Last Week of October---Taking a Break

October 25 through October 31, 2013

Sister Boone's daughter came for a visit the 24th through the 29th, so I took the opportunity to go visit Heidi a little bit.  She invited me to have dinner with them Sunday evening, the 27th.  She asked if I was spending the night, but I hadn't thought about it so was not prepared to do so.  I went back Monday morning, this time prepared to spend the night since Sis. Boone's daughter did not leave until 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday.

Monday, we drove to the Branch Avenue Metro station and rode the Metro to D.C. so Isaiah could have a field trip to the National Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian.  I think Isaiah had a great time.  Joshua not as much because he spent a lot of time in the stroller when he would much rather have been out crawling on everything he saw.

 On the Metro heading to the Air and Space Museum in D.C.

One of Joshua's moments of freedom from the stroller. 

 The coolest thing about this plane was it's color, which happens to be Isaiah's favorite.

Isaiah listening to an audiovisual display.

Later, when I was back home, I told Sis. Boone that we had gone to the Branch Avenue station.  She shared with me that a gentleman in D.C. had told her and her daughter that the Branch Avenue station was "not a safe place."  I am glad I didn't know that.  It didn't seem much different than the BART station that I used when I visited Anson in California, but then again, I was told it is not wise to travel that one after dark.

Chesapeake Beach Railway

On Tuesday, I went on another field trip to Chesapeake Beach with Heidi and the boys.  It was a beautiful day for an outing.  We started out by going to a couple libraries and then headed for Chesapeake Beach.  We parked and walked down to the beach and tried to get a few pictures.  Joshua seemed to enjoy the leaves and the sand, and Isaiah liked dragging his feet in the leaves as we walked along the trail to the beach.  However, once we got down by the water and tried to get the boys to pose for some pictures with Heidi, Isaiah was not too keen about sitting on the log we chose to sit on.  He has become more aware of bugs and does not really like to share his space with them.

Next, we drove to the Chesapeake Beach Railway Museum and toured the building that was the original depot for the train that ran there.

Here is a little history from their website. (http://www.cbrm.org/.) 

"In the late 1890's Otto Mears planned a Chesapeake Bay shoreline resort with railroad service from Washington and Baltimore. Mears and a group of Denver business associates designed a resort town with hotels, bathhouses and beaches, casinos, a race track and a 1600 foot boardwalk. The boardwalk was built out over the water and supported a band shell, a carousel, a dance pavilion, a roller coaster and many entertainment booths. Passenger steamers arrived daily from Baltimore during the summer months and tied up at a mile-long pier.

The first train arrived in Chesapeake Beach on June 9, 1900, filled with passengers and freight. The resort fulfilled Otto Mears' dream, but after only 35 years, financial hardship brought on by the Great Depression and the growing popularity of the automobile spelled the end of the dream. On April 15, 1935 the last train left the station.

Today, more than 100 years after that first train arrived, the past has been recaptured thanks to the selfless work of local preservationists and the Calvert County Historical Society. Countless hours of labor have brought the original station back to life. A group of dedicated volunteers help the curator ensure that the history of the railway and the resort are not forgotten."

 Guess what Isaiah's favorite part of the museum was--a little wooden train set (just like the one that he owns) that is there for the kids to play with.  Heidi and I enjoyed the memorabilia that was on display there.

We tried to get a few pictures by the old rail car and baggage trailer next to the museum, but once again Isaiah was too worried about dirt and bugs that he might accidentally touch, so we gave up on that idea.

OUR PHOTO SESSION WENT SOMETHING LIKE THIS

 Looking good so far.

Isaiah, are you going to get up by Mom?

Hurry, I don't think Joshua is going to sit here very long.

I'm glad you are still smiling, Heidi.

(Joshua) I don't think I like this anymore.

(Isaiah) Are you sure there aren't any spiders?

Well, then you can both just sit on my lap.

Are we having fun yet???

I think we're done!!

On the Railway Trail

The Marina

We then went for a walk along the Chesapeake Beach Railway Trail which followed along the route of the old abandoned railway.  The boardwalk went alongside and over Fishing Creek, so it was a very picturesque trail that we enjoyed immensely.  It was a beautiful time of year to take this walk.

Love these boys!!

We had too much fun and took way too many photos to share them all here.  The sun was getting low in the sky when we headed for home.  We arrived home about dinnertime, and I drove back to Waldorf after dinner.

Wednesday--Back to Visiting

Wednesday the 30th Sister Boone and I were back out visiting sisters in 1st Ward.  We drove down to Nanjemoy and visited with Sister Candland, another mother of ten children and a very sweet lady.  They have a home right next to the shore of the Potomac.  It started as a summer home, but after the kids were out of the house, they moved there as their main residence.  It is a beautiful, secluded place.

