This post is a long one. Grab a cuppa...
June 24th I headed off to my sister's, who lives in Honey Brook, PA (about 30 minutes from Lancaster). I drove (not the first time); but let me tell you, it will be the LAST time. Flying from now on!!! What was usually a 14-15 hour drive, took me 18 hours. From Richmond through Washington was ridiculous! Never again! Never again! Yes, I know I could have spent the night somewhere, but it's not so easy when you have a dog with you. She's a great traveler, though! And that was one of the reasons I wanted to drive -- to bring Tasha with me and also have a car, as I planned to do some visiting and didn't want to rent one. Like I said, never again! LOL! Although coming home, I had no problems...
Anyway, on to the good stuff. I hadn't seen my sister, brother-in-law and niece in two and a half years, so it was a joyful reunion. My sister took off a few days from work, so we could spend quality time together. I won't bore you with the details, but here are some pictures to share...
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| 10th Annual Chester County Balloon Festival |
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| My niece, Morgan, and my sister, Meg. |
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Me and Dad.
My sister and I share "joint custody". *grin* I have him from October-May, she has him June-September.
I only saw him a couple days as he and my youngest brother were going to be heading off to Eugene, Oregon for 12 days to see the Olympic Tryouts. |
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| A fire pit evening in my sister's backyard. |
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| The sunsets were breathtaking! |
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| Doggie friends -- Heidi and Tasha |
I also was able to get together with many friends.
On July 6, my NJ quilty friends (whom I haven't seen for 5 years) met me at my sisters for a day planned in Lancaster. Can you say "Quilt Shop HEAVEN!" I just love Lancaster. But before we headed off, my sister had mentioned a wonderful lunching spot called Wyebrook Farm. The place was a-d-o-r-a-b-l-e and the food was amazing! If you click on the link above, you can read more about it...
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| My girfriends, Jackie, Bonnie, Adriana and me (l to r) enjoying our surroundings and our meal. |
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| Stunning views! |
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| Ambiance can't be beat! |
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| An additional eating area. |
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| Entrance (looking out) |
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| Exploring the farm. |
With our bellies full, we then headed off to Lancaster and requisite fabric shopping. We even enjoyed homemade ice cream in the village.
It was a wonderful day spent with wonderful women. I will miss them terribly until we can meet up again. :o(
On another note, the following evening I met up with a NJ high school girlfriend whom I haven't seen in 35 years...not since my elder daughter was an infant. I didn't even realize she lived so close to my sister's area until I posted about my upcoming trip on Facebook. She contacted me and we met up for dinner and reminisced. It was like the years melted away as we caught up with each other's lives.
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| Brenda and I |
The following day, I traveled to Trenton, NJ to meet up with my co-worker friends. I spent the night with one of them so I didn't have to drive the hour and a half back to my sisters afterwards (don't drink and drive!). I can't believe I've been retired for over 8 years! What a blast we had! There were probably 20-30 of us total, as some sporadically came and went during the course of the evening. If we look like we were melting in the pictures, we probably were. There was no working air conditioning at the nightclub! Crazy but we had fun anyway. :o)
I have a few pictures to share, but was too busy hugging and talking to really take any myself. Still waiting for some others to share the ones they took. ;o)
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| Bonney was my partner in crime at work. *wink* |
I was also able to meet up with my girlfriend that I'm going on Bonnie Hunter's Mediterranean Cruise with while she was touting about in her new RV. She has a brother who lives near my sister. It really is a small world we live in!
Got home safe and sound around midnight on July 11. New memories made...
Family and Friends are Forever,
Suzy
