Ol' Kentucky: Abraham Lincoln's Birthplace

We stayed with Forrest's dad and brothers for a couple of weeks in July last summer about 45 minutes outside of Louisville.

I'm just going to come right out and say it: if you're not really into horses, there's not a whole lot to do in Kentucky in the middle of summer. It's too hot to do anything outdoors except swim (for this PNW girl at least) and there aren't any clean rivers or lakes nearby (less than an hour drive). We did go to Kentucky Kingdom, a waterpark located right outside of Louisville, but the only day we could go ended up being one of the coldest days of our entire trip (~65-75).

Forrest had been promising me forever to go and see Abraham Lincoln's birthplace when we went to Kentucky. We somehow didn't get a chance when we were there six months before, but this time I was determined. We chose an extremely muggy day to go with even a few scattered showers. Notice that I am in jeans because it was even a little chilly that day! There weren't very many people there (maybe because of the weather) but I can't imagine that it's ever very crowded.

The cabin is protected inside a large mausoleum.

I couldn't actually get a picture of the whole cabin because I only brought my 50mm lens and it was pretty close quarters inside. But you get the idea.

Abraham is the baby.

"Here over the log cabin where Abraham Lincoln was born destined to preserve the union and to free the slave. A grateful people have dedicated this memorial to unity, peace, and brotherhood among these states."

There is a lovely grotto built around the old well or the Sinking Creek as it is called. Once you step down inside the walls, all you can hear is the trickling water. There are trees all around the top and it is very serene and gorgeously green.

It only takes an hour or so to watch the introductory video at the visitor's center (worth watching in my opinion), have a short chat/tour with a ranger up the trail, see the cabin, and walk the whole trail around which is about half a mile. Forrest and his brothers had already been to Lincoln's birthplace and warned me that it wasn't very exciting, but obviously I wanted to see it anyway. From there, we traveled the few miles to Abraham Lincoln's childhood home (which doesn't exist anymore). Basically it's a big field with another little cabin (below) that may have belonged to a neighbor which was moved to where the Lincolns' cabin was thought to have been.

This building above was some sort of historical tavern/visitors center that is no longer open. I think it had a renovation sign on the front and they are intending to fix the floors and the structural integrity of the beams, if I remember correctly.

And this is one of the fields belonging to the Lincoln's farm. 

The most interesting thing I learned from this expedition was that Abraham Lincoln's family was not destitute as we are all taught (born in poverty). Rather, his father was actually a semi-wealthy farmer belonging to the middle class! You had to have money to buy your own 300 acres of land (duh). This was a little bit of a shocker to me, but when I saw the cabin up close, it's really not that small, especially if there was a loft (the ceiling is really, really tall!). Seeing the cabin once is good enough for me, but I'm really glad I got the chance to visit.

If ever you're in Kentucky, this is a pretty good afternoon out!

Megan + Brandan (again!)

Megan and Brandan haven't had very much time together since they got engaged. Actually, they haven't ever had a whole lot of time to be together due to the whole long-distant relationship thing they've had going on for about three (five?) years now. But, Brandan went off to Basic Training a couple of months after he asked Megan to be his wife and the time they've had since has been short and precious. They kindly asked me to shoot some engagement pictures of them while Brandan took some leave in September  and I was happy to do it! We all went up to Mt. Rainier National Park to make a weekend of it (or maybe it was during the week..? Summer vacation.)

As it has been just over a year since their engagement, I thought that now would be an extremely appropriate time to post a few pictures.

I took a LOT of photos. After I was done at whatever location we were at, I would say, "Okay!" to indicate we could move right along. Brandan told me that "okay" was his new favorite word. I don't know any guys who are generally excited to be photographed but he was a pretty good sport.. especially after four hours (or more?) of driving around to find good locations.

We had a lot of fun camping with you guys and I can't believe your wedding is just around the corner.

P.S. sorry it took me so long to post these, Megan. :)

HOME + a really fat chipmunk

Six weeks is a long time to be away from home, but we're finally back. We pulled a 14-hour drive (on a cracked rim, no less--eep!) from Yellowstone yesterday and arrived to a yelping and howling Jasper who was so excited to see us that he ran in circles around us for several minutes and then licked Forrest's legs for several minutes more. It was possibly the best welcome home we've ever had.

We had such a great (and needed) trip. It was so wonderful to see our far away families, but it feels great to be home and settled again. Now we just need to find a place to live in Seattle by the end of September...

I took about a thousand pictures (literally) at Yellowstone over the course of three days. I can't wait to get those up here, but until then, I'll leave you with these:

What you are looking at is a very large and majestic chipmunk. As my sister Megan so aptly put it,"He looks like he swallowed a tennis ball."

I saw this particular chipmunk or "Fat Daddy," as Forrest called him, from a distance while we were eating lunch one day and I wondered out loud how close I could get to him. So I inched closer and closer until I was about a foot away with my face at the same level as his. He looked at me and continued eating with no regard for the clicking of my shutter. Forrest came up to take a picture of me with "Fat Daddy," but as soon as I handed over the camera, the spell was broken. The chipmunk leaned toward me with a gleam in his eye, and I thought for a split second that he was about to leap onto my shoulder and pose for the picture (as is such the charmed life I lead, of course). However, it was not to be and instead he sprang in the opposite direction and disappeared among the rocks. Then I spotted him again, because it is nearly impossible to hide such a girth as his.

He was really, really fat.

Loch Lomond + The (Magical) Highlands

Loch Lomond is a really pretty lake. Is it famous for walks and being in songs and is located in the Trossachs National Park which we were lucky enough to drive through on our way north. It is the largest loch in Great Britain by surface area (Loch Ness is bigger by volume). Once you drive by Loch Lomond it's like you cross an invisible line and you're officially in the highlands! The hills start getting higher, the houses become scarcer.

Going north towards the highlands is like breathing a very long breath of fresh air. Something about Scotland makes my heart pound a little faster. Everything tastes better, the people seem friendlier, the air feels cleaner. Even the rain doesn't seem so bad.

 It feels magical.

Even now as I write this almost a year later, my hearts yearns for those Scottish hills and the empty highways winding by the lochs, a glimpse of a castle every now and then, the clouds casting spots into the countryside dotted with sheep.

I love that hotels in Scotland have tartan carpets. I love that they serve black pudding at breakfast (even though I don't eat it). I love that you can legally camp anywhere you want for one night. The mist and the fog, the bright sunlight, any weather is beautiful in the Highlands--to me.

This is one of my many odes to Scotland, I suppose. I can't think of anywhere I'd rather be right now.

We stopped at a spot on the road with a good sized pull-off (or lay-by if you're British) and walked up the side of a mountain for what we hoped would be a good view. We were not disappointed.

Here's the cute little pathway we walked up.

It was really windy up on that ledge. Once we got up to the top, we heard someone start to play the bagpipes. I'm not even kidding. It echoed through the valley like some kind of dream. We looked at each other and grinned with the glee that comes from the high of the best lighthearted adventure. Because is this not what one imagines will happen on a trip to Scotland? 

It's one of my favorite memories.

There was a little forest of lichen growing on the rocks. It was perfect and beautiful and almost reminded me of a fairy garden or some other such magical world.

When God created Scotland, he must have been thinking about the color green.