I am a little late posting my Ten on Tuesday this week…oh well kill me!

01. The Beach
I am so fortunate that I live so close to the ocean.  I loved growing up at the beach and my kids love growing up at the beach.  Nothing beats the smell of saltwater air!  It’s good for the soul!

02. The Chesapeake Bay
As if the beach was not enough, I am also fortunate enough to live right next to the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay.  The Chesapeake Bay is the largest of 130 estuaries in the United States and is home to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, which was selected as “One of the Seven Engineering Wonders of the Modern World” in 1964.

03. The Mountains
Virginia Beach is within three hours of some of the most breath-taking mountains and the beautiful Shenandoah Valley, which is home to plenty of ski resorts all within a short drive away.

04. Summer Festivals
Virginia Beach and it’s neighboring city Norfolk do a wonderful job of setting up some of the best annual outdoor festivals, including The Neptune Festival, Boardwalk Art Festival, Strawberry Festival, Harborfest, The Bayou Boogaloo, The Jazz Festival and the Children’s Festival – to name a few!

05. Amusement Parks
Virginia Beach is 30 minutes away from Bush Gardens and an hour and a half away from Kings Dominion.  We usually get season passes to Bush Gardens and head up there in the evenings.  What is more fun than that?

06. Historical Sites
We are a hop, skip and a jump away from Colonial Williamsburg and the Historical Jamestown Settlement, the “Birthplace of America.”  Always fun to visit!

07. The Outer Banks of NC
We are an hour and a half away from the Outer Banks in North Carolina, both Nags Head and Cape Hatteras, home to the tallest natural sand dune “Jockey’s Ridge” and the Wright Brothers “First in Flight Museum, along with plenty of lighthouses.

08. Fireworks
All summer long, Virginia Beach sets off fireworks from the beach.  They do this every Wednesday and Sunday night throughout the entire summer, not to mention, plenty of Saturday nights too.  We love it.  We can see them from our driveway, and I let Kaiden stay up to watch them every time!  Most people only get to see them on the 4th of July.

09. Live Music
There is constantly live music playing somewhere down at the beach.  The city has built several stages to accommodate this.  The kids love walking down to the beach and dancing to the live music all summer long.

10. Mount Trashmore
Mount Trashmore Park was the first landfill park in the world. It was conceived during the 1960s, when ecological consciousness was increasing. Opened to the public in 1973, the park continues to bring international recognition to Virginia Beach, and it symbolizes citizens’ commitment to environmental protection. Rising 68 feet above sea level, the landfill is the tallest point of land in the region. The park encompasses approximately 166 acres, 79 of which are covered by Lake Trashmore. This park is the city’s most popular, with more than 800,000 visitors annually.  Facilities include four large and 11 small picnic shelters, skate park, playground areas, a basketball court, four volleyball areas, parking, a walking trail that measures approximately 1.45 miles, vending machines and restrooms.

Here is Dena trying to act like she is with some of the tourists on the Virginia Beach fishing pier.  I was laughing so hard when I tried to inconspicuously take this photo!

I cannot believe this is newsworthy, not only newsworthy, but high up on the list newsworthy.

“It’s the era of Diddy.”

So proclaimed the hip-hop impresario formerly known as Sean Combs, Puffy, Puff Daddy and now P. Diddy on Tuesday’s Today Show, as he explained that he was changing his name once again.

As for what brought about the latest change in moniker, the entertainer admitted that his previous name change left his fans uncertain of how to address him.  “I felt like the ‘P’ was getting between me and my fans and now we’re closer,” Diddy said.

“I even started to get confused myself—and when I’d called someone on the telephone it took me a long time to explain who I was. Too long,” Diddy told the New York Post.

“One word. Five letters. Period,” he added.

Of course, just talking about his new name isn’t enough for the scene-making mogul, who’s planning to throw his latest title a coming-out party of sorts when he hosts the MTV Video Music Awards on Aug. 28.

“To be honest, the unveiling of Diddy, you gonna see that at the [Video Music Awards],” he told MTV News. “You gonna see that in the entrance. You gonna see that swagger. You gonna see how I’m gonna navigate you through the journey. I’m gonna play my position, my role. The artists are gonna play their role. We’re gonna have an incredible, incredible party.”

So ladies and gentlemen, please make sure that if you see Sean Combs out on the streets, that you address him by his newest correct name “Diddy” so that you do not confuse him.  Good Lord - This makes his fifth name and he is going to have a party to celebrate it?  I mean I could understand the name change party for the first, second, maybe even the third name…but for the fifth?  Thanks Diddy, I can hardly wait to be “navigated” through the journey!

Music is a VERY big deal in our household and has always been a big deal for both Todd and I even before meeting.  We are constantly picking up new (and used) CD’s and attending live shows, whenever we can!

I have never been one to listen to radio Top 40 and have always loved harder music.  I remember when I was in Junior High and my sister was in love with Huey Lewis and New Kids on the Block, you could find me in my bedroom listening to The Misfits, The Circle Jerks and Minor Threat.  In high school I liked bands such as 7Seconds, Fugazi, Youth Brigade, The Bouncing Souls, AVAIL and Face to Face.  I remember going to see these bands at hole in the wall joints such as the Peppermint Beach Club and the Kings Head Inn and having so much fun - and I always stuck out, cause I was never one to “dress” like the music I liked, in fact, most people that meet me, would never guess that I like such music!

My musical taste does not just lean towards hardcore punk music, I also like some old blues and swing (Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald and Otis Redding), some reggae (Bob Marley and Steel Pulse), some female singers (Tori Amos and Fiona Apple) and some harder metal bands.  I guess I am most interested in original artists.  Artists that possess a talent and do not rely on someone else’s writing, mixing and editing to make them sound the way they sound. 

Now, I love bands such as Tool, Mudvayne, FLAW, The Deftones and I still love listening to Minor Threat, The Misfits and Face to Face.  Hard music is not for everyone and some of the harder stuff that my husband likes, I cannot listen too for more than five minutes.  But music itself is very important to keep in your life.  It was important enough for me to stand for four hours, two days before giving birth to see Tool live and two weeks before giving birth to see Mudvayne and Slipknot play together.  My kids love listening to music, Kaiden especially.  I hope that both of my children grow up learning to appreciate different kinds of music and to respect the artists that make that music – because their mommy and daddy did and still do!

What does music mean in your life?

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