Assateague

We spent Wednesday and Thursday at Assateague National Seashore, which is a barrier island off of the Maryland and Virginia coasts, about 40 miles long and half a mile wide, at most. Endless beach, wild horses (really) and... a LOT of wind. Actually, somewhat too much wind. Anyway, here are some of the wild horses in the distance, picturesquely grazing on the bay side of the island:

 And some walking along the road... this is less romantic (looks more like a parade than wildlife), but a closer view.

Alex & Ben's favorite part was playing in the surf.

There was some other wildlife besides the horses. One of the biggest snakes I've seen in the US, a 5-6 long black rat snake, was at the campground bathroom one evening. Shortly after this photo it went into the bathroom. Ack.

 This is a Sika deer. We didn't know about them ahead of time, so when we saw it we were confused: "Why does that deer look so weird, and have a collar?" Sika deer are from Eurasia and were introduced for sport on the island a long time ago; there's still a hunting season on them.

Our tent was just over the dune from the main beach. The one-minute walk to the beach was good, but the beach-level winds weren't. Still, it meant we could dig massive holes right in front of the tent.

And sunset is a good time for walking on top of the dunes, collecting shells. You're allowed one gallon per person, in case you were wondering.

There are three nice little loop trails there, half a mile long or so-- one in the marsh, one in the forest, and one in the dunes. The one in the dunes has a nice scrubby little oak for climbing on.

Overall, it's an interesting place, and the amount of beach per person is higher than nearly anywhere. Finding the right time of year seems to be tricky, though; by the time the ocean is warm enough to really swim in, the bugs have descended (they are apparently intolerable in the summer. Even the ponies stand on the beach to avoid them). We've heard fall is nice. Anyway, it was great to get away at the end of the semester. I'm not really a beach person, but there's something primally relaxing about the ocean, and it was easy to forget about the rest of life's events and concerns and just be where we were. Just what a vacation should be.

Easter

A few holiday photos....

Easter Egg dyeing

Fresh out of the oven Easter rolls

Sorting eggs after the hunt

Ben got more eggs than me!

And some family pics.

Everglades

The narrated video of pictures is on YouTube, but sometimes it's nice to look at a picture for more than 2 seconds, so here are a few:

Purple Gallinule

Barred Owl

Vulture Boys

The closest we got to a Florida Panther

Baby Alligator!

Playing at Delray Beach

Not so baby alligators

What have we been doing since November?

Well, you know, things.

Like posing with Daddy.

Playing in the leaves with our friends.

Rolling out pie crust for Thanksgiving pie.

Learning to play Scrabble.

Eating Thanksgiving dinner.

Decorating the Christmas tree.

Making cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning.

Reading with cousin Lucy in our PJs.

Playing Christmas-present-games with cousins.

Getting awesome new T-shirts.

Snuggling with Aunt Karen.

Picnicking in January!

Marshy Point State Park & Such

An afternoon at Marshy Point was cloudier and chillier than predicted, but still fun. The first pic is pre-departure, but features A&B looking unusually twinny:

Then, various marshy things. Alex and Ben decided the marsh grasses were different instruments, and spent the rest of the afternoon making various instrument-noises as they tromped down the trails and boardwalks.

Sawmill Branch Trail

Last weekend our walk in the woods took us to our friendly neighborhood state park, as usual, and featured wriggling worms, wet feet, a big rock to climb, and a garter snake. This time we had Grandma and Grandpa Yoder along, which means more fun AND better photos.