Axis and Allies for Real

I should have had an inkling of what my future would hold when ten summers ago Nate (instead of hanging out at the beach with me) spent a day touring a Russian submarine on our honeymoon and was shocked to learn that his new wife (me) had never even seen Hunt for Red October. I should have clued in when, just after our honeymoon, I visited his home in Seattle where he showed me his (huge) paper mache topographical map he built of the Normandy invasion and his collection of WWII encyclopedias. Wow.
I should have been able to guess that all this historical/military stuff would inevitably become a big and (I have to admit) interesting part of my future. But how would I have possibly known back then that I would have a bunch of little Axis and Allies junkies boys who'd want nothing more than to spend a weekend with their dad touring submarines, fighter planes, and watching WWII reenactments at the National Museum of the Pacific War in Fredericksburg, Texas? It's in their genes.

Nate took the boys on a weekend road trip, leaving the little girls at home with me. It ended up being a nice little vacation for both of us. The guys had the time of their lives and (at my request) came home with lots of stories and tons of pictures. Which I have been pouring over ever since.
They stayed with some friends from church who used to live in our neighborhood. Brigham could not stop talking about the amazing food they ate. And after looking through the pictures, I can see why.For breakfast they had eggs, juice, and toast with jam.And for dinner? Popsicles, carrots, cocoa krispies, and melted ice cream bars.they also played with toy carsand went swimming. Clearly our friends know how to show their guests a good time.
They also toured downtown Fredericksburg and had fudge at this candy shop which apparently (from the sign above Isaac) serves "chocolate covered BACON!!!" yum.
And they went to the bat caves. (I'm glad I missed this part). Nate called me just as they were leaving the caves. I asked him how many bats they saw. A hundred? Millions, he said. Millions. Nate said you could smell them and feel them in the air. creepy.

Here's the video of the bats coming out. Everyone was supposed to be super quiet and hold very still (just like sacrament meeting). Which is exactly why Brigham is talking out loud and wandering around. Am I surprised?
But the highlight of the trip was definitely the pacific war reenactment. Even the video is amazing. The noise and the dust alone were enough to convince the boys of the reality of war. When I asked Isaac about it afterward he said, "I learned that battle is not that fun. It was so loud and I got too much dust in my eyes." Good. I think he learned the right lesson.
Here's the video. Nate's kind of all over the place. sorry. He says he could watch this clip a hundred times, he loved it so much.


The boys also enjoyed the rest of the museum.
I love Isaac's face.
Everyone in front of the "Doolittle bomber".
Pearl Harbor midget submarine.
I don't know what the rest of these things are but Isaac could tell you.



I think this is my favorite picture. I love their expressions.
They all came home flying their WWII airplanes into the house and dog fighting in the living room on their way up to bed. When all was quiet, Nate flopped on the couch in utter happiness and filled me in on the rest of the trip. I said, "Well, I'm glad you enjoy those boys while they still love playing with airplanes and submarines because it won't be long before they grow out of it." He looked at me like I was out of my mind. "What are you talking about?" he said holding up the toy airplane still in his hand. Oh. Yeah. Never mind.

I guess some things are just inevitable.
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