Day 18 -- a long day of driving

Today is one of our few "just driving" days. We need to make some time today in an effort to get home this weekend!! We spent a quiet night in a state park in Ohio. Our RV faced an inlet of a large lake which was occasionally filled with the noise of a passing water skier or speed boat. We thank the Lord for providing us with ample time and a clean washhouse in the park to do a much needed load of laundry. This will hopefully be our last load needed in order to get us all home in clean underclothes! :-)

Isaac and Isabelle promptly got out of the RV upon our "landing", explored, found sticks and began whittling side by side for nearly an hour while I prepared dinner. I snuck this picture as they were working. These two have such a sweet relationship .... it is a blessing to foster it through our choice to homeschool.

We left our campground early (before 7:00 a.m. Idaho time) to get on the road -- anticipating an 11 hour drive today (my poor husband!). The kids are already deep into their school work with the promise of listening to more Laura Ingalls Wilder audiobooks once finished. We may need to break out a video today as well as it will grow warm and dull as the day progresses.

We will pass through several states on our way to Wisconsin and Minnesota. Our hope is to be able to get to within a few hour drive of the Laura Ingalls Wilder museum in Walnut Grove by tonight (yep, there really is an actual town -- and not far from it is the city of Mankato!). Just as Joe had to give up his dream of going into NYC and Isaac had to give up going to the Philadelphia Mint, Josiah and I will have to forego our hope of seeing one of the great lakes today :-( as we can't afford the extra hours it would take to get there. Oh well ..... Lord willing, we will be able to see those things at another time.

It is interesting to note that even just a little bit north and the vegetation has changed dramatically. While in Maryland, every tree was fully leafed out and the blossoming complete. Where we are currently traveling, there are many trees just now in bloom and I noted that the maples by the lake were just making their timid attempts to uncurl their pale green leaves. Based on what I hear from home, it is likely about the same. I was afraid we would miss the trees in bloom completely, but hopefully we'll make it home in time to see the remnants of their show.

More later!

Day 17 -- Pittsburg Fun

We arrived in Pittsburg by noon and found the downtown area to be quiet on this Sunday. This stop has been much anticipated by Isaac who was the one to discover this science center through his at-home research on robotics -- a study which fascinates him and which he will study next year.

The Carnegie Science Center is adjacent to the Ohio river front with a beautiful view, park, and greenbelt along it. As a part of the center, we were privileged to tour the Requim Submarine -- built during the Cold War era.

Inside, we found a whole floor dedicated to robots. There were fascinating aspects of science throughout the museum -- four floors worth! The "Roboworld" was the highlight.

There is one huge room dedicated to an incredible model train village -- the largest I have ever seen and with details that were truly intricate and fascinating. Our friend, little Thomas, would have loved this!

There was a sports area with some interesting opportunities for the kids to display their physical prowess :-) All three kids were able to touch the top of the "you-yo".

Josiah and Isabelle climbed 24 feet high on this rock climbing wall.

And, of course, the highlight (and conveniently located across from the museum) was Heinz field -- home of the Pittsburg Steelers. As our family has chosen for the past 16 years to not watch t.v. other than an occasional educational or newsworthy event which might occur a few times each year, Isaac hasn't had much opportunity to watch his chosen football team. In spite of this, he remains a faithful Steelers fan amongst his friends.

We couldn't take a tour as it was a Sunday, but Isaac and Joe were able to look through the bars into the stadium itself.

We had a great afternoon in Pittsburg! It is interesting to see the architecture slowly beginning to change as we travel Westward. We are headed into Ohio for the night and praying for a laundry facility. :-)

Day 17 -- Happy Mother's Day from Pennsylvania!

I awoke at 3:30 a.m. Idaho time (5:30 a.m.) East coast time -- the sun had already peeked its head over the trees and the birds were politely beginning their morning noises. Today is my 16th Mother's Day :-) My sweet children were up wrapping my favorite chocolates in paper towels and trying hard to put breakfast on when I got out of our wee bathroom this morning. I received a lovely card in addition to my fun shopping excursion on Friday in the Amish stores with Isabelle.

I need only to make a phone call to my own Mom and the day will be complete.

We spent the night in the mountains of Pennsylvania -- a state park well off the beaten path but blessedly quiet through the night. On the way out this morning, we were able to read the signs through the various villages we had passed through in near darkness the night before. One historical little town had been established in 1793!!!!! It looked as if a few of the original stone buildings were still standing. It is fascinating to think of being in a place that was just being considered the westward frontier after the Revolutionary War had taken place and expansion was the goal of many.

We are on our way towards Pittsburg for a day's excursion to the Carnegie Museum of Science, which just happens to be conveniently located right across the street from Heinz Stadium -- playing home of the Steelers! Isaac is in his glory. God is good and we are thankful for this time to explore America.

Day 16 Part 2 -- Hershey Park

And so --- we spent one whole afternoon and evening at an amusement park featuring chocolate in all shapes and sizes (along with roller coasters and rides :-)

Isaac, who prefers to stay close to the ground, was a very good sport in watching the rest of us ride roller coasters and other rides.

