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10/13/11

Punkin Chunkin 2011

I like 'em Big... I like 'em Chunky
CHUNKEE!
I love that song from Madagascar 2...
I used to sing it to my baby as a wake up call/ "make her smile" song
when she was new born.

check out how big my muscles look... I'm pretty ripped for a 30 year old mom.
ahhahaha... I hope you're laughing... because that was a total joke.

so... no more orange for her. Too much isn't good.


She's such a HAM...
wonder where she gets it from ?




ooh. that camera looks good enough to eat.

so this pic was taken when there was a little girl who was screaming because they had to leave the pumpkin patch. I could hear Sophie thinking...
"hey shut up - you're ruining the atmosphere of this photo shoot...
MY photo shoot!"
The father of the screaming toddler looked over and said... Look at that baby she is being so good, and you are older than her. Why can' you be that good?
then Sophie gave her this look.


OK mom, I think we're done here.



CHEEZ

10/11/11

USS Constitution / Cassing Young


USS Constitution is a wooden-hulled, three-masted heavy frigate of the United States Navy. Named by President George Washington after the Constitution of the United States of America, she is the world's oldest floating commissioned naval vessel.[Note 1] Launched in 1797, Constitution was one of six original frigates authorized for construction by the Naval Act of 1794 and the third constructed. Joshua Humphreys designed the frigates to be the young Navy's capital ships, and so Constitution and her sisters were larger and more heavily armed and built than standard frigates of the period. Built in Boston, Massachusetts at Edmund Hartt's shipyard, her first duties with the newly formed United States Navy were to provide protection for American merchant shipping during the Quasi-War with France and to defeat the Barbary pirates in the First Barbary War.


Constitution is most famous for her actions during the War of 1812 against Great Britain, when she captured numerous merchant ships and defeated five British warships: HMS Guerriere, Java, Pictou, Cyane and Levant. The battle with Guerriere earned her the nickname of "Old Ironsides" and public adoration that has repeatedly saved her from scrapping. She continued to actively serve the nation as flagship in the Mediterranean and African squadrons, and circled the world in the 1840s. During the American Civil War she served as a training ship for the United States Naval Academy and carried artwork and industrial displays to the Paris Exposition of 1878. Retired from active service in 1881, she served as a receiving ship until designated a museum ship in 1907. In 1931 she started a three year 90-port tour of the nation, and in 1997 she finally sailed again under her own power for her 200th birthday.



Constitution's mission today is to promote understanding of the Navy’s role in war and peace through educational outreach, historic demonstration, and active participation in public events. As a fully commissioned US Navy ship, her crew of 60 officers and sailors participate in ceremonies, educational programs and special events while keeping the ship open to visitors year-round and providing free tours. The officers and crew are all active-duty US Navy personnel and the assignment is considered special duty in the Navy. Traditionally, command of the vessel is assigned to a Navy Commander. She is berthed at Pier 1 of the former Charlestown Navy Yard, at one end of Boston's Freedom Trail.





USS Cassin Young (DD-793), a Fletcher-class destroyer, was a ship of the United States Navy named for Captain Cassin Young (1894–1942), who was awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroism at Pearl Harbor and killed in the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal.

Cassin Young (DD-793) was launched 12 September 1943 by Bethlehem Steel Corp., San Pedro, California; sponsored by Mrs. C. Young; and commissioned 31 December 1943, Commander E. T. Schrieber in command.

After serving in World War II, including the Battle of Leyte and the Battle of Okinawa, Cassin Young continued in active service until 1960. She is preserved today as a memorial ship, berthed at Boston Navy Yard in Boston, Massachusetts, across from the USS Constitution.

When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, he was commanding officer of the repair ship USS Vestal (AR-4), which was badly damaged by enemy bombs and the explosion of the battleship USS Arizona (BB-39). Commander Young rapidly organized offensive action, personally taking charge of one of Vestals antiaircraft guns. When Arizona's forward magazine exploded, the blast blew Young overboard. Although stunned, he was determined to save his ship by getting her away from the blazing Arizona. Swimming through burning oil back to Vestal, which was already damaged and about to be further damaged, Young got her underway and beached her, thus ensuring her later salvage. His heroism was recognized with the Medal of Honor.



Jake and the Guns...





