So the fam and I packed a picnic lunch at went top Jake's Rocks this Monday. Had always wanted to go, so we enjoyed our day off with the kids, the dogs (we're dogsitting one extra) and some food.

I was disappointed that there wasn't much information about the site, or how to find the rocks on the internet. I always like to get an idea where I'm headed before I even get in the car, so we went off with just a little bit of an idea where they were (near the Kinzua Dam).

We saw a sign off of the highway telling us where to turn, and then one small one at the entrance to the picnic area, but for the most part, it was not easy to find where the rocks were. We noticed a trail off to the side, and so we figured we'd take it to see where it went.

The picnic area was deserted. It hadn't been maintained, though nothing appeared to be damaged. The restrooms, however were closed for the season, so it was a little tough on the kids. (We had to find trees.)

Penny ate a mud pie, and got a mud mustache. We also discovered that spendng $8 on an over the nose collar was worth every cent. Walking Penny went from a nightmare to a pleasure.

Even Roscoe got in on the fun.

When we reached the overlook, we were amazed at the view, and the kids were excited about the "cave".

The rocks were huge, and beautiful.

The boys climbed up the last rock we visited like spidermen... Abe got scared. I had to promise him ice cream to get him to come down.

We had a blast. The hike wasn't strenuous, but it was challenging enough to make it a good time for the whole family, without wearing everyone out.

Took the wife and kids down by the Allegheny behind Mom and Dad's in Roulette. The water was cold and clear, the gravel was damp, and the smell of fish was strong, but the snow was almost all melted, and spring is near. Soon the banks will be filled with fishermen hoping for that prize trout.

Easter is an extra special holiday for us. I'll blog about why it's so special to us sometime, but in the meantime, I'll just post some pictures from our Easter morning and trip to Roulette.

Click this picture to see a slideshow of images around Bradford, PA.

I went to the South Bradford Fruit Market last night to pick up some fresh fruit.
It's one of my favorite spots in Bradford.

The smells of fruits and vegetables, the colors, the texture of the crates and the plastic grass carpet on the fruit stands... it just feels amazing to me when I go there.

I always talk my wife into buying some concord grapes, and on the way back to the car I pop them in my mouth, and squeeze out the green insides with my tongue. I'm a seed eater, so i crunch into the seeds once the rest of the grapes are gone.











Then I took my family out to Perkins. The kids buckled down and finished school early in the day, so I wanted to reward them for their hard work. Wednesday and Saturday nights is "Kids Eat Free" day... actually, it's one free kid per adult, so two of our kids ate for free, but it's still a good deal.

As usual, the kids enjoyed the menu tailor made for them. Perkins has some special kids soda, which is made from blue or red syrup... This particular visit, though, the proportions between their syrup and carbonation was a bit off... The drink TASTED great, but was very very sweet. (I have no complaints... neither did the kids.

As my two year old started drinking her soda, I think the extra boost of sugar skipped her digestive track and went straight to her brain. Her eyes glazed over with the equivalent power of heroine to her little body, and excitement started boiling within.

When her pancakes came, with rainbow sprinkes (made with sugar) and Maple Syrup (also made with sugar), she gulped them down with delight.

Surprisingly, despite the high caloric content from the sugar, and the obvious energy rolling up beneath her skin, she was very polite and well behaved, along with the rest of my brood.

And then one of those moments that every parent dreamed of happens. A gentleman stooped down near my wife and I on his way out of the restaurant, and whispered in our ears:
"You two have such a lovely family."

And it made it all worthwhile.



Shiloh, sugared up and full of spunk!

Labels: bradford, fruit market, pancakes, perkins

The kids have been in school for a week now, and I'm just now getting around to posting the pictures up.

Abrahm is starting Kindergarten this year, and the twins are starting third grade.

The kids attend public school at home through Pennsylvania Virtual Charter School. If you want to know more about their school, check out this video.

Labels: homeschool, kids, PAVCS

I went to a Church Leadership Seminar in New York at the Journey Church of the City (which meets in a hotel conference room on the weekends. We met in their studio office space in Manhattan.)

