A Notable Quote

"The ignorance of one voter in a democracy impairs the security of all." - President John F. Kennedy

Visiting with Grandma!

On the next to the last day of our vacation we stopped by and had a quick visit with my Aunt Rose, and then from there we went to visit my Grandmother. I didn't think to get out my camera when we were visitng with Aunt Rose so I only have pictures from our time with Grandma. After we arrived my Aunt Mi provided us with lunch. Thank you, Aunt Mi!


My kids and their Great Grandmother!
She is 90 years old and we are blessed to still have her with us!

Grandma and I.

Julissa with Grandma's new puppy! She absolutely loved the puppy and still talks about her.

The garage and smoke house.

I just had to take a picture of these buildings even though it was raining. By the next time I get to the farm these buildings will undoubtedly be gone. They hold many memories of time spent with Grandpa! Just of few of those memories are laying out onions to dry before storing them in the cellar for winter, sorting through potatoes, watching Grandpa butcher and/or work on some piece of farm or lawn equipment.

The smoke house was the place where Aunt Mi stored her bicycle and occasionally she would get it out and ride back the lane with us girls.

It was on this same property that my Great Grandparents lived.

Breakfast with My Best Friend!

As we were traveling through PA early in the morning on our next to last day of vacation, I searched online via my husband's phone/pocket pc to find the phone number of my best friend. I called her and told her we were within just a few miles of her. So we arranged to meet at a Perkins nearby for breakfast. We had a really great time visiting for several hours over breakfast. It had been almost 7 years since we had last seen each other.

Tide Pools

Again, the lady at the Cape Cod Canal Visitor's Center was very helpful. She told us where to go to find some tide pools. This made Samuel really happy. He had been wanting to find some tide pools while we were on vacation. The boys, Briana and I really enjoyed our visit to the Tide Pools. My husband and Julissa came down so far and he decided it was not his idea of fun so headed back to the van to sit until we were done.


Cormorants on a rock in the canal.

Alex and Briana looking for sea life in a small tide pool.

An interesting rock covered in seaweed and barnacles.

A large tide pool where we saw lots of hermit crabs.

The crab the boys caught from the tide pool.

Quite a few hermit crabs of various sizes that the boys caught.

Two of the larger hermit crabs that we saw in the large tide pool.

A lone piece of vegetation in the midst of sand and rocks.

Cape Cod Canal Visitor Center

We went to the Cape Cod Canal Visitor Center where we got to see a retired patrol boat. We also got to look on their monitors and view the boats in the canal at different points. It was really neat. The lady that worked there told us that earlier that day they had had a yacht come through the canal that came from the Marshall Islands.


The retired patrol boat - The Renier

My husband is a fan of knot tying so I had to get this photo. While we were at the visitor's center an employee told Jeff about the site animated knots. He has had the boys learning to tie various knots from this site.

A table of various shells.

Cape Cod Canal

While in Massachusetts we crossed the Cape Cod Canal. Below you will find a few pictures of the bridge we crossed.

A small boat in the canal and bikers on the path on the other side of the canal.

Smiling Pool at Green Briar Nature Center

A few pictures of Smiling Pool at Green Briar Nature Center.

Green Briar Nature Center and Jam Kitchen

We visited Green Briar Nature Center where the kids got to see quite a few wild animals up close.

There were trails to walk. This one is Briar Patch Trail!

The 100+ year old Jam Kitchen

Click the above link to see a picture of the inside of the Jam Kitchen.

I loved this quote by Burgess that they have hanging in the entryway to the Jam kitchen.

They were just finishing up labeling the jars of Bread and Butter Pickles that they had canned that day. They make many varieties of jams, jellies, preserves, and pickles that they sell to the public.

Thornton W. Burgess Museum

On our last day in Massachusetts, we visited the Thornton Burgess Museum on the shores of Shawme Pond in Sandwich, MA. The morning glories surrounding the sign where absolutely beautiful. The lady in charge did a great job in giving the kids quite a bit of background information about Thornton Burgess. If you have young children and have never read any of his books you might want to check them out. We also got to see some of the original artwork of Harrison Cady that was done for Burgess' books.

The Morning Glories

The Museum

Peter Rabbit

A Tussie-Mussie Garden

A really neat diorama of the characters in Burgess' books.

Chatterer the Squirrel