To New Concord and beyond!

What a difference a day makes, the weather today was just delightful with something for everyone. By nightfall, the temps had dipped into the low 60's F and felt down-right chilly!

We headed out late this morning, bound for the charming town of New Concord, childhood home of Annie and Senator John Glenn (www.johnglennhome.org/index.shtml). We visited the home of the Glenn family, now a wonderful museum, and were very impressed with the displays and the docents. There was a very nice student from the town's college (Muskegum College) who portrayed a border in the Glenn house during WWII. It was a really nice experience and follows closely Charles' visit to the Kennedy Space Center earlier this month. After that, we ventured a few miles down US 40, the old "National Road," seeing a unique "S" shapped bridge (www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S_bridge).

Next, it was a bit further down the road to see the world's largest basket in the delightful village of Dresden (www.basketvillageusa.com). This village is the hometown of the Longaberger family and is packed with quaint shops, botiques, B&B's and more. We thought that the basket, which has to be seen to be believed, was reason enough to visit this village but quickly learned that there is plenty to see and do besides that nice photo opportunity!

After getting back to Pickerington to meet up with Dale, we were taken to Dublin, OH (northwest of Columbus) to watch Staci play in a women's professional American football game. Staci plays on defense for the Columbus Comets (www.columbuscomets.com) and it was so inspiring to see her and the other women playing before a rather enthusiastic crowd. It was very chilly due to a cold front that had moved into the area which made the hot coco doubly-appreciated!!!

Tomorrow promises to be a wonderful day, come back and see what happened!

A Pickerington Friday

We took it easy on Friday, deciding to ease into the weekend and awaiting the promised arrival of cooler weather. The morning was given over to going through the stack of mail that had been sent to us in Texas. Whew, what a chore! We were able to get registered for the Nebraska Annual Conference via their on-line process. Isn't technology wonderful?!?

We took some time to explore "olde town Pickerington" in the afternoon, enjoying lunch at a quaint cafe', the aboretum & covered bridge, and a drive in the country.

We wound up eventually at the Motorcycle Hall of Fame here in Pickerington (www.motorcyclemuseum.org). It sounds strange for us to go there, but it was here and seemed worth checking out. The bulk of the displays were geared toward motocross which really doesn't do much for either of us. Some of the displays of the old machines were interesting though and the film they showed was an eye-opener!

We enjoyed a quiet evening at home with Dale and Staci, the creek that runs through their front yard has a nice fire pit on the one bank and we spent long into the early hours of Saturday morning (well, Charles and Dale were there 'till the end!), talking and enjoying the cool night air.

Hope your Saturday is a good one, come back later tonight and see how our's went!

Longaberger, Ho!

Here we are in Pickerington, Ohio, home of Charles' brother Dale, sister-in-law, Staci, and nephew Alex. And of course we have to mention their two beautiful dogs, Cossette and Fontaine.

A beautiful day here, after "a proper lie-in" (i.e., sleep-in), we set out for our first day of the Ohio phase of our journey. First up was a stop at a local Cracker Barrel, where we caught up on our separate previous two weeks and talked about what the next few weeks might hold.

We headed east on I-70 and made a stop in Buckeye Lake to ask for directions to the headquarters of the Longaberger Company (more to follow on this). While in this little town, we discovered "The Banbury Cross Tea Room," a genuine little English team room and gift shop. The owner is from the north Oxfordshire community of Banbury and has a delightful shop to enjoy a proper cuppa, should you happen to be in the area.

Next was a real treat - the Longaberger Factory complex, this company is famous for their baskets (www.longaberger.com), have their headquarters not far from the town of Newark. We scurried there and had a whirl-wind walk through their facilities and did some window shopping. So much to look at and take in! The headquarters building is a real stunning sight, a seven-story authentic replication of a Longaberger basket, including the handles which tower over the rest of the building. We decided to wait before getting any baskets to take home, as there is not much room in the Toyota at this point!

We got back to Pickerington in time to meet Dale and Staci at the pizzaria where Alex works (along with his girlfriend, Anna). The food was fantastic! Now we are back at the house, stuffed, and enjoying the wonderful music Dale has collected over the years.

Tomorrow, another adventure awaits!

A Florida finale!

Well, Charles' time in Florida is drawing to a close with a stop in the Tampa International Airport before flying to Columbus, Ohio where he will have a joyful reunion with Belinda!

This morning was spent enjoying the wonderful change in the weather with Charles' mother, Tom, and his daughter, Jessica. After a yummy pizza lunch from Umberto's, Charles set off for Tampa.

