Vacation 2014

The normal Wickham family vacation happened again this year in Myrtle Beach. Except this year I didn't ride down with the family. I had the Junior Leauge even the night that the rest of my family left and then I had other plans to travel to DC for Independence Day.

 I followed our friends down on Sunday and got to the beach around 2pm. My friend Lauren and driven over to see Molly and I from Columbia, SC, so we got in some sun (Lauren a little too much) and then went out to dinner at this dive burger place. So good.

Nothing really exciting happened during my four days at the beach. Despite wearing lots of SPF, I got a little sunburnt from my lack of sun exposure up until this point. We had our annual dinner at Joe's Crab Shack, tried out Farm House Restaurant for the first time, and a new Mexican restaurant near our old hotel too. We stayed a lot further south this year than normal so we got to see new things around that part of town.

I had to pay to use the restroom on my travels down. I had no choice.

I had a hurricane at Joe's. And this hurricane won!

Selfies with Pop.

Showing off my new hair.

Dinner at FarmHouse.

I ask my family to smile and I get 1/3 to do it.

Payton and Avery were at the beach a few days this year that I was still there. Luckily Payton didn't get a concussion, but we also refrained from riding any type of boat this year.

I left after three days at the beach and drove to Washington DC for the 4th of July. I stayed with Stacie and visited Holly and the girls too. I spent an entire day driving from one vacation to the other and was making good time until I hit Richmond where a Mayflower moving truck was on fire and I moved 11 miles in 2 hours. :( I can't complain because someone lost all of their possessions in that fire and I just lost a few hours in traffic.

Thursday night I went out with Stacie and her roommates to a few bars in Clarendon. We did the same the next night and I was reminded at how I'm not 21 and can stay out past 1am two nights in a row. Thank goodness I was staying with Holly and Eric the next night and the girls went to bed at 9pm, because I did too! ha.

Night #1 out on the town.

Friday day we went to a cookout, walked around Rosslyn and then headed towards the National Mall for fireworks. It was crowded, but not as much as I thought it would be. We got there about two hours before the fireworks started and walked around, finally picking out a good spot about 45 minutes before they started. We had lots of room. Everyone was playing board games and cards and having a great time. It was very family friendly (no drinking!) and just a very pleasant experience. I definitely will visit DC on the 4th again. Maybe someday with my own family.

selifes on the bridge

People camped out on the Lincoln Memorial

panoramic view around the Washington Memorial.

The fireworks started at 9:10, so it wasn't completely dark yet. We had a great view from the foot of the Washington Monument. I thought the actual fireworks display would be better than any I've ever seen. It was good, don't get me wrong, but it wasn't over the top amazing like I expected it to be. And it last about 20 minutes. I thought for sure it'd be at least 45.

Rockets red glare

bombs bursting in air

so pretty.

All the people behind us

selfies

Traffic was obviously bad with so many people leaving the mall at the sametime, but we took our time and visited the Lincoln Monument. We walked back to Stacie's so we didn't have to deal with the car traffic.

Me and Stacie after the fireworks

Lincoln Memorial at night.

Me and Abe

The next day we went to brunch and to visit the Eastern Market. We saw lots of cool things to buy, but nothing that I had money for. I didn't even get a Christmas ornament or post cards this trip. :(

Eastern Market in DC

I parked in the garage of the building that housed some of the Watergate investigation!

I left Stacie's in the afternoon and drove to Holly and Eric's. The girls and I played that afternoon and then we went to dinner at an Easton type place they have close to their house. The girls wanted to ride the little train that goes around the mall, so guess who got to ride with them. :)

Our attempt at a train selfie.

Sunday morning was full of coloring pictures after breakfast and hugs before I had to leave around 9:30 for the long drive back to Ohio. Charley was bummed that I was only there for one night. Usually are visits are for longer. Since I was alone on my way home, I stopped at a few stores in Leesburg, Virginia (cutest town ever) and again in Morgantown, WV to see WVU. I was not impressed with their campus. Maybe it's because it's all over the place. Maybe it's because at one time the road I was driving up was more than a 45* incline. Either way, I wasn't a fan. I also couldn't get inside their stadium. boo!

Throwing up the O!

I have started to like traveling by myself because I can stop and see what I want, when I want and I don't have to try to persuade someone to go there or listen to someone complain about being there when they don't want to be there. So for my, traveling alone isn't that bad of a deal. I like it.

The drive home was kind of a long one, but it meant that I had lots of time to catch up with friends and family on the phone. I was excited to see the Columbus skyline as I rounded the Livingston curve on I70 and of course to see my little precious of a cat when I walked in the door.

