PA/NY Road Trip

We're back! We had a good trip, nice visits, and only a few times when both kids were screaming in the back seat :) Here is the summary. Since there were so many pictures, I opted for the smaller size, but you can click on them to see them full size.

Monday, June 23: Left Baltimore at 9:45, arrived in State College at 1:00. Our first friend to visit was Bethany, who Tracy has known since before elementary school, although Ainsleigh says she is HER friend because she will make fishy faces upon request. First we walked down College Ave, got the kids some new Penn State t-shirts, walked around Old Main, and then headed off for the Creamery. We haven't been since it moved to its new locale. Ainsleigh was introduced to peanut butter swirl ice cream, and ate most of our cone.
Thanks to Bethany & James for sleeping in the family room so we could all stay in the bedroom!

Tuesday, June 24: After a slow morning, in which Bethany read every one of Ainsleigh's books while Tracy tried to re-pack the car, it was off to the Lion Shrine. Ainsleigh was very excited to see the Nittany Lion, Aunt April (Tracy's friend from PSU), and her son Logan. Apparently all that giraffee feeding has made an impact, because Ainsleigh went and got a branch and said she was going to feed the Lion!

Next we headed over with April to see Marcia and Judi (our mentor teachers from our internships). We went for a picnic at Sunset Park, which had a great playground for Ainsleigh and Logan. Here is Judi pushing Ainsleigh on the swings, Logan adjusting the controls on the fire truck, and Marcia and her dog Meika.

Then April and Tracy and the kids headed over to Shaver's Creek. Logan and Ainsleigh checked out some things through the magnifying lens as well as the amphibians and reptiles. Then we headed outside to see the raptor center. Logan and Ainsleigh did some good owl sounds, and Ainsleigh said the horned owls looked angry. Here is her angry owl impersonation (click for full size to see her facial expression).

After that Tracy and the kids headed to Bellefonte to see the Hanscoms. Ainsleigh got Celie to bounce her up and down (over and over and over) on a big excercise ball, and Celie showed Ainsleigh her first Veggie Tales. Finally, after all of this, we drove to Williamsport and went to sleep.

Wednesday, June 25: In Williamsport we visited Tracy and Jeremy Knoebel (friends from PSU). Here are pictures of Ainsleigh with Brynn (2 years old...5 months younger than Ainsleigh). Ripken and Elyse (4 1/2 months) (and Flash...dog #2) were there, too. Today we went to the library, park, colored, jumped on the bed, and went in the kiddie pool in the backyard. We had no idea they had the same swim suit!

Thursday, June 26: Today we went with Tracy, Jer, and the 4 kids to Knoebel's Ammusement Park. It has an interesting set-up, in that admission is free and then you pay per ride. It was also nice because there are lots of trees and shade. We had a lot of fun! They had lots of great kiddie rides for Ainsleigh and Brynn. Ainsleigh, of course, liked all the fast, spinny rides (thanks to Jer for braving the tea-cups right after lunch).

By far the best ride was the Kiddie-Whip, which is simply an oval that the cars go around, but they really fling around the two tight curves. The girls were squealing the whole time. I have a video of this that Tracy and Jer took, but I can't get it to upload. I'll keep trying. Here are the still shots:


Friday, June 27: We finally got a picture with all 4 kids! Here is Ainsleigh, Elyse, Brynn, and Ripken. We packed up again and headed north to Canton, PA to see April and Logan a little more (and Tener...dog #3). Ainsleigh got her first painting lesson from April. Then we were off again for Rochester, NY. Tracy's luck driving-without-stopping finally came to an end as Ripken demanded that he needed a break when we were still an hour away. So we were a little late getting to Fairport to Tracy's Mom's house for dinner with Grandma and the O'Connors (Tracy's Aunt Lorrie, Uncle Tom, and cousin TJ). Lorrie got Ainsleigh a big beach ball, so that had to be in the picture, too.

Saturday, June 28: Today we went to the Strong National Museum of Play with Grandma. Unfortunately, Ainsleigh was pretty tired from a late night and long week, so she didn't last super long. Plus it is just so big we only saw about 1/3 of the museum. They have a Sesame Street exhibit, where Ainsleigh was on TV with Abby and drove Cookie in the cab. Of course, they also had a mini-Wegmans where the kids could go shopping, scan their items, and print their receipts. Check out the tongue as she pushes her cart.

After a much-needed nap, we went down the street to Perinton Park where Ainsleigh played and fed the ducks on the Canal. Ripken was having a good time, too.

Sunday, June 29: Today we spent the afternoon at the Jansson's house (Austin's oldest brother Karl-Erik, wife KayLee, and children Erik, Morgan, Carter, and Kara). Ainsleigh liked playing with her cousins, and playing with Erik's whale and shark toys, which she played with at (and has talked about since) Thanksgiving. K-E got a picture of all the kids, which I'll post once I get it.

Monday, June 30: We went to the beach in Charlotte along Lake Ontario. Ainsleigh liked digging in the sand, but we couldn't go in the water because the bacteria levels were too high. We walked out to the end of the pier before nearly getting caught in a thunderstorm.
Post-nap we went to the Perinton Community Center, which has an amazing aquatics center (yes, that's a full-sized water slide!). They have a fun toddler area, with a frog water slide that you slide down the tongue. There is also a channel with a current where Ainsleigh floated on some noodles while Grandma pulled her around and around.

Tuesday, July 1: One last picture with Grandma before heading back to Baltimore. Unfortunately we ran out of time for Wegmans and Abbots, so we will need to do both of those on the next trip. On the way home we stopped in Williamsport, and from there made it the rest of the way back (although Ripken was howling fairly loudly the last few miles). Thanks to everyone for making time to visit with us! It was great to see so many friends and family members, and especially to have you meet Ripken and see Ainsleigh!