The afternoon was spent in the pleasureable setting of the Lowry Park Zoo (www.lowryparkzoo.com). Charles had not been there in many years and the changes are remarkable. It has something for everyone and is a very family friendly and interactive zoo. With giraffes, wonderful aviaries, and and hands-on presentations, it is a nice zoo. And with the coming addition of penguins in June of this year, it will be an even better zoo!!!

Tonight Charles and Belinda will be settling at brother Dale and Staci's home in Pickerington, OH (se of Columbus). Come back and see where we visit over the next week!

Hello from Texas!

Hello from Belinda in Texas. It has been an action-packed, fun-filled couple of weeks!

We really enjoyed Fiesta activities, e.g., the River Parade and the King William Fair! Mother and I did LOTS of shopping. We had a great visit with our good friend Saundra at the local Cracker Barrel (in celebration of Mother's birthday)!

We had a fabulous time going to San Angelo; we visited our good friend Dorothy. Dorothy gave Mother a surprise birthday party. We had so much fun! On the way home, we saw BEAUTIFUL wildflowers along the side of the road!

Today we had a great visit with our good friend Anne at her home; she made us a lovely lunch, complete with her famous snow pudding (a delicious lemon pudding with meringe in it).

Tomorrow I fly to Columbus, Ohio, for a wonderful reunion with my sweet husband! Now that is great cause to "Yee-haw!"

Weeki Wachi & Tarpon Srpings

Today was an opportunity to see some palces I'd not been to in quite awhile, so despite the smoke being blown in from a distant fire, I set out this morning to see if the mermaids still swam in the Weeki Wachee River (www.weekiwachee.com). It turns out they do! It was fun to see the park still operating and though it wasn't quite as grand as I remembered it from 20 years ago, it was fun all the same! I enjoyed the boat ride down the river and seeing manatees in the wild! Way cool!

After that, I was heading south on US 19 when I saw a sign for San Antonio, well, you know I had to go see how it compared to the bigger version in Texas! Trust me, the entire town and most of the county could fit inside the Alamo (no need to book the Dome!).

Next it was back on track to see Tarpon Springs (www.tarponsprings.com)home of the famous Greek sponge divers. I decided not to take the boat trip, but instead wandered the shops and enjoyed the breeze coming in off the Gulf of Mexico. I did get to visit one more time the famous Greek Orthodox cathedral, St. Nicholas (www.epiphanycity.org) in Tarpon Springs, a beautiful place of worship!

Now here I am in old town Dunedin at a Wine shop that has free WiFi! I leave Florida for a long-awaited reunion with Belinda tomorrow night in Ohio, look out Columbus!

Disney World - Orlando

It was back to Orlando for me this morning with Mom, her husband Tom, and his daughter, Jessica to visit Disney World. We arrived around noon and left at 5pm, having spent much of the time attending to our individual preferences.

I did some window shopping, took the steam train ride around the park, and watched two of the parades down Main Street USA. I had not been to Disney World since the mid-80's so it was nice to take a stroll around the place once more. The weather was nice and cool, a real treat after the oppressive heat of the past weekend.

After getting refueled at the Cracker Barrel in Lakeland, we staggered home to Dunedin, tired, but filled with lots of good memories.

Tomorrow, well, who knows!?!

Happy Birthday, Sheila Hammitt!

Mother and I returned to San Antonio on Sunday night, after a fun-filled, action-packed weekend visting her friends in San Angelo! Saturday was Mother's birthday. Her good friend Dorothy threw her a surprise birthday party, and it was a surprise! Since it was "Cinco de Mayo," and the fiesta theme was the order of the day, Dorothy and friends threw Mother her very own personal fiesta celebration. A fun time was had by all! What a great group of ladies!! Thanks so much for making her birthday celebration extra special this year!!!

Of course, we had to go shopping at the mall. Dillards was having a special fiesta observance with door prizes. Mother won a fabulous Estee Lauder basket of goodies; it really was her special weekend all around. Thanks, Dillards, for your fun contribution!

This morning, we went with Dorothy to a special service at the Calvary Lutheran Church in San Angelo. They had an outdoor worship service in the park across the side-street from their church. Afterwards we all enjoyed a fabulous church picnic on the grounds. Praise be to God for those wonderful breezes that we enjoyed on this hot Sunday in Texas!

God is SO good! For the fellowship of good friends and faithful folks, I am truly thankful!

