As we settled into our lives in Virginia Beach and the Rotchfords into El Paso, it was much harder for us to spend time together. The cost of flying for four was too much not to mention the activities of the girls and job requirements for the guys. Now looking back on the years of 1985 to 1991 there isn’t much to recall how often we saw each other. The Rotchfords came to Virginia Beach and we took in the sights of the shipyards at the Naval Base.

Once again, we loaded up the van and traveled up the coast to Washington, D.C. Our family traveled to D.C. earlier in the year so we knew exactly what we would do with the Rotchfords. It included all the normal sights and a VIP tour of the White House.

We lived on a small lake, so the girls spent time feeding the ducks bread.

One day we traveled to Williamsburg to Bush Gardens, located a little over an hour from our house. We took in rides, shows and food for a fun filled day

In one section of the park, they held an Oktoberfest. They had German food, live music and did the best they could to present the unique Bavarian celebration. It did take us back to all the German things we missed.

After three years in Virginia, we went to Ft. Leavenworth, KS for Steve to attend the Command General Staff College.