On the road again...

Just got back from a great visit to Richmond! Carrie and I went down on Sunday afternoon (Gill stayed home to babysit the livestock) and got back Wednesday evening around 6:00. Boy, is it ever a long drive - but this time, we had company with us that made the drive seem shorter. Our neighbor and friend, Gail, and her daughter, Joanna, rode with us since Gail's mom lives in Richmond and they wanted to visit her. We managed to do a couple of things with them while there which made it nice for Carrie. We don't know any girls her age in Richmond anymore because all my friends' children are practically grown!

Many thanks to my cousin, Ginger, and her husband, Bob, for putting up with us during our stay. They saved me a lot of hotel money plus it's always fun being with them. One of the things I miss about not living in Richmond anymore is the opportunity to get together with them...we've been doing it since before our kids were born which is around 30 years! So thanks again, you guys....

On Monday, we went to the Capitol Building, which had been renovated since the last time I was there - can't even remember when that was! We had a great tour guide and saw the new part as well as parts I remembered from before. My dad was in the House of Representatives back in the 50's, so I was able to locate his picture in one of the hallways. I took a picture with my camera phone, but it didn't turn out that well.

On Tuesday, Carrie and I went to visit some friends of ours and had a great time. Then, we went to Belle Isle - one of my all-time favorite places at the river (or I should say "rivah") in downtown Richmond. You get to it via a footbridge, then there are rocks in the river where you can sit, sunbathe, take off your shoes and dabble in the water, etc. Unfortunately, hundreds of people had the same great idea, so even though it was late in the afternoon (we went after the boys got off work), there were rocks full of people everywhere we went! We finally found some space at the back of the island, Carrie took off her shoes and socks and stuck her feet in the water, and everyone was happy. Then we ate at Mary Angela's, a little Italian place in Carytown - good pizza!!

On Wednesday, we met up with Gail and Joanna at Maymont Park, another one of my favorite places. It was HOT, but we managed to stay in shade as much as possible and toured through the Italian and Japanese gardens before leaving. I would've liked to have gone in the mansion, but they're charging now...what's up with that???

After leaving Maymont, we stopped at Tony's Italian Restaurant in the West End for lunch. Unfortunately, Tony wasn't there, so I wasn't able to give him a hard time - something I do every time I see him...he just makes it so easy....! Oh well - next time, Tony!!

Then came the drive back - the question I always ask myself "Now, why did I move again?" - but thanks to our passengers, the trip went fairly quickly and we were home in (almost) no time.

As they say: "A good time was had by all!" Weather was great, food was good, company even better...who could ask for anything more??!