June 17 & 18

Well, she did it!
Danielle is finished with high school and moving on to college. At first, I was not really in favor of going to Harrisburg for her graduation ceremony, but I'm glad we did. She graduated with "honors" and it was nice to see how many other families were dedicated to traveling for their children too. Congratulations Danielle I am so proud of you!

The next day, we went to Gettysburg, PA. We have been homeschooling for 11 years now, and of those 11 years we must have studied the Civil War 7 or 8 of those years. You would think that since we live in Pennsylvania we would have taken advantage of the rich history here. Gettysburg always seemed so far away! It's not really that far and it was SO worth it! The trip was made even better by the fact that Dave, Bev and Clay were able to see it with us. We spent all day Friday touring around from one historical site to the next...and still didn't see everything there was to see. I think my favorite part was the Cyclorama/ Museum at the Visitors Center. That was truly awe inspiring!

The drive home was great too! Instead of taking to turnpike, we took the scenic route... on purpose! The mountains were beautiful!!! The sun setting behind the mountains was even more beautiful! I noticed at 9:45 p.m. (no that's not a typo it was 9:45 p.m.) there was still a trace of sun off to the west lighting the sky with hues of pink, purple and blue still hanging on to the tops of the mountains. I took it all in and thanked the Lord for the opportunity to witness such an amazing view!

This morning as we step back into our daily routine I am so am thankful for what God has allowed us to have and see. I am grateful for the perspective "salvation" brings to my life. I am not sure I would have enjoyed these last few days the same without Him!

"Thank you Jesus for all you have done and continue to do in our lives!"

Texas Road Trip

Our road trip to Texas went off without a hitch. Danielle, Hannah, Aaron, Benjamin and I packed up last week headed south for Memorial Day weekend. We had a great time! Being a veteran home-schooler, I planned for this trip to be educational; I didn't let a moment go to waste!

We went to the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame, the Dr. Pepper Museum (in Waco), and Texas State Capital (in Austin). We went to the dairy where I had my first job, saw the town and house where I grew up (in Midlothian). We went to my Mom's farm in Abbott and and toured a sale barn in West, Tx. On Monday, we went to Austin to watch and cheer my brother on in a triathlon event he was in. It was crazy hot that day!

Of all the things we did on our 7 day road trip, I have to say my favorite part was the cookout at Mom's. Heather's family, Mom and the 5 of us enjoyed smoked hamburgers with corn on the cob, and potato salad. It was really nice and relaxed, the kids played and rode the quad, went fishing and played with the cats under Nana's porch.

I wish I would have blogged everyday that way I wouldn't forget anything fun that happened. Ideally, I would have blogged from my phone, that was one of the reasons I bought the Android. I tried to blog but couldn't figure it out. NOW, if Dillon would have gone with us, then he could have figured it our for me.... :)

At any rate, a great time was had by all.