Sorry for the absence. There’s been work, grad school more work, and, oh yea, a VACATION! We went and visited our family on the east coast for a week during my October break, as we will not be going for Christmas, because we’re going to New Zealand! The first stop on the list was to West Virginia to see my Dad, Sharon and my grandma, who has just moved into an assisted living community minutes from my Dad’s. The visit was short, but we packed in lots of fun stuff couple with good family time. We got to spend several evenings hanging out and visiting with grandma, which was one of the highlights of the trip.
After arriving on the red-eye, all we wanted to do was shower and chill. Luckily it was Sunday and the Steelers were playing. So chill time happened. Yay! However, the next day, Tom, Dad and I visited the West Virginia state capitol building. Tom and I have a thing for capitol buildings, we find them interesting. Because we’re nerds.
In front of the building there is a beautiful war memorial dedicated to all of those West Virginians who have served in previous American wars. It was very moving.
The capitol building its self is quite imposing. It’s dome is coated in real gold leaf and the structure is made of imported marble. The whole inside of the building is marble as well, and the huge chandelier is made of Czech crystal. We took the tour to learn all of these fun facts and more. Because we’re nerds.
Later that evening, Dad cooked us some yummy steaks on the grill and we had a lively conversation about politics, where the conservative east coast folk shook their heads at those silly liberal west coasters. And vice versa.
The next day, we went over to Blenko Glass Company, which makes hand-blown glass products. They have this cool viewing area where you can see the discarded glass from broken projects, as well as the guys who are actively blowing the new glass vases, pitchers, etc. It was very cool…erm hot, actually. They also have an incredible gift shop and we took home more than a few items and gifts. If you happen to be near Charleston, West Virginia, it’s worth heading out to Blenko Glass, or checking out their website. They make beautiful work.
After spending some time shopping and another wonderful meal, we sadly off the next morning. We had a wonderful time with Dad and Sharon and can’t wait to see them again soon!
Next up…we head down I-64 to Lexington, Virginia to see Tom’s parents’ new house!
Hey babe! i went the Blenko with them this weekend. Sharon and i were actually able to take a tour through their workshop as opposed to just the observation area. We were able to watch a class being taken in glass blowing ornaments, we tried to sign up but we were too late. I got the msot beautiful ring as well as lots of presents! miss you