Northern travels

I don't think I remember how to write a blog post--it's been so long! I'm back in Kansas after spending the most marvelous week in Rochester, NY. Since May I've calculated that I have flown on 13 airplanes, visited 3 countries and 6 states, and hung out with countless folks. I thought I'd sort of lay low this summer before my job starts in less than 2 weeks, but that was not to be! Now I think my travels are finally drawing to a close...

Let's see, what can I say about Kansas? Not a whole lot. I was here for a week before I went to Rochester, and will be here for another a few days before I head back east to start work. It's been over 100 for more than 2 weeks without any rain.

Now what can I say about our most recent excursion to New York? A whole lot. I was extremely glad that every single family member on my Mom's side could meet up in Rochester for a reunion and to get a family picture taken. The last time we were all together was Christmas 1996, so it's been quite a while! Our youngest cousin, Adam, was just a baby then, and now he's a 16 year-old who is almost as tall as Andrea and I am.

Here are some of the many activities we did:

-Visited Grandpa several times at the "memory care" facility where he now lives
-Walked alongside the Erie Canal at night
-Played Frisbee
-Kayaked on the Erie Canal
-Baked chocolate crinkle cookies
-Walked along Lake Ontario
-Ate ice-cream at Friendly's and Abbott's
-Celebrated Grandma and Grandpa's 60th wedding anniversary
-Went for a walk next to cornfields and a sheep farm
-Sat on the porch in the cooler weather
-Drove to Niagara Falls and Crystal Beach in Ontario, Canada
-Waded into Lake Erie
-Laughed a lot
-Met two of Mom's cousins
-Visited L.L. Bean
-Went to Starbucks in a 160 year-old cobblestone house

Overall it was a blessed time, and a great way to end the majority of my summer travels.

Lake Ontario.

Niagara Falls.