Wordless Wednesday: Heron

Home Leave | Virginia Beach

Post-5k race.After a few days apart in Michigan and California, Kail and I spent the last portion of our home leave visiting my sister and brother-in-law in Virginia Beach. Kail stayed for a week before heading back to Amman, but I was able to enjoy an extra two and a half weeks with my family.

Home Leave | Washington & Fredericksburg

Kail and I went to the U.S. on home leave over the summer. Jordan is our first four-year assignment (technically two two-year assignments), and it was the first time we took home leave in the middle of a tour, as opposed to in between assignments.In some ways, middle-of-tour home leave is less relaxing, because Kail

Home Leave | Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge

Our third and final “hike” in Virginia Beach was during a visit to the Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge. I use the word “hike” loosely since it was more like walking on a series of short boardwalk trails, followed by a longer walk on a gravel road.

Home Leave | First Landing State Park

Inspired by our hike and excellent wildlife sightings at the Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, my sister, Kail and I embarked on our second of three hikes during our stay in Virginia Beach — this time to First Landing State Park. While this more urban park doesn’t have quite as large a variety of

Home Leave | Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge

Kail and I spent part of home leave visiting my sister in Virginia Beach, where, previously unbeknownst to us, there are several hiking trails at state parks and national wildlife refuges within an hour’s drive or so. We went on a couple hikes during our one-week stay, the first of which was at the Great Dismal Swamp National

Wordless Wednesday: Dunes

Hamburgers of Home Leave

Culver’s Butterburger | Grand Rapids, Michigan

Home Leave | Virginia Beach

Hermanas.Lest I give the impression that our home leave has solely been filled with educational and enlightening activities, I’ll now share a little bit about the post-Charlottesville leg of our Virginia stay: outlet shopping and a theme park. And not just any theme park: Busch Gardens Williamsburg.

Wordless Wednesday: James River