Vacation time

Well we took two weeks off and drove to NY to visit our families. Closed down the B&B and gave ourselves some R&R time.



We left Leavenworth on the 12th of August and drove to Vadalia, IL. We stopped at a private campground and pitched our tent. The grounds were well kept and we settled in for the evening. We got some sleep but the tent area was too close to the road so we heard cars all night. We had great temps. though in fact we got a little cool. Should have thrown in another blanket.



The next day was a long one as we wanted to be close enough to NY to get to Bob's brother's place ahead of rush hour. We also had to make a stop at Bob's favorite Brewery to pick up a supply of beer from them. So we drove late into the night and found a hotel in Harrisburg, PA. Which by the way is where the Brewery is. http://troegs.com/ (Troeg's Brewing Company)

For dinner that night we were near Wheeling, WV. We asked our GPS for recommendations and it came up with Union Grill in Washington, PA. It is an old bar and grill in the basement of what looked like a renovated building. The restaurant has been there for many, many years but looked like it was renovated along with the building. The food was great and the locals friendly and helpful.



After we got his supply of beer we headed on to Long Island and the Topping Family Lobster Fest that was to take place on Saturday. Weather was perfect although the locals thought it was too hot. Bob and I were comfortable. We enjoyed more food than we should have and had fun watching our great niece check out the lobsters. One of Bob's brothers tried to let one escape but we made sure he ended up as our dinner anyway. It was a great day.



We spent the rest of the weekend with Bob's family and even got to visit his 93 year old uncle who doesn't like to travel anymore and didn't make the Lobster Fest. Bob's mom was there and doing wonderful.

Two of his brothers with their spouses and Bob's mom made plans to visit us here on Oct 2,3,4 to attend a KC Chiefs vs NY Giants game at Arrowhead. We, however, are booked as that is NASCAR weekend here in KC area so I had to book them into The Smitty House, another B&B here in Leavenworth. Bob's mom will stay with us a week, the rest will just stay the weekend.

On Monday the 17th we drove on to my parents who live in Deposit, NY. It is a very small town on the NY/PA border. Going through much the same hard times as our small towns here in Kansas. The major industries in the area are logging, diary farms, and stone quarries. They aren't lucky enough to have a great organization like the Kansas Sampler Foundation and Marci Penner to help them keep going. Talking with one of my aunts about it she thought buying stamps in her small town would be a great idea. She said the people were friendlier in the bigger post office but the small one was more convenient and she would start going there again.

Spent the week with my mom and dad. Helped them fill the woodshed for winter. Dug potatoes to bring home, picked and brought home fresh blueberries, and set my mom up on the Internet.

We ate in some of the local restaurants. One was my sisters in Endicott, NY. She and her husband have a pub called Harry Tuft's Publick House.

We left there on Monday the 24th. Drove west through NY and stopped in Corning NY and had lunch at a little brewery pub in the Historic Downtown area. Didn't take a tour of the Corning Glass factory as we had when we lived in the area.

Monday night we stopped at Geneva State Park and pitched our tent. It's right on the shore of Lake Erie. That night we went into Geneva on the Lake, a small resort town, and found ourselves at The Old FireHouse Winery. You eat looking out onto Lake Erie. We stayed around and saw the sunset and listened to some live music. A wonderful place to visit and enjoy.

Drove westward the next morning and just enjoyed the sights of Ohio and Indiana. Stopped for the night in one of Indiana's State Parks. Traveled route 36 all the way to Cameron, MO. and then dropped down to KC and home.

It was a great trip and we had a relaxing time. Good to get away but good to be back too.