My daddy and I spent four wonderful days camping in the mountains of West Virginia recently. Hours of hiking, kayaking, campfires, dinners for two, and silly laughter filled our hours together. Surrounded by the very fingerprints of God, I could only marvel…

- View Photos -

:: album one

:: album two

“…May the Lord rejoice in His works – He who looks at the earth, and it trembles, who touches the mountains, and they smoke.”

(Psalm 104:31-32)

The first week of December my brother had a job out in Branson shooting a concert video for our friends the Wissmann Family who were doing a Christmas show there. My dad and I went along as “film crew” and I served as main assistant, doing all kinds of exciting things like labeling tapes and slapping the clapper and polishing my um, videography “skills” (some of my shots are so going in the DVD )…oh, and making friends with the cinnamon roll man. *grin* Have a look!

Mr. Dutton and Jonathon of the Dutton Family  (America’s Got Talent top ten finalists)

Supper & show at the Circle B Chuckwagon…best ever!!

Swept off my feet!

late night soundcheck

strange things occur after midnight…

(friends with private access, log in for more photos [first name plus password, leave me a note if you need it again])

Friday morning we loaded on the metro for our big day to see the sights of downtown DC. While there simply wasn’t enough time (or leg energy) to see all the wonderful places we wanted to, we thoroughly enjoyed what we were able to experience. The sheer amount of history and amazing architecture found on every corner just blew us away and kept us stopping to snap pictures almost constantly. Being face to face with places and things I have only read and heard about my entire life brought our Nation’s history into awe-inspiring proximity. It was unbelievable.

My personal favorites were The White House (no surprise, huh), The National Archives, and the Lincoln Memorial. Without a doubt, viewing the founding documents in the rotunda of the National Archives was the most incredible moment of the day. To be inches away from THE Declaration of Independence is enough to give a person the chills! When you think about who touched that piece of paper, and where we would be if those words had not been written…WOW.

Over 12 hours later, with Murphy’s law relentlessly bearing down in the most annoying ways and our legs aching in agony with every slow step, we ended our day in refreshingly cool darkness next to the shining column of stones known as the Washington Monument. We had survived DC. And look at the memories!!

:: Complete Photo Album Here ::

(photography by Christopher, with a few shots by me)