Tag Archives: virginia

Marriage Laws: Virginia & West Virginia

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Our journey down the Atlantic seaboard continues into Virginia and West Virginia. Once the same state, they divided over issues regarding slavery and secession and more. We lived in Virginia for more than 10 years and my daughter was born there, so I’ll always have a deep fondness for the state. So let’s talk about the marriage laws in Virginia and West Virginia. Virginia You do not need to be a resident of Virginia to apply for a marriage license there. You will need to show proof of ID and in some counties, you will have to prove that your … Continue reading →

East Coast Whale Watching Adventures

It’s no secret; whale watching tours abound in places such as Hawaii and Alaska, but watching a humpback whale breach from the murky depths of the Atlantic Ocean is not something travelers get to see everyday. Just ask vacationers who visit the waters off of Virginia Beach. The whale-watching season wraps up along the East Coast at the end of the month. Which means you still have a few weeks to gather the family and sign up for a tour. The Rudee Flipper, which departs from the Virginia Fishing Center at Rudee Inlet on the south end of Virginia Beach … Continue reading →

Wolf By the Ears — Ann Rinaldi

Ann Rinaldi is the author who first got me interested in writing historical fiction. She does it so beautifully. “Wolf By the Ears” is, in my opinion, one of her finest novels, set in 1819 on Thomas Jefferson’s Virginia plantation, Monticello. For years it has been speculated that Thomas Jefferson took his slave Sally Hemmings as his mistress and fathered children with her. Some historians feel that it was actually Jefferson’s brother who fathered those children, and we may never know for sure. This book is written from the viewpoint that it was Jefferson himself, and so for the purposes … Continue reading →

Marriage In the News: Arranged Marriage Fraud

Since I used to live in Virginia, this story caught my eye when I read it in the Washington Times. It seems that on Thursday, federal authorities arrested over 19 residents in Virginia for a scam that is connected to nearly a 1,000 fraud marriages between illegal aliens and U.S. citizens in order to avoid the immigration laws. As you may or may not know, an illegal immigrant may be granted citizenship status if they are married to a U.S. citizen and the marriage is validated by immigration officials as being based on a real relationship and not one entered … Continue reading →