Home!

Bowie cat!

It was a great vacation and I got to cross something off my of Bucket List, which was visiting Washington DC for the 4th of July. I'd also like to do the 4th in Philadelphia one year and then NYE in Times Square is on the list too. So many fun things ahead in my future!

Kelton House Gala

Back in late June, my junior league committee hosted the 10th Kelton House Gala. We exceeded all of our fundraising goals and had a grand old time at the actual event, despite the rain. The goal of the event was to raise funds for the Kelton House Museum, a historic home in downtown Columbus that the League runs. It's quite interesting, so you should visit for a tour sometime. They also have a lovely garden, perfect for a wedding if you're planning one.

The committee...at the end of the evening. :)

Favorite junior  league friend

Group selfie

 All of the food was donated by businesses around Columbus. Sadie Baby Sweets donated these cake pops and they were awesome! Seriously, so delicious.

One of our sustainer members is from Louisiana and she and her sister were so kind to share lots of festive decorations.

Authentic NOLA decorations.

I loved these little band members.

I think I may need to go to Mardi Gras now.

She also made this gift basket for our silent auction of authentic food from Louisiana. It was so amazing and a big hit with bidders.

She's too cute.

My dear friend Jimmy was at the silent auction in spirit and in writing.

We had such a lovely day for set up, then an hour before the event started in poured rain, so we had to adjust and move a lot of stuff inside. Luckily, everyone was happy and didn't have a problem with being a little more crowded than what you'd like.

Cara won some great gifts in the silent auction. I'm looking forward to her visiting and baking something with her cookbooks from other leagues around the country.

This was my last Junior League event. The past two years have been so busy for me that I've decided I need to step away from something and decided this was the thing that I was least passionate about. Maybe in the future it will be something I want to rejoin, we will see.

June Stuff

June was a fairly busy busy, but also a pretty relaxing one. I didn't have much on the calendar during the week so I got in lots of bike rides, evening runs, trips to the gym, hours by the pool and a few sand volleyball games at the fraternity house. My game is slowing improving. Very slow.

On June 9 my little brother left for Brazil. He was headed to the World Cup in Rio de Janerio with a few college friends. This was his first plane and international traveling experience. I think he was a little nervous, but he ended up loving it. Molly and I took him to the airport to send him off. 

All ready for his first flight!

Security

And this is when I bawled my eyes out.

On top of Sugar Loaf Mountain in Rio

 He had a great time while in Brazil. We talked almost all day every day while he was there. I've talked to him maybe two times in the two weeks he has been back! ha. He got to go to the Argentina/Bosnia game where he got to see the great Messi play. Argentina is set to play in the final game this Sunday, so I hope they win and then win it all so that Ty can say he saw the World Cup champions play. How cool?

A few years ago I donated blood for the first time. It was a huge thing for me. Then I did it again last year and wanted to keep my streak going this year too. I didn't have time to donate the day that they had the blood drive in my building at work, so I went to the Blood Donation center on Bethel Road and gave one night. I didn't get light headed or pass out, so it was a success!

For the third time, the tech said I had awesome veins for donating blood. What can I say, I was born for it I guess?

I look like I'm going to pass out at any moment.

The same night that I gave blood I went to Home Depot and picked out a paint for my bathroom. Since I'm renting, I'm technically not supposed to paint the walls, but after four years, I need a change. My bathroom was all white - white floor, white tub, white sink, white toilet, white walls. So I decided to go with a gray with brown undertones. I love how it turned out. Absolutely love it!

before

after (before shelf got stained)

Father's Day weekend I did a few projects. One of those was to restain the shelf that hangs above my sink. It was stained in "driftwood' originally, but I was wanting something less orange. I don't remember my new color, but it is much darker and looks great with the gray walls. I don't have a final picture of it hanging up though.

Before (sanded)

After

I also found a map of the United States at an antique store in Clintonville. I had been looking for one forever to hang in my house and put tacks where I had traveled and finally found one that fit the picture I have had in my head! It's seriously been years since I've been looking and there it was, just sitting outside of the antique store on the sidewalk. Meant to be!

I didn't care for the finish it had on the frame, so I sanded it down and brushed the same dark stain on it (very carefully!!!) and then hung it in my hallway, adding all of the little pins representing my travels across the United States. The map already has an orange tint to it because it's so faded, so I love how the dark stain makes the lines pop more. I've considered painting my hallway a light aqua color just to accent that map.

Before sanding

After sanding and staining and hanging

In June I also made quite a few visits to FFA camp and then chopped my hair off and got it highlighted. Pictures to come later because they aren't uploaded from my phone yet! :)