Beachin' it - Virginia Style

From time to time, JD is asked to teach conference sessions for web coding in accordance with his published book.  I am so proud of him and all the he has accomplished professionally.  When I have the free time, I like to travel with him to these conferences.  When he mentioned a beach location, I was game.

He only needed to teach one day, so I thought a five-day stay would suffice for a mini Graffam vacation.  We stayed a beautiful hotel, the Hilton Virginia Beach Oceanfront.  Our room had a wonderful balcony overlooking the sandy beaches and ocean waves.

The first night, we went to dinner with a few of the hosts for the conference.  On Saturday, I shopped and strolled around while JD was teaching.  At 5 p.m., we were officially on vacation.  Saturday night, we ate at Mahi Mah's, a seafood restaurant on the boardwalk.  The food was fantastic.

Here's JD opinion of the oysters:

On Sunday, we decided to cram as much as possible into one day.  Not really sure why, but this seemed like a good idea at the time.  After a run along the boardwalk, we headed over to Norfolk to see the Battleship Wisconsin.  Not only can you explore this hulking ship which sits in the harbor, there is a really neat museum adjacent to the ship that explains the history of this boat.  Here we are on the ship:

I'm pretty sure I could be a Navy captain, right?

JD paid $2 to get the "hurricane wind" experience in this booth.  He thought it would at least dry his hair from standing out in the rain, but he was disappointed:

And here is what I am pretty sure I would look like as a mermaid:

After the tour, we headed over to the Botanical Gardens because I am a nerd who loves flowers.  Seeing as how it was actively raining at the time, we had the grounds to ourselves.  I don't get to travel to Virginia often, so we made the best of it:

Monday was spent at the aquarium in the morning, and on the beach that afternoon.  The aquarium had all sorts of sea life, with exhibits for all ages:

It was fairly chilly most of the time we were at Virginia Beach, but the temps approached 80 on Monday and the skies cleared up.  We had a blast jumping in the waves and walking along the beach.  I was surprised how sandy the beaches were - I thought they would be rocky or hard surfaces.  After a full day at the beach, we ate at one of the best restaurants on the boardwalk - in our very own hotel:

On Tuesday, we explored Colonial Williamsburg and hit up an outlet mall.  Colonial Williamsburg was really quaint and very historical.  However, I have very little patience for "guided tours."  After the first incredibly slow and poorly executed reenactment of the Virginia governor vacating his post, I was ready to go crazy.  We broke off from the group and explored the town.  Hence, no pictures.

We had a wonderful time.  As far as beaches go, this is definitely a top destination for a family getaway.  I hope to visit again soon!

Snapshot Update

It’s been a few weeks since I blogged, so here’s a quick snapshot of the happenings in the Graffam household:

1. Running, running, running

 JD and I have been diligently working on improving our running times and endurance.  I don’t run with JD because he is much faster than me (if you’re his Facebook friend, you can see how much his time has improved), but I’ve met several of my own goals through the Couch to 5K program and beyond.  I finally broke through my goal of running a 5K in less than 30 minutes a month ago.  I used to run this hackneyed course through my neighborhood, but after being used for target practice by too many minivan-driving Riverdale parents, I took to the Germantown Greenway.  I seem to run a little faster on the Greenway, probably because I am not constantly looking over my shoulder to see whose hood ornament I am about to become.  I even upgraded my route to a 4-mile track, so I hope to see more improvements in my time soon.

2. A little yard work

A few weeks ago, JD borrowed my car to drive his Simple Focus team to South Carolina, leaving me his truck.  What’s a Germantown housewife to do with a free weekend and a monster truck?  Besides taking three attempts to park in the garage at school, I decided to head to Lowe’s to pick up flowers and 1200 pounds of mulch.  Yup, that’s right, I personally spread 1200 pounds of mulch in our flowerbeds.  I don’t think JD has ever been that excited to get out of this chore.

3. Pool’s open!

Speaking of a little yard work, no summer season is ready without the backyard pool - bring your towel!

4. Traveling the summer season away

Fingers crossed, there are a few fun trips planned this summer.  Next week, we are headed to Virginia Beach.  Then, I get to visit with my brother in Nashville for a weekend.  A few weeks later, I will be relaxing on the beaches of Charleston with my old college roommates for what is sure to be a great trip.  On the way back, I am cruising through Atlanta to pick up my niece for a fun-filled five days with her favorite aunt back in Germantown.  After hosting the usual 4^th of July activities at our house, the family is headed to the lake.  JD and I are discussing the possibility of ending the summer on a resort vacation somewhere like the Dominican Republic, we will see.  Not to mention all the weekends at Pickwick – this is shaping up to be quite a memorable summer!

5. Researching…how to extend deadlines

After a semester wrap-up meeting with my PhD advisor, I have a few things to accomplish this summer.  I need to take a comprehensive exam in the beginning of June, conclude one of my research projects by mid-June and develop two or three Economic Development topics for research in the Fall (apparently I’ve been dabbling in the Health Econ field too much)!