10/10/11

Day 5/6 Boston, Bunker Hill, USS Constitution

Bunker Hill


It might not look big from this pic... but it was!


Jake decided to climb it ... I decided not to .
While he was stair stepping...
I was taking pictures of this lady who was doing a yoga routine before
attempting the stairs.

Jake disclosed that he should have stretched a little before he went...
or after...
either way he was super sore the next day.





The Battle of Bunker Hill took place on June 17, 1775, mostly on and around Breed's Hill, during the Siege of Boston early in the American Revolutionary War. The battle is named after the adjacent Bunker Hill, which was peripherally involved in the battle and was the original objective of both colonial and British troops, and is occasionally referred to as the "Battle of Breed's Hill."

On June 13, 1775, the leaders of the colonial forces besieging Boston learned that the British generals were planning to send troops out from the city to occupy the unoccupied hills surrounding the city. In response to this intelligence, 1,200 colonial troops under the command of William Prescott stealthily occupied Bunker Hill and Breed's Hill, constructed an earthen redoubt on Breed's Hill, and built lightly fortified lines across most of the Charlestown Peninsula.

When the British were alerted to the presence of the new position the next day, they mounted an attack against them. After two assaults on the colonial lines were repulsed with significant British casualties, the British finally captured the positions on the third assault, after the defenders in the redoubt ran out of ammunition. The colonial forces retreated to Cambridge over Bunker Hill, suffering their most significant losses on Bunker Hill.

While the result was a victory for the British, they suffered heavy losses: over 800 wounded and 226 killed, including a notably large number of officers. The battle is seen as an example of a Pyrrhic victory, because the immediate gain (the capture of Bunker Hill) was modest and did not significantly change the state of the siege, while the cost (the loss of nearly a third of the deployed forces) was high. Meanwhile, colonial forces were able to retreat and regroup in good order having suffered few casualties. Furthermore, the battle demonstrated that relatively inexperienced colonial forces were willing and able to stand up to regular army troops in a pitched battle.



The famous order "Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes" was popularized in stories about the battle of Bunker Hill. It is uncertain as to who said it there, since various histories, including eyewitness accounts, attribute it to Putnam, Stark, Prescott or Gridley, and it may have been said first by one, and repeated by the others. It was also not an original statement. It was used by General James Wolfe on the Plains of Abraham, when his troops defeated Montcalm's army on September 13, 1759. The earliest similar quote came from the Battle of Dettingen on June 27, 1743, where Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Andrew Agnew of Lochnaw warned his Regiment, the Royal Scots Fusiliers, not to fire until they could "see the white's of their e'en." The phrase was also used by Prince Charles of Prussia in 1745, and repeated in 1755 by Frederick the Great, and may have been mentioned in histories the colonial military leaders were familiar with. Whether or not it was actually said in this battle, it was clear that the colonial military leadership were regularly reminding their troops to hold their fire until the moment when it would have the greatest effect, especially in situations where their ammunition would be limited.





Ya that didn't work out as planned... oh well .it's funny.
He'll kill me later.

This was the best place in Concord to eat!

10/9/11

Day 5/6 Lexington, Concord, Boston

The old North bridge... Concord



In 1775, five companies of Minutemen and five of non-Minuteman militia occupied this hill with groups of other men streaming in, totaling about 400 against the British light infantry companies from the 4th, 10th, and 43rd Regiments of Foot under Captain Walter Laurie, a force totaling about 90-95 men. This was the first battle of the American War of Independence


the irony of the day was that there was a tour bus full of British sight seers crossing the bridge as we were leaving the National Historic Site.
It took everything I had not to scream the British are coming!






The "Shot heard 'round the world" is a phrase that has come to represent several historical incidents. The line is originally from the opening stanza of Ralph Waldo Emerson's "Concord Hymn" (1837), and referred to the beginning of the American Revolutionary War. This 1775 proverbial first shot was fired during an armed stand-off between British forces and local militia in Lexington, escalating into engagements at the Old North Bridge in the battles of Lexington and Concord.



