Days seventeen and eighteen find us making our way home. While I was down in the lobby of the Country Inn getting breakfast and writing yesterday morning, Laela had gotten up and packed our belongings in the hotel room. When I had made it back up there at 10:15 she was ready to start putting things in the car. The parking garage was attached to our hotel and we were parked on the same floor as our room so it didn't take but a couple of quick trips out and we were ready to go. We bade Virginia Beach farewell and got going, but we had to make one final stop before we left.
We swung by the Food Lion grocery store on our way out. I was determined to relieve them of their 12 packs of bottled Yuengling beer since we can't get it in Ohio. They had ten of them in the cooler so we grabbed a cart and loaded them up. It took a little bit of Tetrising the Escape I was able to weasel them in. Stoked. Then we jumped back in and set out on our way. We stopped for lunch at noon time and ate at Five Guys Burgers and Fries. I am totally a convert to that restaurant. They doubled up on the cajun love on my fries and they were fantastic.
It was around 3:30 when we arrived at Monticello. Monticello was the home of President Thomas Jefferson. He was the third President of the United States. You might also know Monticello as the "B Side" of the nickle. It is situated high atop on of the mountains of Virginia and the views are absolutely stunning. The grounds are vast as Jefferson was also a farmer with an impressive garden as well. We took the tour of the house but the standard tour only allows you on the first floor and into the cellars under the house. There are many gorgeous walking paths around the estate.
After spending a few hours at Monticello, we hopped back in the car and proceeded on our journey home. Driving through the mountains of Virginia and West Virginia is certainly a feast for the eyes. Travelling through there on a late summer afternoon when all of the trees are a lush green with low hanging clouds dusting the peaks was breathtaking. Occasionally the rays of the sun would peek through the clouds and it would look like it was right out of a painting.
Nothing really exciting happened the rest of the way home. We tried to get a hotel near Parkersburg to stay the night but they were full. By the time we had gotten to the next area with a decent hotel we were only a couple of hours from home so I made the executive decision to soldier on. We arrived home close to 2:00am. We were all hyped to see Indy.
Apparently the house has been visited by Santa's elves while we were away too. The house is spotless, the front has been landscaped and been given patio furniture, and Miranda's bathroom has been redecorated and the tub area tiled and the plumbing has been repaired. We were totally floored. The place looks fantastic. I have my suspicions regarding the culprits but I'll wait for confirmations before calling them out. Know this though, if you had a hand in any of the household shenanigans, you have our complete gratitude.
We'd also like to take an opportunity to thank everyone who had a hand in making the Great Bukkit Tour 2010 possible. Again, the generosity of our family, friends and co-workers has been astounding. It was a great relief to Miranda, Laela, and myself to be able to put our challenges behind us for a couple of weeks and just be a family out exploring the country and enjoying each other's company. It has been the vacation of a lifetime and I'll cherish every moment of it.
This concludes my blogging of the Great Bukkit Tour of 2010. Thanks for coming along with us and I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.
