Lancaster, PA- Week 3

Another week spent in Lancaster, PA hanging out with my folks while my sister traveled.  This time, Michaela and Gabby joined us for the week.  We spent time in the pool!

         Some of the kids headed to Oma and Suzy's house to visit with them too!

We took an Amish Buggy ride with the kids and played on the playground while we waited.  It was a cool spot on a muggy morning. 

Our ride was lovely and Becca got to drive a bit.  Our host was fun and chatty.  She answered my many questions and told us about how the Amish in Lancaster Country are moving away from farming and starting to own businesses.  They are also putting up greenhouses to have produce year round.

We all had fun celebrating Opa's 85th birthday.  We had carrot cake for him but waited until Jason arrived to do a bigger celebration. Ham loaf, noodles and whoopee pies all were a big part of it.  We tried a shoofly pie whoopee pie and all we could say was mmmmmmmmmmm!

 A fun photo of everyone before we headed out.  The crew had a fun week!  We headed home and arrived late that night.

Graduation Photos—for at least 2 of them!

We have 3 graduates this year!  Here are some shots of Jacob and Joe's photos.  We had fun together on our photo shoot and there were lots of giggles and laughter!

We always ask the kids where they want to go and of course I have some ideas of my own.  We were disappointed with one spot but loved Onway Lake, the Town Common and the train station!

Darrell loves trains and loves these photos of the kids at the station and on the Raymond trains.

     I love the architecture of the train station and it provides so many fun backgrounds!

This year I discovered this door and its unique handle.  I knew it had to be a part of the photos and it has so many fun meanings we could apply to our graduates.

                                     And of course, we had to have some more fun! 

 Looking forward to see where God leads these two guys!  It is shaping up to be a great adventure!

Can a Horse Smile?

Well, yes, she can!  We started some ground driving with Spirit while we work on a cart that we recently acquired.  This is certainly her first love.  She was a cart horse in Lancaster County, PA before being shipped to a breeding program in NY and then to NH where we purchased her.  I can't wait to try her driving skills.  Devon is doing the training with me.  He is also excited!

And then this horse makes me smile because it was Michaela's when she was 2.  And now, Gabby is loving it!  How sweet it is!

 

Canada

Thirteen of us pilled into 3 different cars and headed to Canada to the Daneker cabin in Ontario.  It was an adventure that none of the kids that went had ever done.  Visiting Aunt Carolyn and Uncle Dan's cabin led to lots of excitement and it did not disappoint.

One of the things we did was take a boat tour of the Thousand Islands.  We had to travel back to the US side to do so.  We got to see many spectacular sights and enjoyed the humor of the guide.

We stopped at Boldt Castle and explored the grounds.  Many changes to the last time I had been there and it was beautiful!

Back at the cabin, the newlyweds, Brandon and Alivianna had quite time some mornings while they did prayer and read their Bibles.

We played many games and ate together.  I loved hearing the laughter and fun around the table.

We did some shopping at the nearby town, Westboro and had some ice cream of course!

We spent a day in Ottawa and saw the guard change and heard a concert by the band.

                                We had to get a picture of China town in Ottawa. 

After stopping at the ChickfilA that had just opened 2 weeks previously (think crazy long lines out the door), we headed to the Royal Mounted Police Stables for a tour.  Here is the gang inside the facilities.

The week was hot and humid so the 'black thing' got a lot of workout while there.  Lots of laughter floated up to the cabin and screams when they saw the huge water snake (ick!)

I have to admit, I did take a few long naps but we did have some down time.  And there was a trip to the emergency room with Becca who rebroke her toe and had to have it set....never a dull moment! We also used the kayaks, canoes and paddle boat to explore the lake.  It was a fun time!
 

Beach Day at a Hampton

It is summer time and well, we haven't stopped much along the way to enjoy it.  It has been one of those summers so we decided to just jump in the car and head that way one afternoon.  It was glorious!

I did have other motives...of course!  Jacob needed some saltwater time to help heal up something on his foot and it helped a bit to do so. 

Check out these 3 amigos!  Devon, Eli and Joe.  Even though it was a warm day that water was cold! 

Rebecca loves to get down and digging and that is just what she did.  She also explored a bit in the water with her brothers. 

 Sunshine, sand and water lead to a perfect afternoon.  Summer is whizzing by and we hope to get another day in soon!