My Historic Weekend!

*thanks to kt for my awesome header! she is a graphic designer at giant ideas and one of my best friends!

and thanks to my wonderful hubby for all the html coding!

please try to put up with my blog design construction as i am in need of a change. . . . to make it more "me".


This Weekend . . . . .

shane's mom & don (& majr, their dog) visited us! it was so great to see them all!

i made these awesome cookie dough cupcakes with chocolate buttercream frosting for them!! i got the recipe from my friend mase who got it from 52 cupcakes. yum! there are only 3 cupcakes left out of like 30! definitely recommend these cupcakes . . they might even be the best i've ever had. . . i mean . . cookie dough, cupcakes, and frosting in one!!?! you can't beat that.












it was all going well and the recipe even said "they may sink a little" . . .
















but what the heck?! i think this was a LOT more than a little . . . . .
















so anyways . . . i couldn't put THAT much frosting on one cupcake to cover the sinkhole . . . so i made "Sommer Cupcakes" and put a mini (baby) cupcake inside the regualr cupcake! i also added a little frosting before i put the mini cupcake in. they were definitely loaded but delicious!













ok stay with me . . . i know this is a longer post than normal but i have a lot to tell!

so the fam got here friday night and we just relaxed. saturday was a history excursion that started around 10am and ended around 3pm. don didn't even let us get lunch! but it was fun! we went on the fredericksburg trolley tour and saw this awesome tattoo parlor with the best name ever . . .
















we saw many historical things on the tour and heard a lot of history, but the only thing i can remember is that back in the day they only bathed in the summertime because they were scared that if they did in the winter they would catch pnemonia and die. and . . . . ick . . . this is the worst part . . . they only changed the bath water every 3 people. so if you were the first person you were ok, but the 2nd and the 3rd person had to bathe in the peoples filth! gross!! the tour guide said that's how southern hospitality got its name . . . . if someone was in line to go 2nd or 3rd they would say "oh by all means . . you can go ahead of me." ha!

ok so the rest of the day we went to other historic sites including the chatham manor, where most of these pics were taken:







this was taken on our trolley tour! it was called rocky lane! don't ask me what the history behind it is though . . .







at Chatham Manor . . . Rita & Shane resting while Don read every plaque in there. . .



















still at Chatham Manor with the beautiful arches and trim work . . .


















Don loving his history and loving his wife . . . . .












the beautiful outside gazebo and the weirdest trees i have ever seen in my life . . .


















dan & marissa (brother & sissy) stopped by on sunday on their way through from a friends house . . . we had some steaks, potatoes, and corn on the cob for lunch! although the corn we got had bugs in it and wasn't that good (got it from the farmer's market at hurkamp park in downtown fredericksburg). . . but the steak & potatoes were yummy!! we all bumped, set, and spiked the volleyball (soooo miss this!! but starting in a league this sunday!) around for a while and then threw the football around. we were all drenched in sweat by the end because it was 100 degrees here, but it was fun and well worth it!







dan & marissa (2 month newlyweds!)! i love my brothers and sisters!







dan and marissa left around 3 then rita and don and shane and majr and i took a nice relaxing road trip to lake anna. they charge you $5 just to park which is ridiculous . . . so we just "rode through" and they said we didn't have to pay. you also have to pay to go on the "beach" which is crazy! but overall it is a VERY beautiful lake. shane and i went camping there with some of our friends a while back and rode on their boat on lake anna and it was so peaceful, so gorgeous, and so fun.






here is a pic of majr wishing he was on the beach with all those other people . . .












overall it was a GREAT weekend! we love when our friends and family visit us and always hate to see them go!