Sea World - Orlando

I won't go into the gory details of how the morning started, but Joe, Jody, and myself everntually arrived in Orlando with the intent of visiting the Holy Land Experience (www.holyland-orlando.com) only to discover upon our arrival that it was closed today! Well, we were not amused to say the least!!!!

We ended up stopping at Sea World - Orlando (www.seaworldorlando.com/SWF/default.aspx) which was a stroke of good luck. Since I was in the Navy, we all got admitted to the park for free (thanks to a promotion being paid for by the Budwieser people). So we had an enjoyable afternoon seeing all sorts of critters including manatees, baluga whales, an assortment of penguins, and more!

We were able to avoid the nasty weather that swept through central Florida this afternoon for the most part, they sure need the rain here all the same!

It was great getting caught up with Joe and Jody, now I am at my mother's in Dunedin (just across the bay from Tampa), ready to visit Disney World in Orlando tomorrow, stay tuned!

Time for a Picnic!

Today was a beautiful day on the Gulf coast of Florida! We had a family picnic in Philipee Park in the north of Pinellas County along the shores of Tampa Bay.

Thirteen of us turned out to sample Joe's home-baked cheesecakes, cousin Lydia's version of "Pink stuff," Mom and Tom's baked beans and Aunt Betty's chicken! A good time was had by all and we got caught up on the news from the scattered family.

After coming home to recover from all the good food, Joe, Jody and I took a trip down memory lane by driving around some of the old haunts in Largo, FL. We really couldn't get over the changes that have taken place there, not only in the places we used to live and work, but in the schools, shopping, roads, well, you get the idea!

We are driving to Orlando tomorrow to see The Holy Land Experience, should be fun!

Friday in Holiday, FL

Today was given over to relaxation! First thing this morning, Joe and I went to play a round of golf at one of Joe's favorite area course, Magnolia Valley Golf Course in New Port Richey. We actually played well for us considering that neither of us has played much of late.

After checking in on Joe's wife, Jody (who runs a day care at home), we ran some errands and then returned to home once more to watch AC Milan beat Machester United in a Champions' League semi-final.

Tonight we went to a great BBQ place in New Port Richey, "Pit Boss BBQ" (www.pit-boss.com) If you're in the area, stop by, the tea is great! and the ribs are finger-licking good! After that, we came back to watch the movie, "Elizabethtown," a really nice story with a great cast.

Tomorrow looks to be busy with a picnic being planned in Largo in the afternoon!

From Gold Coast to Gulf Coast

Thursday was a full day - it began with a visit to the Biscayne National Park, (www.nps.gov/archive/bisc/home.htm) which is located just south of Miami. It was so fun, I even got to use a canoe for a spell, I didn't get charged for using it since I wasn't out for very long. It is a lot harder to row a canoe in that breeze than it looks!!!

After that, I drove to the Everglades National Park (www.nps.gov/ever) which is a truly fascinating place. I visited three of the visitor's centers, starting with the one near Homestead, and saw something unique at each one. There were numerous alligators, racoons, and birds of all sorts. I didn't see any of the elusive Florida panthers, though there were numerous signs posted saying they were in the area.

On the way west from Homestead, I drove along US 41, otherwise known as the Tamiami Trail. This historic road cuts along through the Everglades and is a beautiful stretch of road. I stopped at "Cooperstown," population 8, and took a tour on an air boat! It was so much fun zipping along, seeing 'gators, birds, fish, and more! The guide was really knowledgeable and made for a fun experience. I'd always wanted to do that and now I have!!! I also got to visit the USA's smallest post office, located at Ochopee, FL. This tiny outpost is a lifeline for the isolated people living in this region (www.ronnei.com/ochopee.html).

Making my way west and then north, I encountered a rather severe thunderstorm which made the driving a challenge! But fortune was with me and I was able to make the approach to Tampa Bay just as sunset was beginning. I crossed the famous Sunshine Skyway bridge (www.interstate275florida.com/ssb.htm) as the sun was begining to set which afforded me some awesome views!

I made it to my brother Joe's (and his wife, Jody) in Holiday, FL, located just north of Tampa Bay intact and we got caught up on the news. Friday is golf day for Joe and Me!

The Key to Key West

An interesting day was at hand with a full-day given over to exploring the Florida Keys. I set out this morning with nothing much of a plan other than to see Key West and what else this part of the world had to offer (www.fla-keys.com).

I made several stops along the way south, visiting a few churches that looked interesting including Saint Justin the Martyr RC Church in Key Largo (www.parishesonline.com/Scripts/HostedSites/Org.asp?ID=9015) and Burton Memorial UMC in Tavernier (www.burtonmemorialumc.com). Both have some really exciting ministries going on, so visit them if you're down that way.