Minute Man Trail


The minutemen were among the first people to fight in the American Revolution. Their teams constituted about a quarter of the entire militia. Generally younger and more mobile, they served as part of a network for early response. Minuteman and Sons of Liberty member Paul Revere was among those who spread the news that the British Regulars (soldiers) were coming out from Boston. Revere was captured before completing his mission when the British marched toward the arsenal in Lexington and Concord to confiscate the weapons that were stored there



Some towns in Massachusetts had a long history of designating a portion of their militia as minutemen, with "minute companies" constituting special units within the militia system whose members underwent additional training and held themselves ready to turn out rapidly ("at a minute's notice") for emergencies, hence their name. Other towns, such as Lexington, preferred to keep their entire militia in a single unit.

Members of the minutemen were no more than 30 years old, and were chosen for their enthusiasm, political reliability, and strength. They were the first armed militia to arrive at or await a battle. Officers, as in the rest of the militia, were elected by popular vote, and each unit drafted a formal written covenant to be signed upon enlistment.

The militia typically assembled as an entire unit in each town two to four times a year for training during peacetime, but as the inevitability of war became apparent, the militia trained three to four times a week.

10/8/11

Day 4- Armentrout


For those who don't know I served a mission In Los Angeles.
One of my most memorable companions was
Sister Heather Armentrout.
After we went to the Springfield armory we stopped in at her house and got to catch up for
an hour or two.
This is her baby


Not really.
She did have a large Halloween decoration collection though.
This was a part of it.
She told us that she and her niece and nephew would go around with that doll wrapped up
(say like in a grocery store) and ask people if they thought her baby was cute.
classic Trout.
I be she scared the crap out of more than one old lady.
She scared the crap out of Jake when she drove us to dinner.
He was like "Hey do you want me to drive?" - from the back seat


Jake now knows why she never got the "Light Foot Award"


She is taking care of Riley her niece and Nephew Cody.
He was at a birthday party when we took this picture but he went to dinner with us.
I have to say they are two of the most well behaved Kids i've ever met.
Yes please, No thank you. she is doing a really good job.



Sister Armentrout's mother is dying of Ovarian Cancer.
Her family is taking her to Disney World in a month or two.
I hope that she is able to make it.
I was so happy to be able to meet Armentrout's mom and thank her for sending the trout on a mission. I learned so many wonderful things from her.
Mostly how to love one another.
If you love someone with the pure love of Christ, they will be able to sense your
sincerity and then they are more open to listening to the message you have to share with them.
Of course you have to have a knowledge of what the gospel is (so you can share), but knowledge is nothing if you don't have the spirit to help you teach. That's the kind of love she showed when we were out in out area.. and at the VC. Yes it was two long ... very long transfers but I wouldn't change a thing. It was a privilege to serve with such a valiant spirit.

IF you served with Armentrout... please leave a few words /thoughts/feelings about her.
I would actually like to send a few letters to her mom (from former companions - friends in the mission too). I think it would be fantastic for her mom to read about her adventures from some of us before she passes away.




10/7/11

Day 4/ 5- Concord and Lexington


the school behind the Alcott home
where they had transcendental meetings for 8 years.




Alcott home above


Louisa May Alcott

Alcott was the daughter of noted transcendentalist and educator Amos Bronson Alcott and Abigail May Alcott. She was born on November 29, 1832 - her father's 33rd birthday. In a letter to his brother-in-law, Samuel Joseph May, a noted abolitionist, her father wrote: "It is with great pleasure that I announce to you the birth of my second daughter... born about half-past 12 this morning, on my [33rd] birthday." Though of New England heritage, she was born in Germantown, which is currently part of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She was the second of four daughters: Anna Bronson Alcott was the eldest; Elizabeth Sewall Alcott and Abigail May Alcott were the two youngest. The family moved to Boston in 1834,[1] After the family moved to Massachusetts, Alcott's father established an experimental school and joined the Transcendental Club with Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau.



Ralph Waldo Emerson

(May 25, 1803 – April 27, 1882) was an American essayist, lecturer, and poet, who led the Transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. He was seen as a champion of individualism and a prescient critic of the countervailing pressures of society, and he disseminated his thoughts through dozens of published essays and more than 1,500 public lectures across the United States.

Emerson gradually moved away from the religious and social beliefs of his contemporaries, formulating and expressing the philosophy of Transcendentalism in his 1836 essay, Nature. Following this ground-breaking work, he gave a speech entitled The American Scholar in 1837, which Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. considered to be America's "Intellectual Declaration of Independence".



One of my Fav. Cemeteries ever... Sleep Hollow
Concord, Mass.