Family vacation, walks with dad.

Last week the family spent six days in Highland County, Va. It's a beautiful spot that hardly feels like Virginia. The trees, the deep blue sky, and the crisp air brought me back to the three days I spent in Swiss Alps a few years back.

We rented a small farm house in the middle of the rolling fields. The days were spent sleeping (lots of it for me), biking, walking, cooking on the grill, and swimming. Overall, a much better vacation than the beach, but they both have their unique qualities.








Ryan and Augustine in the tent.


Me and AnnaJean.


Augustine with dinner.




swimming hole.


mom and dad in the frigid water.


cows are scary.


our very own priest celebrates Eucharist on a Monday morning.

On Wednesday we went to the Jefferson Springs, in Warm Springs, VA. It claims to be the oldest established hot springs in the United States. The men's bath, built sometime around 1830, is a remarkable structure complete with old wooden planks, an open-to-the-sky rotting cedar roof, and a century of layered white paint. Even with a modest water temperature of 98 degrees, you don't want to soak to long because the admission fee is a hefty $17 an hour. Youch.









Walks with dad.