We are home!!!!

We traveled 2,781 miles in 14 days. We had a great time and great weather. Well it was hot in a few places we expected the weather to be fall like. But it only rained on us twice. Once as we were going to dinner and once as we were leaving Maine. Neither time interfered with any plans we had.

We spent last night in Columbus and ate at our favorite restaurant in German Town. After the yummy German potato salad we all got cream puffs to take back to the hotel. We ate them as we watched Cujo. We got up and drove home, we were here and had the car unpacked before 2pm. Then about 5 o-clock we went to Nicholasville to pick up Diesel. WE all missed him. I wondered if he would remember us after two weeks but I think he did.

My favorite thing from this trip was Acadia, second favorite was Niagara Falls. This trip wasn't quite as exciting as the west trip 2 years ago but it was really good too.

Awesome day at the falls......

Our hotel is in the most awesome place!!! We parked the car yesterday at 7 pm and didn't get back in it until we went to dinner tonight.

We walked to everything. We went to the observation tower at the Maid of the Mist. It was a great view and we hung out up there looking and taking pictures for about 45 minutes. Then we rode the Maid of the Mist. It was so great and we got pretty wet. We got a great view from the boat. After the ride the boys climbed the stairs up to the edge of the falls and got even more wet! It was so cute, I was watching them and at one point they were in a line and holding hands while walking up. I told Anthony I videoed it so he can't forget...he said he was going to block it out.

We stopped by Hard Rock Cafe again for lunch. I think we are all done with that place for a while. The building is great but the food is just okay. But it is right beside the hotel and we joined a club that gave us 20.00 off our next purchase so we went.

After lunch we walked over to Goat Island. We saw a little black squirrel!! I have never seen or heard of a black one before. It was very frisky swinging around the bushes and playing with some sort of big seed. We went to Terrapin Point to see the Horse Shoe falls up close. It is quite beautiful. Every so often the wind would pick up and blow the mist over on us. It was really more than just mist though. It was also very loud and very windy. We stopped and got ice cream because it really warmed up after lunch. The boys and I walked down to Luna Island to see the American Falls from the other side.

The last time we were here we around 16 years ago we stayed on the Canadian side and that is where we saw the falls. But staying on this side you really get to feel the power of the falls. All the wind and mist make you feel a part of it all.

The boys at the top of the stairs next to the falls.

American Falls

Its very windy here!!!

Maid of the Mist going under a rainbow.

Tesla Statue...report opportunity for Anthony :)

Douple rainbow at American Falls.

Slowly I turned.......

A lock on the Erie Canal.

This is on the Canadian side. There is a restaurant in the top that turns and gives you a view of the falls. David and I ate there with our friends the Wojciks the last time we were here.


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We got up this morning in Vermont and headed out towards Saratoga National Historical Site in Stillwater New York. When we asked for the ranger books the lady handed us the books and the badges. Jacob said, "you aren't suppose to give us those until we finish the book!" She told him it was the honor system. He was not happy about that at ALL. He didn't want to do the book and kept saying he didn't earn the badge and didn't want it. I went inside and grabbed a volunteer and asked him to give Jacob the badge. The guy just handed it to him but Jake was happy. We only spent about two hours there before we got back on the road headed for Niagara Falls. We got here right as the sun was going down. We decided to go to Hard Rock Cafe for dinner. We had never been to one before but Anthony really like it. All the music memorabilia around and the videos playing, well he was in his element.

After dinner we walked down to look at the falls at night. They light up the American side at night. It was interesting seeing it from the American side. Last time David and I were here we stayed in Canada. We don't have passports so we had to stay on this side this time. It is interesting though to see it from this side.

Vermont......

Rockefeller house in Woodstock Vermont.

This ranger made the swearing in very special!!!!

Churches in Rutland Vermont.

Look at the view you have while driving down the street!!!!!

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We got up this morning and went to a little Cheese shop in Sugar Hill New Hampshire. I got my souvenir shot glass and some local maple syrup. That stuff is expensive!!!

We left there and headed towards Vermont. The drive was beautiful again. We were mostly on little side roads driving through towns. That is a wonderful way to see a new place. Its a little slower and we usually don't do that but this was the most direct route through NH and Vermont.

