Lexington

 Maya and her fish she caught.  She was so happy to catch the fish, but not as happy to pose with it!

 Brynn and Maya looking through the door at Chipper the dog.  Poor Chipper received way too much attention by those two.  He is such a sweet, kind dog.  Zoe, however did not like him, and steered clear of him the days we were in Lexington. 

 A good friend of mine-Jorge Piercy.  I helped him find some shoes that fit when I worked at Walkabout  and we became friends.  He has extremely small feet, and is from Columbia originally.  Such a great man.

 House Mountain on the right.  The sky and mountains were incredible the days we spent in Lexington. 

 Maya, Brynn and Don Ellis.  This dear man is responsible for teaching Evan how to fly fish.  Don learned how to fish in Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado.  Evan and I met Don and his lovely wife Claudia at the Christmas parade in Lexington in 2005. They are wonderful people.  He and Evan took Maya and Brynn fishing one afternoon.  They had a fabulous time and brought home trout to eat-it was delicious. 

 Brynn holding the fish-she wanted to remind me that she wasn't scared to hold the fish.

 Maya holding her fish.  She was hesitant, but then she did it!

 Izzy on her b-ba-birthday! 

 Zoe at the Riethmiller's home.  It's out in the country and has the best views.  We celebrated Izzy's birthday out there.

 In the pool at Riethmiller's.  And with this picture that I think it's time to grow the hair out.  :)

 Evan with his favorite Professor, Brian Murchison.  An amazing guy. 

 The Virginia country-Possum Hollow Road.  Yes, that's really the name of the road.  :)

 The ladies at Riethmiller's swimming. 

 Looking for snails in the grass with our good friend Russ.  He lives in an old schoolhouse out in the country and we spent many nights at his place that included bonfires and banjos.  Good memories!

 Evan with the girls on VMI grounds. 

 Don, Izzy and me on Izzy's birthday.  She celebrated with carrot cake star cupcakes.  Claudia and I were able to go antiquing one day while we were there, and found some little tin stars for baking. 

 Zoe + Dad.

 The sky on the night of Izzy's Birthday.  Happy Birthday, Izzy! 

 Evan's mentor Sally Wiant-an amazing lady.  Evan worked for her and she has become a dear friend.

 Somehow, this is the only picture I have of Claudia!  Here she is with the girls.  She has an incredible way with kids-bonding with each of them.  She knows just what they like, how to keep them entertained and was so kind to entertain us for five days.  Thank you Don and Claudia!

Steve and Peggy Riethmiller-another lovely couple.  Had such a fun time catching up with them.  Thank you for letting us swim and use your house for Izzy's party! 

For our vacation this year we decided to return to Lexington Virginia.  We spent three glorious years there from 2005-2008.  I couldn't believe that it had been five years since being there.  We stayed with our dear friends the Ellis'. 

Driving in from the West through West Virginia my heart leapt a bit.  We drove that road quite a bit during law school.  It made me so happy to be driving back to Virginia.  I have really missed that place.  Ah, the mountains!  The greenness!  The rolling hills!  Lexington, the tiny town tucked in the Blue Ridge mountains.  We absolutely loved our time in Lexington.  We added Maya to our family there, grew as a couple and made really dear friends.  

 

Don and Claudia live in a house that dates back to just after the civil war.  It is amazing.  Claudia is a master gardener and her yard is blooming with lots of flowers and greenery.  We tried some delicious shrimp from the coast, and ate many dinners outside.  The girls loved Chipper the dog, and kept asking me when we were getting a dog.  

 

I was able to see the old store where I worked called Walkabout.  It was great to be back and see my old boss Kirk.  I met up with my coworker Buddy who has the energy of a teenager and we listenened to some local Lexington music.  

 

And we celebrated Izzy's birthday-which deserves some pictures of it's own.  It was a great trip.  I was reminded of all the fun memories in that little town.  And someday I would love to live there again.  

 

Thanks to all the lovely Lexington folks:  the Ellis', the Riethmiller's, Jorge, Sally, Kirk and Tina, Russ and Buddy-what a great trip!  Until next time.