The conference was great, and I learned a lot. I snapped some photos on the train and around town. Hope you like.


We stayed at the Peekskill Inn outside town. Nothing Spectacular, but they had wi-fi, and a hot shower, and the bed didn't smell like cigarrettes, so it was good enough for me. The view overlooking the Hudson was gorgeous.

Then we took the commuter train into the city. I was amazed at how much money and time people spend commuting into the city everyday to work.


At the train station, I noticed the speakers had spiny things on them... After some investigation, I discovered that the spines keep the local pigeons from making nests there.












We finished up the 45 minute commuter ride at Grand Central Station, and rushed through the tunnels to get to the next subway trains.


We also saw a lot of street musicians playing tunes in the subway. My favorite was this group of guys.




















Another thing that caught my eye was a lack of parking, and this contraption designed to stack cars into a limited space. I don't ever want to hear folks in Bradford griping about a parking shortage until they try to park in one of these babies!

Labels: NYC, photos, pictorial

15 year old Ariel Campbell of Bradford snapped these great winter pics and sent them to us of the Valentine's Day 2007 Blizzard

























It looks like Ariel and her brother Gage have gone a little crazy from being cooped up in this weather!

Labels: pictorial, snow

It's January, and it's below zero outside. I thought it appropriate to drag out some summer time photos to reminisce a bit.

This July, the Hatcher's and the Lowman's went on vacation together. The Lowman's have been close friends of ours for years, and they are like family to us. We got a hold of some free tickets to Midway Park on Chataqua Lake in NY State, and we had to buy an extra ticket or two so that there were enough for both families.

We thought it would be a lot of fun to camp together, and we knew there was a park just down the road from Midway Park. So after a google search, we called and reserved a camping site.

After loading up an insane amount of items into the Blue Bomber, we met up with the Lowman's, and hit the road.

We made our way to Longpoint, only to discover they have no camping area!!! There are THREE Longpoint State Parks in New York State, and only one of them has camping. That's Longpoint at the Thousand Islands, which is where our phone reservations went.

The park director was kind enough to make a phone call, and offered to switch our reservations to Allegany State Park, or Lake Erie State Park.

"Bucky" Phillips was on the loose in the park at that time, so we thought it best to drive North a half an hour to Lake Erie State Park.

It was HOT. Well up into the 90's. We went swimming in the lake, which was not quite as fun as the pictures look. The beach had no sand, but sharp rocks. The kids were not allowed to swim with their "floaties" because they were not "Coast Guard Approved," and there were a dozen rude kids from the inner city swimming at the park as a part of some program.

The kids had fun, because to them, it was the beach.

We set up our tents, and instantly, the bottom fell out of the sky. It rained so hard, I thought Lake Erie was going to drown.

We had snagged a site with electricity, so we were able to keep fans going in our tents, to keep the cool air moving.

Despite the rain, Chris and Missy cooked a lovely dinner. They barbecued Chicken strips with some kind of carribean sauce, and it tasted like heaven.

Even though it rained enough to float a boat, neither tent leaked at all. We were completely dry and cool and comfortable all night long.

The sun came out the next morning, and dried things up all lovely and nice, so we were able to pack up quickly, and without mildew.

We headed out to one of my absolute favorite places, Midway Park.
There are a million things I love about Midway, the price is affordable, and though the rides are very simple, and best suited for younger kids, my family always has a blast.

The food is affordable, but even if you can't fork over cash, there is a great picnic area, and it's not fenced off and hard to get to like they are at those larger parks.

There is an old fashioned arcade, with Pac Man, skee ball, tickets and candy and plastic toys. The kids love it, and I love that I can spend ten dollars for a couple hours of entertainment, and the kids have something to take home with them.

We ate lunch at the picnic area. For some reason, the hornets were out in full strength. Chris (the strange bird he is) caught one and used a bread tie to cut off it's head. He was amazed at how long the stinger kept pumping after the bee was dead.

Again, it was one of those trips that cost us very little, and built memories that will resonate for the rest of my life, and it allowed us to feel like a family.

Labels: amusement park, camping, chatauqua lake, lake erie, picnic