We stopped at Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Site. The little boys got their badges and David taught Anthony about gambling and percentages :/ When the guys have on their ranger vests they get lots of attention from the Rangers. The lady today did a wonderful little swearing in for them. She had them hold her hat while she gave them the pledge. Pictures will have to come tomorrow because I left my camera in the car again. We had a picnic lunch again today...having the lunch meat and bread in the car has been a good thing!

We got to the hotel and we all took a nap. Well Michael didn't but he was very quiet while the rest of us took one. David told them that would be a great birthday present for me...let me sleep in peace :) He gave me a new Tom Tom for my birthday when we started the trip. He thought it would be good to go ahead and use it and I must say its so much better than the other GPS I had. Then today he gave me a little shot glass for my collection...he had it made, it says Happy Birthday Juanita 9-5-2010. He is so sweet and always tries to do something special for me.

We tried to go to dinner at this place called "Little Harry's" but we couldn't get in. So we went to a place called the Sirloin Saloon. It was really good and everyone enjoyed it!! We got back to the hotel and David put some stitches in the patches on my purse because they were coming off. Then he taught Michael how to thread a needle and knot it so he could put a few stitches in some of the patches on his vest. I ironed a new patch on my purse and the Acadia patches on Michael and Jacob's vests. Anthony decided a long time ago that he didn't want a vest but I think he may secretly regret it. Tomorrow we head across New York to Niagara Falls. Wish we could go to Canada. I guess I really should have gotten our passports :( I will try to work on that this year.

We left Maine today :(

View from hotel in New Hampshire

another one from hotel.

Have I mentioned that I love steeples and silos and interesting houses?!?!

We were driving along and suddenly there wasn't a paved road anymore...but they still had traffic lights!!!!

We woke up this morning in Maine. Didn't hear it storm at all last night, hurricane Earl must have really dissipated before it got to us. We drove about 5 hours to Franconia New Hampshire. I wanted to drive up Mount Washington but I didn't realize it was an hour from the hotel!! We are kind of resting tonight and I am doing laundry while the boys swim. Luckily the hotel has a coin washer and dryer. The mountains here are beautiful!!!!! The view from the hotel is gorgeous. I will take a picture in the morning to post.

The sand bar that leads to Bar Island.

David took this interesting panoramic.

Cool ridges in the sand, made by waves while the water was going down.

This is the sand bar at high tide. Boats were going back and forth over it!!!

Top of Cadillac Mountain.

This wasn't as scary as it looks :)

You can see several of the little islands that are around the bigger island (Mount Desert Island).

Thunder Hole with heavy surf.

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This was a really good day!! We got up and drove down to the water then walked across to Bar Island!!! How did we walk? Well at low tide there is a sand bar that goes all the way from Bar Harbor to Bar Island. It isn't really that far but it was really cool to walk were there had been ocean just hours before. Jacob REALLY enjoyed himself. He was always in the water and looking for signs of life. We didn't really find anything but sea snails and mussels. He really wanted to see a sea star or even a shark!! He was really intense while we were there....we joked that that water was calling to him. Then I found a really cool rock and called Michael over. He spent the rest of the time there looking for rocks. He was in his element too!

After the sand bar we drove up to Cadillac Mountain. All I can say is WOW. It was so beautiful. We saw lakes and trees and ocean and lot of rocks. The top was awesome and the boys climbed more rocks, I don't think they would ever get tired of doing that. We brought lunch meat and bread with us today so we sat at the top and had our lunch in one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. It finally cooled off a tiny bit today and was breezy at the summit of the mountain. It was so nice to be able to relax and just be there.

We drove back down the mountain and headed to a ranger station so the boys could get their badges. The ranger that swore them in was very nice. I am always very pleased with the park rangers. We talked with him about Hurricane Earl and if he thought we would have any trouble leaving the island in the morning. He said they were prepared and even if there are downed trees and things it would be taken care of as soon a possible. The storm has really lost most of its steam and shouldn't really cause any problems. It did make it a lot more foggy towards evening and the surf was a little rougher than yesterday. We decided to go back to Thunder Hole to see how that looked with the heavier surf. It was pretty cool and we sat and watched it for a little while again.

Before dinner we went back to where we walked across the sand bar to the island. The ocean had totally reclaimed the land. It was fun to see it like that too. We got dinner and came back to the hotel so I could repack and see what the clothing situation is like. I am afraid we are going to have to do laundry one more time before we get to Niagara Falls.