Road Trip

Guest Blogger - Nate (because frankly Stacy is finding it hard enough to keep up with our schedule, much less finding the time to write about it.)

July has been a busy month.  We decided to top it off with a bang and go on a nine-day road trip through Pennsylvania.  Here's a rundown of our itinerary: The first night was spent at Mike and Colleen's in Washington, PA.  The next three nights were in downtown Philadelphia while Nate attended a conference and Stacy explored a new city, pregnant, with three kids in tow (what a super-mom).  We spent the next night in Camden, NJ, to meet some friends from our NY days.  Then it was on to Reuben and Tessa's farm for two nights.  We stayed the last night with Mike and Colleen again on our way home.

Along the way we went to three museums, swam in two hotel pools, did a walking tour of historic Philadelphia, went to a Catholic mass, ate out at countless restaurants, hiked a section of the Appalachian Trail, saw a copperhead snake in the wild, petted a shark and a sting-ray (not in the wild), counted license plates from 29 different states, played with nine cousins and three friends, watched lots of videos in the car, drove under four mountains (twice), went on a hayride, and attended a minor league baseball game.  Whew, it made me tired just typing all that!  Suffice to say, we were all longing for the comforts of home by the end of the trip. 


 

Too much fun on the trampoline

Jack showed the boys a few tricks

All the kids liked the sprinkler on a hot day

At the Franklin Institute

Please Touch Museum - great pose

bi-bim-bop straight from the bowl

Adventure Aquarium with our friends

What a cutie

The great hammerhead shark was the main attraction at the aquarium.

One step above a grimace.  We were all pretty tired by this point

On the Appalachian Trail

Hayride with Uncle Reuben

We have countless stories to remember our trip.  Stacy and the kids nearly melting in the Philadelphia heat as they walked to the Franklin Institute.  Eating bi-bim-bop in a cute little Korean restaurant in Philadelphia.  Walking through the Reading Terminal Market.  Seeing the hippos/sharks/penguins/stingrays/etc at Adventure Aquarium in Camden.  Watching all of our kids get along so naturally with cousins and friends they rarely see.

But life moves ever forward, allowing no rest for the weary.  Moving day is August 6 and Caleb starts school already August 22.  There's plenty of work ahead of us before summer is officially over.