Montpelier

Montpelier is the 3rd Presidential home I have visited (Mount Vernon was the first and Monticello the second). Montpelier was the home of James and Dolly Madison (she was the first FIrst Lady- though she wasn't called that until her funeral). After James Madison passed away Dolly left Montpelier in the hands of her son (his stepson) while she mourned in Washington DC. He quickly ran the plantation into the ground and landed himself in debtors prison. Dolly Madison sold Montpelier to get him out. Eventually the duPonts purchased the house- added on to it and covered it in pink stucco. Yes- you read that right- this home



was covered in pink stucco. The house is now owned by the Montpelier Foundation which has thus far spent $25 million on restoration- most of which was used to remove the pink stucco and all of the additions the duPonts had made to the house.

Here are a couple more pictures of the house today (well yesterday).







And here are a couple pictures taken from the roof terrace- the first is of the front lawn and the second of Dolly and James chillin' in the backyard.





I took these next 3 pictures as we walked the ground around the house- it's a beautiful spot.







And here is a picture of the garden gate (we didn't actually go in the garden).



We weren't allowed to take pictures inside the house- so that's it for the pictures today- but I wanted to bring something up. We have gone to these amazing homes- like Montpelier and Westover (not to mention my owns trips to Mount Vernon and Monticello) and we all ooh and aahh over these architectural beauties but the people who run these sites rarely mention the people who actually built these homes. Slaves. Oh- they will talk about slaves and we might even look at the slave quarters but people rarely acknowledge that slave owners, like Washington, Jefferson, Madison, and William Byrd, would never have been able to build these homes without slave labor.

Park City (a.k.a even more Utah-love)

While in Utah I also had the fortune to spend the afternoon in Park City with my sister, brother-in-law, 2 of my nieces, and some cousins.

First my sister, her family, and I walked Historic Main Street.















Our cousins were vacationing in Park City so after walking Main Street we headed over to the resort where they were staying- which was amazing...

More Utah Love

While in Utah I also took a drive up Emigration Canyon, this time without the dogs so I was able to get out of the car and take some (hopefully) better pictures...

Givin' Utah some love

Utah is a beautiful state. I don't think enough people know this so I thought I share some pictures. Before I moved to Virginia two years ago I shared some pictures I took during a drive up Big Cottonwood Canyon, so during this trip I took Angel (my parents dog) and Rusty for a ride up Little Cottonwood Canyon. We didn't get out of the car since no dogs are allowed in that particular canyon but we had a lovely drive- the pictures (most of which I took through the windshield as I was driving- not the recipe for great pictures) do not really do the beauty of the canyon justice- but I will share them anyway....

back to the grind

Rusty and I took a quick trip west for Easter and to attend my sister's wedding in Vegas. It was kind of a strange trip and I was nervous about taking a break this close to my exam- but I think it may have been a good thing to break me out of my comps rut. I've had three meetings since I got back and all three professors said they think I am ready! Which is great news- only one more professor to go! Hopefully he'll respond to one of my emails and actually set up a meeting. It's kinda strange- even though all of my meetings have gone well and I am on track for comps (I finished reading- so it's all review all the time from here on out) I'm feeling a little depressed- I guess I'm just ready for this whole process to be over!

Monticello

My mom came out for a visit and we decided to drive up to Monticello. I picked a horrible day to drive- the rain was intense which made for some tense moments- why don't people know how to drive in inclement weather? (people probably wonder the same thing about me).

Anyway, we got to Monticello and caught the bus up to the house and had to run through the deluge to the porch- just in time for the rain to let up. By the time we finished the house tour the sun had come out and the grounds were absolutely beautiful! I took some pictures, but they don't really do it justice. I'll share anyway...

more about moving

Ok, so I had planned on posting something everyday of the move but I was way too tired by the time we got in to the hotels so I didn't. Also, I took several pictures but now I can't remember where they were taken- the trip kind of went by in a blur- lot's of driving, very few stops, basically way too many hours in a car. But I'll try to remember some of the highlights.

I took this picture in Wyoming, sorry if anyone from Wyoming is reading this- but Wyoming is boring (at least the part we drove through), this was about as exciting as it got.

I think this picture is from Kansas...

I believe we came across this sign in Missouri- non-Utahns might not appreciate this but I think Ogden and Manhattan on the same sign is oddly amusing...

Here's West Virginia (at least I'm pretty sure- like 95%)

I'm fairly sure this picture was taken in Virginia- but it might be West Virginia...

And this is Virginia- it's kind of hard to see but there are mountains in Virginia- they don't look like Utah mountains- but they were still nice to see...

Of course, I also have some great pictures of Rusty. He did amazingly well in the car, for the first two days he stayed in the front seat- the back seat was stacked full of boxes and luggage, for the most part he sat on one of our laps but for several hours he slept on the center console kinds of wrapped around a drink and the gear shift.

On the third day we decided to eat breakfast in a restaurant instead of in the car and while he was alone in the car he figured out he could get more comfortable in the back seat on top of the luggage- I eventually put his little bed on top of the suitcases and he snuggled back there all day.