I then continued on south, stopping at the Florida Keys Wild Bird Center (www.fkwbc.org) which offers respite to injured birds of all sorts, particularly pelicans and falcons. It was nice to see the support they get from the community to do this important work.

I made it at last to Key West, a place I'd always wanted to visit. I'd love to go back when Belinda can go too! After catching a bite to eat at "Red Fish, Blue Fish," where I had the best Conch Fritters ever and the shrimp po-boy was awesome too!!!

Then it was on the famous "Conch Tour Train" which took me all over the historic part of the island. Following the half-way break, I choose to follow the map and visit the sites that I had seen and wanted a bit more time to explore this fascinating place. The highlights included:

The Ernest Hemmingway House, http://www.hemingwayhome.com/ - Wow, what a great house and museum given to showcasing this important American writer. His legacy is rich indeed and his visage is seen in many corners of this place. And of course, no visit to Key West would be complete without mentioning the famous "Hemingway 6-toed cats." Yes, six toes! There are some 48 cats living the life at the house, direct descendents of house cats that Hemingway and his wife had. All of them have a least one paw with six toes and many have several six-toed paws!

The Key West Lighthouse, www.kwahs.com/lighthouse.htm - This important landmark is right across Whitehead Street from the Hemingway House and offers some awesome views of the entire island. It was worth climbing the 101 steps up the spiral staircase to get that view! And the Lighthouse Keeper's house on the grounds offered a wonderful glimpse into life in 1800's south Florida.

Key Lime Pie @ The Blond Giraffe, www.blondgiraffe.com - Well, how could I leave here without getting some pie?!?! And trust, me: walk for a bit before you stop by the Blond Giraffe, this is the absolute best key lime you'll ever be allowed to enjoy!

Other fun places to see in town: Sloppy Joe's Bar, Capt. Tony's, Jimmy Buffet's original Margarittaville restaurant, St. Paul's Episcopal Church (built in 1832), the Hog's Breath Saloon, Duval Street, Key West UMC (the "old stone" church), Kapok and Bunyan trees, stunning flowers and of course, the colorful people!

Oh, and did I mention the chickens that have free range of the city? There are chickens running around all over the place, really strange to be walking along the street of a busy city and have a rooster walk past you!

Deciding that I wanted to save the rest of Key West and the Keys for when Belinda and I could enjoy it together, I set out back up US 1 towards Miami. I did make one brief stop, just before Marathon Key, to watch the sun go down. It was so moving to watch the bright orange ball slowly melt into the Gulf of Mexico, and to think I got to see a sunset like that for free!

I ended up back in Florida City where I was last night. I enjoyed a light nosh across the street from the hotel and then settled in for the night. Come back tomorrow and see where I end up!

We Have Lift-off!

What an awesome day on Florida's Space Coast. Just about the entire day was given over to a tour of two facilities associated with the US space program. www.kennedyspacecenter.com/index.asp. After securing discount tour tickets from the hotel, it was off on an exciting day of sight-seeing!

I got a package that included a guided tour, the Astronaut Hall of Fame, and a lunch with a real astronaut!

First up was the US Astronaut Hall of Fame, a must-see for anyone who grew up watching the space race. The names and history were presented done very well and then it got really interesting. There are simulators where one can experience the effect of pulling "G's", building a rocket, and more. I even got to sit inside a Mercury rocket cone (where the people rode in on top of the rocket!) Really a great way to begin.

Then I drove to the visitor's center at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) where there is something for everyone and it looks like it is just going to get better and better. From the artifacts of the space program to real rockets and the space shuttle, it was one inspiring sight after another. The films were first-rate and I felt like a kid in a candy store as I rushed from place to place.

A highlight of the visitor's center experience of course was the lunch where I joined a lot of folks (including a huge school group) at a buffet lunch where astronaut COL. William Pouge (USAF, ret.) gave a neat talk on the effects of zero-gravity on people in space.

After that, it was time for a relaxing stroll before joining the tour of the rest of the KSC. We saw the launch pads for the shuttles, visited the Saturn V rocket center where the Apollo missions were lanched and got a first-hand look at some of the wildlife that calls this amazing place home.

Having seen and done so much, it was time to make tracks south. I ended up in Florida City (just south of Miami) because tomorrow morning I realize a dream of visiting the famous Florida Keys! Come back tomorrow night to see more!