Bluebird Gap Farm, Smitty's and the Casemate Museum makes for a fun day!

well, this is the last week before school starts and quite frankly, we have done pretty much nothing. summer is the busiest time for my husband, so we usually don't vacation until the fall. i thought i would take caroline, her buddy emma, travis and my brother out prowling today. this is were we ended up.

first, bluebird gap farm, a little city run farm/park that has been around since i was a kid. they used to have a lot more animals, but these days i am more interested in the old cemetery hidden in the woods.
my brother and i have always had a fascination with ghosts.

luckily, the girls do too. time for lunch.

smitty's, has been around these parts since 1956, a hampton institution. i am thinking some of the car hops might be original, too.
who wants a twirley dog?
it was such a nice day we opted to eat on one of their picnic tables.
the aftermath. next stop, the casemate.
the casemate museum at fort monroe-hampton, va is chockfull of history.
(pic courtesy of wikipedia) you can see the casemate right in the center. jefferson davis was held here after the civil war, edgar allen poe was a young soldier here and robert e. lee, as well, even president lincoln came a calling.


mr. poe writing the "The Cask of Amontillado".

robert e. lee's home while at fort monroe and directly behind it is ....
ghost alley. fort monroe is known for its ghosts, some famous. you can read all about them here. we didn't see any, that i know of, but had tons of fun. we even walked the top of the casemate, just briefly. it is dang scary up there, with a big ole drop to the bottom. no thank you.