"The Scene"

The following are a few video clips of one of one of the fires that Spenser was on today.

(Here come the firefighters)

(Spenser prepares the hose)

(Charging the hose)

(Spenser on the nozzle)

Some things are hard for Mother's to watch.

It was "family day" for Loudoun County fire trainees. It was the last burn for the cadets, and a chance for their families to see how far they had come.

My stomach flipped as I watched my only child be the first to enter a building on fire.
I'm very proud of him, as he's worked hard and found something he really loves.

Saying Goodbye Again

Yesterday morning I had to say goodbye to my parents.

However by the afternoon I had to say goodbye to Shawn, Kerry and Erika.

As I watched them pull out of my driveway, I stood in my yard wondering why they weren't taking me with them.

Erika at the Firehouse

Erika went to the firehouse with Spenser.

Harpers Ferry, West Virginia (#2's visit)

Harpers Ferry West Virginia. You can find more pictures of Harpers Ferry in my previous blog pages.You can find more pictures of Harpers Ferry in my previous blog pages.

Hey look - it's Kerry!

The Battle of Aldie

The Aldie Battlefieldhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Aldie

Shawn and Kerry's visit to the Aldie Mill

We've had so much rain that there is overflow.

You can see many other pictures of the Aldie Mill by viewing the Blog archive on the right.

Ahhh isn't she cute?

My Family

Family pictures
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Hey, Where is Kerry in these picutures?
I'll fix this TODAY!


Erika tells me that you can get better reception if you hold your phone upside down over your head. (No kidding)

It's not a Snell event until....

There's been a wrestling match. Shawn's out of commission to take Dad on, so the next generation had to step up!

Luray Caverns, Luray Virginia

We were on our way to Jamestown VA today. Jamestown was the first English Settlement in 1607.
However after sitting in stop and go traffic for more than 2 hours, we gave up and headed west to Luray Caverns. 6 hours after setting out - we arrived.

It's a very big holiday weekend here - we may not stray far from home.

41pounds.org

I HATE junk mail! This web-site states that people get an average of 41 pounds of junk mail a year - I assure you I was getting well over 100 pounds!

In Seattle I had worked diligently to get off of the mailing lists. When we moved to VA and filled out post office change of address cards - the USPS sold our names to anyone that would buy it, AND they did it 6 times. Twice for each of us (home and PO box).

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I was fed up and went searching for help. I paid this company 41 dollars to get me off of all list's, and help the enviroment along the way. It's been 5 months now, and it's worked pretty well. I still have a few company's that won't listen, so I emailed 41pounds for advice, they said they would do it for me.

I'm impressed, and would highly recommend them.

http://www.41pounds.org/

The Birthday Boy

How did this happen? I can't believe that he is 19 years old!

Snell's Coming To Virginia

My brother, sister-in-law, and niece will be in the air on their way here in the next few hours. They are heading to Philadelphia for the day, and then do in here on mid-day Friday.

My parents are on the road, and are also due in mid-day Friday.

Mmmmmmm Smores

After a long day at work - I got home to find out that my lawn tractor was broken, with foot high grass and family coming.
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Then the neighbors guinea hens were in our yard, and Ripley took off after them. He had gotten two before we stopped him, as they can fly, and he can run faster than us. It wasn't his fault, they were in his yard when he started after them, but not by the time he caught up with them.



Spenser and I decided with such a warm spring night - we would try out our new fire pit.


It worked great, and the firefighter enjoyed making the fire, and putting it out.

My First Fruit

Hey Look - I've got fruit, and it's only May!

Strawberries
and my first baby tomatoes

I visited 4 states today.

I live in Virginia, and work in Maryland - so I'm always in 2 states. However today I took a trek to Pennsylvania to see a dog, and came home through West Virginia.

Crazy - huh? I've driven more miles in the last 10 months than in the last 10 years!!

What ... a rainout?

I was trying to buy tickets to an Orioles game when a person at work said "But it's going to Rain"and I replied

"So what - It's just Rain".

He replied "But what if you get there, and there is a rain out?"

Ahhhhh WHUT?

Ummmm, I hadn't thought of that. After 20 years in a dome, and retractable roof, I'd not be happy if I drove all the way to Baltimore, only to sit in the rain for 2 hours, and then to drive home again.

A Mother's Day

Initially we talked about doing Mother's Day @ Monticello.

However when we woke up this morning, we were both so thankful for a day off that we just wanted to be home. It was raining outside, and we were tired.

(The flower and card that came with my breakfast on my nightstand)

After Spenser fixed me breakfast in bed, we decided that we would have a day at home. We would watch movies, and catch up on chores. We watched a movie, then did an hour of chores, watched a movie, an hour of chores.

It was what we both needed, and I got to spend Mother's Day with my son.

Upside Down Tomatoes

Rumor has it that you can grow tomatoes upside down. Not only will they grow, but that they will produce more fruit with less damage due to laying on the ground.

So - I bought these new 5 gallon buckets off the Internet. There is nothing special about them - they are just green, and I thought they wouldn't stick out like the bright orange Home Depot buckets. I then talked Roger into cutting holes in these new buckets ... (You can imagine how this conversation went).

I then filled them with dirt - and planted the tomato plant. It will be a few more weeks before I turn them upside down - I'll update you then.

Avalon's Senior Prom

Last night was Loudoun Valley's Senior Prom.