We had a bit of a rain shower during the car ride, at which time Isabelle took the wheel only a few moments before throwing up her hands and shouting at me, "Oh Mommy! You drive -- I don't think I'll ever be able to do it!!" She was generally horrified and didn't realize the rail in front of the car directed the path of the car -- and not her steering.

We finished out the day with a carousel ride -- still Isabelle's favorite! Joe and I figured out that this one excursion was the most expensive of our trip :-(

Day 16 -- Gettysburg National Park

We arrived at Gettysburg National Military Park just as the visitor's center and museum were opening. The museum itself was housed in a monstrous replica of an octagonal barn -- red, of course :-)

This was way too much to take in for only a few hours this morning, but we were able to get a good feel for the battlefield (not just one area, but surrounding the entire town of Gettysburg at the time). The Gettysburg National Military Cemetery was a tremendous and hallowed place.

We were fortunate to find a place to park where we could stop and walk, seeing monuments, gravestones, and cannons along the way.

Walking up cemetery ridge, you could see why the Union forces chose this area to camp and then push back the Confederate forces. It was a pretty amazing climb and a tremendous sight.

The museum began with a great documentary to help give you an understanding of the battle, battlefield, and history behind it. Of course, this is from a slanted and liberal viewpoint which puts slavery, rather than state's rights, at the center of the war itself.

There were hundreds of artifacts from the time period and various battles.

Authentic flags from the time period, complete with bullet holes.

There were fantastic exhibits of cannons and artillery -- a favorite of Josiah's.

The wall of soldier's pictures who fought and died is quite sobering.

This was a great place to visit and one that we can hopefully return to someday. It was exciting to hear how much my boys already knew about the war itself and the battles from our past studies of the Civil War.

Day 15 -- Amish Country

We crossed into Pennsylvania after crossing a very swollen river (by the way, all of the rivers we have crossed have all been at flood level). It is nice to be on the move again after our sweet week of "stillness" :-)

As we approached Intercourse and Bird in Hand (yes, there are some interesting town names around here), we began to see the amazing Amish farms, most surrounded by large farm yards and with many outbuildings and usually more than one home. They are typically neat as a pin, with Amish older children (we were here on a school day so the younger children were not out) pushing their manual lawnmowers, behind a mule and plow with the Mama at the head of the mule directing through the massive garden beds. While I am saddened often by the religious emptiness that many of these sects espouse, their lifestyle of family togetherness through work and homesteading is something that we admire.

Most of the farm equipment we saw was pulled by teams of mules. Most Amish do use gas-powered tools including weed-eaters. Joe thought that it was hilarious to see an Amish teen girls dressed in black and with bonnet using a gas trimmer around her front porch.

We were fortunate to see a lot of laundry on the lines. Here is something interesting -- most of the clothes lines we saw went from the back porch of the house to the tip top of the highest barn. They use a pulley system to bring the laundry back in. Because their lifestyle revolves around avoiding pride, most Amish wear primarily black with pastel colors (never with patterns) as accents.

My understanding from my study of the Amish (my Mom loves to learn about the Amish and, in fact, took a tour of the Amish communities across America a few years ago), the buggy styles are dependent of the various groups and leadership given by the bishops for that group. This is the style we saw, all pulled by beautiful smallish horses with head held high and always at a trot. :-)

Day 15 -- A Change O' Plans

It is nearly 10:00 a.m. East Coast time and we are just now pulling out of Bel Air, disappointed that returning the rental car has taken so long to complete. Although our intention this morning was to head due north and spend at least a couple of hours in Philadelphia, Joe - after consulting over the phone re: parking in the middle of the historic district, AND after considering the amount of time we've already spent in big cities -- made the executive decision to not go to see Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, and the Philadelphia Mint. As you can imagine, there are some disappointed passengers (namely Isaac and I), but these are all sights we have been to before and none of which wouldn't require a long tour, tickets, and a wait. The reality is -- we're running out of time and hope to be back home a week or so from today.

And so -- our alternate route is to head up through Amish country on our way to camping tonight in Gettysburg. Joe, especially, is up for a more relaxed day, good food (the Amish restaurants are filled with yummy homemade faire), and slow paced stopping along the way if we find a farmer's market or shop that we'd like to visit.

We received news this morning that our dear and watchful neighbors helped prevent a flood in our barn after the irrigation was turned on and, unknowingly, we had left drain valves open. Thus, when it was turned on, water gushed out. Through the Lord's providence, our neighbor friend whom we had hired to come and weed a few times each week, was there working before too much time had elapsed. With his quick thinking (you're our hero Alexander!) and the help of some neighbors, the various valves were shut off and leaks contained. We do have 3 or 4 inches of standing water in the barn -- but that should dry quickly after a few weeks of Idaho heat.

Pump valve and mud everywhere . . .

We're heading into the absolutely beautiful rolling hills and farmland of Pennsylvania. Pictures to come!