Hundreds of Canadian geese during migration

We had two other appointments in addition to three other sisters in the area that we wanted to drop in on, and they were all home and visited with us for a bit.  This is the first time there was someone home at every house we went to.  Thursday, Halloween, we went to the temple and then had a 5:00 appointment for which we were a few minutes late because the route we took was a bit confusing, but it was a nice visit.  Except for a few Halloween decorations at some homes, I wouldn't have even known it was Halloween.  We didn't have any trick-or-treaters come to our apartment, and we didn't see any children on our way home.

On Friday, although it was November 1st and officially 2nd Ward's turn to have us visit, we decided to finish up the week with 1st Ward visits and then start on Monday with 2nd Ward.  Our first appointment was with an active sister and the second appointment was a less active young sister that we had tried on several occasions to see or call without much luck.  She finally agreed to a visit on Friday afternoon.  As we were about to end our visit she told us she found it interesting that we should visit her that day because just the previous day her nearly-8-yr-old son told her as they drove past the church that he liked his church and would like to go again.  (She was active in Young Women for a while and then quit going to church.  She guessed that there are probably not many of her friends still in the ward.)  She told her son if he wanted to go she would take him.  We told her we thought that was a great idea and encouraged her to come on Sunday.  We talked about Kaiden's birthday party the following Saturday and ended with a spiritual thought and prayer.  She told us she would see us Sunday.

Sunday we were scheduled to start attending the other ward, but we didn't want Jennifer to come to church and not be there when we said we would be, so we decided we would attend 1st Ward meetings and 2nd Ward Sacrament meeting as well.  We sat near the door where we could see Jennifer easily and she could see us, and we waited.  She didn't show up.  Then right after the sacrament she came through the door and looked for a seat.  We motioned to her and moved over to make room for her and Kaiden.  When she realized that it was the 1st Sunday--testimony meeting, she began to talk about going up and bearing her testimony.  She asked Kaiden a few times if he would like to go up and bear his testimony.  Then she began to ask him to just walk up with her and hold her hand so she could go up.  He was too bashful to do that.  I was about ready to offer to walk up with her but thought that might be a little awkward for her.  Then the next speaker took a little too much time and the meeting ended with her not being able to go up.

I was happy to see several ward members come up and give Jennifer hugs and welcome her back.  She took Kaiden to Primary and we went to Sunday School and Relief Society together.  She signed up for a class at RS weekday meeting this week and also to help with the Food Basket projects in November and December.  I don't know if Jennifer will keep coming back, but I was grateful for this experience.  It makes me feel more like a real missionary.  Hopefully the Spirit will continue to prompt her.

November 6, 2013

Here we are back in White Plains 2nd Ward trying to remember names and faces and get in the swing of scheduling visits with sisters that we haven't seen for over a month, some of them two months (if they were last visited early in September).  Monday, we had two visits out of ten.  Tuesday, we had three appointments, one other sister that we found at home, and six others not home. 

One of the sisters that we visited we were able to serve a little bit.  She is the mother of 14, (two on missions, one away at college, and 11 at home with two sets of twins and two adopted).  She home schools them.  She was trying to keep up with school work, piano classes, and getting one of her sons ready to speak at a Boy Scouts of America event as the youngest Boy Scout to earn all possible merit badges (about 134), just to mention a part of her busy day.  I asked if there was anything we could do to help her, and she told us she was doing some last minute sewing projects, sewing on buttons, hemming pants, and fastening all of the merit badges to her sons merit badge sash so that they don't fall off during the event he is attending.  I volunteered to secure the buttons on a coat that she was sending to her college daughter, and Sister Boone sewed a button on a suit coat.  When Sis. Boone asked "what next?" she said, "well I have this merit badge sash that needs to be finished."  Since we had another appointment to go to, Sister Boone offered to take it home and do it with her sewing machine and also hem the pants.  She was so grateful for this offer.

Wednesday morning we started our day by returning the completed projects to Sis. Bonney.  She again expressed her appreciation for our service (mostly Sis. Boone's).  When I saw a sign on an elementary school marquis indicating there was no school today, I wondered how the rest of our day would be.  The weather was beautiful, kids were out of school…and no one was home.  Granted some of them worked, but even the ones that we knew didn't work and whom we felt quite certain we could catch at home were not there.  I can't say that I blame them.  It was a wonderful, sunny, almost 70-degree temperature day.  And now since we are supposed to drive the Beltway to the temple tomorrow, it is going to rain L.