The Book Exchange and the Trolley Museum

On Thursday, we found a really neat used book store in Washington, PA. The owner, Jarrod Brooks, could not have been move helpful. He gave us a tour of his shop and introduced us to his two kids, his daughter who will be 3 in June and his son, who will be 5 on August 4. He and his wife have decided that it is very important to be as present as possible in their children's life and thus, his kids go to work with him. He asked about our travels and gave us some tips on places to visit when we get to Michigan and Wisconsin. Jarrod, we wish you the best in your new business and applaud you as a father. On Friday, we traveled to the Trolley Museum for a tour of this form of transportation from the past. There was a film and lots of photographs. Did you know that the first successful trolley system was in our own Richmond, Virginia?
This is Jack. He was our motorman when we took our ride on the trolley. He told us he had worked on the railroad as a teenager/young adult. So when he retired, he felt it was just natural to give of his time to the trolley museum. He was so enthusiastic and such an interesting person. He really made our visit special.
This first picture is a car that works on the rails. These other trolleys have been lovingly restored by a dedicated group of volunteers, yes volunteers. These folks love what they do and they give of their time to work on these old cars.



This car is under restoration at the present time. They hope to get it on the rails by this fall.
Well, tomorrow we are going to the Meadowcroft Rockshelter and Museum of Rural Life. Should be interesting. Then we plan to attend a baseball game of the Washington Wild Things. More later from your Happy Travelers.

Traveling to Washington, PA

We left Gettysburg, PA this morning, drove south to Maryland, up to PA, over to West Virginia and back into PA. The day was beautiful. We were in and out of the clouds, up as high as 2,880 feet. I took these pictures through the windshield at 60 miles per hour. The vistas got bigger and bigger. Beautiful. We will start exploring tomorrow. We are about 25 miles from Pittsburgh but Washington has some things to offer as well.


Take care my dear friends from your Happy Travelers.

Gettysburg Battlefield Auto Audio Tour

Gettysburg is a pretty special place. It is mindboggling to think about the pain and suffering that occurred in this 3 day battle, especially looking out now on the beautiful countryside. Everywhere you look, there are monuments and cannon, markers and statues. The park service is planting fruit trees to make this area look more like it did during the Gettysburg Campaign. We purchased a CD and guidebook and did an auto tour since we did the bus tour last time. Got lost a couple of times but had a wonderful experience that we would recommend.
These observation towers are in several places throughout the battlefield area. Neat!!
Couldn't help but take a couple of pics of this old beauty. I am not much of a car person but these old ones grab at my heart. It's an old plymouth. I had to take a look at the logo to make sure but isn't it something else?

This is the Pennsylvania Monument, the biggest and most expensive one in the park. But more of the Army of the Potomac was from Pennsylvania than anywhere else.
For you folks who like to ride horses, like my sister-in-law, Gloria, you can visit the battlefields by horse. It was a beautiful day on Thursday and again on Monday when we finished our tour (did it in two parts, not that it lasted that long!)
This is the Virginia Monument, featuring Robert E. Lee at the top. It sits in an area where Lee watched the last two days of battles- July 2 and 3, 1863.
I just can't get enough of the surrounding areas. It is just beautiful to look to the west and see the mountains and countryside.


Tomorrow we are off to Washington, PA, just outside Pittsburgh. We'll be at the KOA over the Memorial Day Weekend and then on to Ohio. More later from your Very Happy Travelers.

Bird in Hand and Baseball

On Friday, we drove to Bird in Hand to check out the Farmers' Market and the charming shops in the heart of Amish Country. We saw a variety of horse drawn vehicles, farmers in the field with mules and horses, cutting hay and plowing. The farms were the most manicured landscape I have ever seen. After days of rain, everyone had decided to do laundry. We saw clothes lines rigged from a back porch to the barn full of clothing on a pulley system. Every Amish home had one. All the farms had wonderful gardens and beautiful flowers. We ended our day by driving down to New Market, MD for dinner with our kids and grandkids








Saturday, we drove down to Fredrick, MD to see J.T. play ball. He played second base and very well, I may say. We were really proud of him not only how he played but his sportsmanship. He is 10 years old and will have a birthday next month.


More later from your Happy Travelers.

Day 2 and Day 3 Gettysburg

Day 2 and 3 were wet, cold and generally washouts, but we did get a visit from Rob, J.T., Sami and their two fur balls, Chewie and Josie. The rest of the pics are snapshots of the campground that I took between raindrops. But being out and about is still a wonderful experience.

The Beginning

Our adventure started this morning at 9:36 a.m. We got on the road and traveled to Pennsylvania in a steady downpour. But there was sunshine in our hearts. We are very excited about exploring another part of America. We are going to Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota, as well as into Canada. Travel with us, will you.
Before we left, we got to celebrate a couple of birthdays for two of our 5 grandchildren. What a fun cake...good old Sponge Bob.
My Zackary will be 5 on May 20. He definitely has stolen my heart. Gives me the best kisses ----all over my face, neck, eyes, nose, ears, forehead, cheeks...love it!
Our Cooper was 2 on May 1st. What a package of joy.
We had the opportunity to have brunch with my dear brother and his wife, as well as their two little balls of fur, Nina and Lexi. What cuties! Well friends, we hit the road tomorrow to see what we can see. More later from your very happy travelers. Know that we carry all of you in our hearts and prayers

Frankfort, KY

We took a tour of the Capital Building in Frankfort, KY. There were lots of statutes..lots of marble...a lovely old building with an impressive garden from the front steps.

We took a walk in Frankfort, KY---we parked at the Visitors Center and walked to the Capital Building---about 5 blocks and after the tour of the Capital, walked back but one street over. I took about 40 pictures of the lovely homes that had been restored or refurbished. There were a variety of styles---Victorian...Mission...bungalows---more pictures than you would want to see on a blog.




This home is on the National Registry. The Reverend that had it built met Frank Lloyd Wright on a cruise in 1912. He came home, hired a builder and had this home constructed in what is known as the Prairie Style. The second shot is of the side of the house and the porch areas. It actually looks pretty modern in comparison to the homes in the area.
The Happy Travelers received some very sad news...Grandpa Holt fell and will be having surgery so it is imperative that we hurry home. This will be our last blog until next spring when hopefully, we will be on the road again. There is so much to see....so many people to meet...Enjoy and may God bless each of you as He has so graciously blessed us.