Pennsylvania

Back in November (19 - 22) we headed down to Lancaster County, Pennyslvania for a few days. I was really looking forward to seeing my dear friend Jenn and getting re-connected. :-) The fun thing was, we did not go alone. There were other people that we met up with once we were down in that area...my brother Jon and his wife Sheila and their two little boys....my parents.....my sisters Heather and Vanessa.....and my sister LeeAnne (she drove down with the three of us). Our time there was slightly off compared to the rest of my family (Due to Keith's work travelling schedule, we got there a day later than everyone else, so we just stayed down a day later.)

And we're off...45 minutes on the 20A. Some things never change...

...including stopping for gas in Mt. Morris at the Red Apple.

We had lots of good and fun times! We can now forever tell tales of forgotten luggage (Mom! good thing we were coming down a day later than they were) and blonde moments (any idea of the significance of a large buffalo located just outside of Buffalo LeeAnne?) Ahhhhh. Good laughs for sure. We had awesome weather and good travelling time - only took us about 8 hours of driving time. Sure missed coffee shops though. I have to say the states of NY and PA have NOTHING on Ontario when it comes to coffee shops.

Discussions prior to the trip had everyone in unanimous agreement (well...maybe not Heather and Vanessa) that we were going to go "economy" when it came to accomodations. We stayed at the very (ahem!) "posh" Dutch Treat Motel.  Keith and I had to chuckle. I don't know the last time we've stayed in a little roadside quirky motel. But it was clean. It was quiet. It was a good central location for us. And you sure couldn't beat the price.

We did LOTs of eating. Years ago, when we were down there, my brother Jesse coined the phrase "go buffet or go home". That sure applies there. It was a bit of a challenge for my weight watchers willpower but I managed it. Lots of salad. With a yummy dessert on the side, every so often. ;-) We enjoyed eating at The Shady Maple, Dieners, The Country Cupboard and Millers. 

Check out that ginormous bear below...

Lots of sightseeing and watching of passing buggies...

And waiting to get in at restaurants....

We used our time wisely. Taking pictures. :-)

Some hijinks at the Candle Barn. LeeAnne had just purchased some beautiful  mercury glass style Christmas tree ornaments and was thinking they'd make fabulous earrings...

One afternoon we all split up into various groups. One group chose to do some shopping. (who would that have been? hmmmm!) Another group went on a horse and buggy ride/tour along with a visit to the Pennsylvania Train Museum and a Tabernacle visit...

Sunday Keith, Max, and I and LeeAnne spent the day with Jenn and her family. The boys went "flying".  Flying RC airplanes that is.

Below is Jenn's son Drew. The last time I saw him he wasn't even 2 years old and I was carrying him around everywhere. Look what happens in 10 years. He's taller than me. By quite a bit. Good golly!

Max and Alex had lots of fun cousin time...ripping around together...

The first evening after I got back from a coffee date with Jenn, this is the view that greeted me. It was like they were playing sardines. How many people can we fit into ONE motel room? Apparently everyone.

One morning at breakfast, LeeAnne had an unfortunate mishap with the coffee pot. She didn't realize the lid was loose and it was like she was pouring Niagara Falls. Coffee was flowing everywhere! It was quite funny. Even at the time. This was the following morning when she was pretending the same thing was happening...

Gerber girls love purses and shoes. This time we loved purses better.

Poor Dad. He doesn't know quite what to do with all this attention from his girls...

I don't have any photos of this, but on the Saturday evening we all went to see The Miracle of Christmas at Sight & Sound. Such a beautiful and meaningful way to kick off the Christmas season. If you've never been, and have the chance - you should def go and check out the shows they have at Sight & Sound. Fantastic!

Keith liked to drive around the countryside and take all these curvy little windy roads to see if we could get lost. We couldn't. He always seemed to know where he was and which road lead to which. It was all quite interesting though...love the names of their winding little roads. Wouldn't you like to live on a Cherry Lane? Me too!

One thing that hasn't changed is the abundance of little shops and stores selling rustic/country home decor. We had to pop in one or two just to check them out. Max liked riding these little horses. He's a tad big for them, but they certainly caught his attention.

That was our time in PA. It was very busy. By the time we were finished eating and shopping and touring and seeing the Christmas play and visiting Jenn and her family...well...there just wasn't any extra down time to be had. And that was good. We obviously planned the perfect amount of time for us to be there. I just hope it doesn't go another 10 years before I see my jennie-pennie again!

Then end.