Pennsylvania Vacation

We had a great relaxing vacation to Pennsylvania. This was planned to be a low intensity trip, and I think we accomplished just that. Our highest expectations were to catch up in person with friends and family and allow the kids some new learning opportunities. Despite all the relaxation, this entry has turned quite lengthy...

Saturday: After an a.m. T-ball game, we headed home to prepare for a 4:00 p.m. flight to Pittsburgh. The kids were fabulous. They each had their backpack packed with some treats and activities and were more than ready for the flight. They had been asking to take a plane at night, and they got their wish. The kids were just in seventh heaven with their video player and cheetos during the flight. We rented a car and drove the 3 hours to Grantham (outside of Harrisburg) and arrived at Stacy and Jeremy's about 1:00 a.m.

Sunday: After a relaxing morning with no agenda and some fresh baked oatmeal, we headed to a state park about 30 minutes away and took in some breathtaking fall color and weather in the 70's. I think about the only thing I miss about the north is the fall. The leaves turned a bit late this year, so we got lucky and did not take it for granted. Stacy had brought bags along for each of the kids to collect leaves and whatever else. Luka informed us at one point that he was tired of collecting "natures." We went back to the house for supper and enjoyed some Alaskan salmon that Jeremy had caught along with fresh garden vegetables. Stories and Bugs Bunny topped off the night and the boys sacked out.

Monday: Another laid back morning and great weather again. The kids played in a nearby creek, we headed out to lunch, and then we went to Chocolate World at Hershey Park. We took the tour twice because the kids loved the train ride and were so fascinated with sights and smells. Stacy made chocolate brownies with the boys as a follow-up to the field trip, and then we had another great dinner of smoked turkey and garden vegetables following hammock swing rides in the back yard. Stories and Bugs Bunny again, and then some adult conversation.

Tuesday: Today we headed to Cornerstone Coffee Shop (where Stacy used to work) for a mid-morning snack. The temperature dropped just a bit so hot chocolate and coffee was in order. After that, we headed to the Messiah College campus to take in some recreation and more fall color. Then, home to pack up and we set off to Scottsdale (about 1 1/2 hours) to visit Ben and Angie Savanick. The whole way, Luka kept saying how sad he was to leave and how he wanted to stay with his cousins. We arrived after dinner and headed downtown to a Halloween parade, which the kids loved, of course. We headed back to the house for some snacks and then bed.

Wednesday: We had a great breakfast of homemade granola and coffee cake, following a crayon/coloring festival. Soon after, we hung out at the park to enjoy the weather and the leaves, and then walked a bit further to the local fire station where Ben is a volunteer firefighter. The kids got to climb on and in the truck, and even got to take a ride around town! Spraying water from the hose was probably the highlight, and it's too bad I had the camera with me at Ben's mother's store where I started in on some Christmas shopping. After some home-cooked Minestrone soup and deli sandwiches, we took advantage of the sunshine in the backyard and just sat around and watched the kids play frisbee and yard darts.

We then hopped in the car again and headed for Johnstown and directly to Kaufman Mennonite Church, where the Hunsberger family, our next hosts, were participating in a church function. (Again, Luka kept saying how sad he was that he had to leave Ben and Angie's.) We had a pancake dinner and met several other Hunsbergers. (For those interested, Dan Hunsberger, who we were staying with, and who is Scott's good friend from Hesston, is Ashley Histand's (our good friend from Houston) uncle, so several of those we met were Ashley's aunts and uncles.) After briefly meeting Mariela at the church, Luka said about 10 times on the way home how he wished Mariela was his mother so she could speak Spanish to him. (Mariela is from Argentina and I think probably reminds him a lot of his loving teachers at school.) The kids were up later than usual playing with Meliana, Leslie, Kelsey, and Iliana, Dan and Mariela's four girls, and having the time of their life. It was hard to get them to bed!

Thursday: The girls all headed to school, and we took advantage of the gorgeous weather and took another hike on their property which turned into quite the field trip. At the top of the hill, we came across a small herd of cows. They came right up to us and seemed to be looking for treats (oops) but the boys sure got a close look. They learned all about cow patties and the smell that goes along with it. Even Chilli got in on the action.

After the hike, Scott fired up Leslie's motorcycle (yes, both Leslie and Kelsey ride dirt bikes, how awesome is that?!) and treated the kids to a ride around property. I'm not sure I've ever seen Luka grin quite so hard. Just when they thought it couldn't get any better, they pulled out the 4-wheeler and took turns on that as well. Phew! What a day. But we still weren't done.

While Luka decided to stay home and play with the girls on a microphone and amplifier, TJ headed to Dan's brother's farm to learn how to harvest the soybean field with a combine. They finished off the field with TJ in the cab and tasted some fresh soybeans.

I think we have a Traeger wood-pellet grill in our future. Jeremy had used a Traeger for the salmon and turkey, and now we feasted on BBQ chicken grilled on Dan's Traeger. Wow! That night, the boys were introduced to the Wii and quickly became infatuated. I guess that is what vacation is for!

Friday: Gosh - how much more action can we handle? Honestly, I feel like we just did a ton of sitting around and relaxing, but there isn't much to write about that. (Although I am almost through Steig Larson's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, which does illustrate how much down time we've had.)

Wow - the temperature dropped! High of 40 today, so we decided to jump into a toasty car after breakfast (and 2 hours of the Wii) for a tour of the area. The kids quickly fell asleep on our way to the memorial site of the coal mining rescue of 2002. Later, on our way to the crash-site of United Flight 93, we got real close to some incredible power-generating windmills. The site where flight 93 crashed (as part of the 9/11 tragedy) was pretty amazing to see. They are currently building a huge national park, right in the middle of farm country, that won't be completed for a few years.

Back at the ranch, after a few more motorcycle rides, we headed back to Dan's brother's dairy farm to witness the cows being milked. While Scott was familiar with the process, having been a milker himself in college, TJ, Luka and I were quite fascinated. Despite the cold winds (and being very underdressed for the weather), we learned all about how the milk gets from the cow to the storage tank. For some reason, seeing the cows pee and poop up close was quite the highlight for the kids as well (go figure). TJ also got to bottle-feed a calf that was 3 weeks old, but we had to skip the hay ride for fear of our toes going numb. While witnessing the milking, I just had to draw the comparison in my head to how my dad called me Bessie when nursing the boys. And to think that will all soon be starting again...once we have the baby, maybe we can call upon the boys' experience with the cows to help them understand how natural it all is! I'm expecting a fair amount of interest at the beginning...

Speaking of pregnancy...I'm 25 weeks and feeling great. I'm starting to get a few pains when I walk too fast, so I definitely feel myself slowing down, but overall, I still can't complain. However, I'll allow myself to mention how annoying it is to constantly have to go to the bathroom, around the clock. Oh well! And, baby girl is a lively one...constantly twisting and turning, especially in the evening. I love the feeling, actually.

Saturday: Dan cooked a big breakfast of sausage and waffles, and then we decided to take the kids on one more trip to feed the cows some cookies. They headed up on the Ranger on a very cold morning. The kids saw some deer running through the woods and then got a kick out of daddy feeding the cows who were not shy at all.

We finally got on the road and headed to Pittsburgh to catch our flight. We headed to the south side of town for a leisurely lunch and stroll, and took in a pumpkin shake and coffee to finish off the trip. On the way home we had 6 seats to ourselves and everything was rather uneventful, just as we would choose to have it. We got home around 9:00 p.m., just in time for me to go to bed and be at church at 8:00 a.m. the next morning to play with the flute choir. Phew. What a great trip!