and my lovely husband got me a laptop that I can pick up on Tuesday. He also got me a room at the Turning Stone Casino for me and my girlfriends. Renee, Carol, Brenda and I went out to the Casino for an amazing girls night. I really had thought this years Birthday would be doing nothing, how wonderful to have such a loving husband and great friends to make it AWESOME. 

We kept things very safe, but limiting any time outside our room. He had cocktails, played games and did a mini spa in the room. 

The ladies loved the room and the comfy robes.  

Wearing facial masks to clean up our face. We looked so silly. 

We also did feet treatments...

I had a wonderful Birthday and it hasn't even happened yet. 

 I don't have any plans for a trip coming up and it looks like it will be awhile before I will be going anywhere. Our family has already decided that Thanksgiving will be at our own homes. I'm not even sure if I will be getting a turkey this year. Cuomo (NY state Governor) has enforced a 10 and under for gatherings, not that my family has that, but my parents are not willing to take any risks and my son's SO is not willing to either, so that leaves me, my husband, my son and my daughter. (Maybe my mother in law) none of us feel a need to celebrate the holiday and can wait for another day to all get together. 

In the meantime, Mark and I plan to address the much needed work to be done on the house. I need to finish the bathroom and he needs to get the floors done (Its only been like a year). New carpets upstairs, doors throughout, upstairs master bathroom and at some point the kitchen needs to be remodeled (Completely) 

I plan to keep downsizing and have some crazy fascination with car camping in the spring...me, myself and I. I'd love to have most of my stuff GONE so we can live a minimalist life in the future. If we could get everything done and gone, Im ready to sell the house and get on the road. Guess we will have to see what the future brings. Until next time....TTFN