Hilton Head Island Day 7

Well today is unfortunately our last day...and of course the weather is amazing!
We decided to do some bike riding. There are miles and miles of bike paths on Hilton Head... No gears required. Everything is flat, so an easy ride all day.
We headed off around 10:30am and made our way down to Harbour Town. We walked around for a while saw the million dollar boats, the kids played on the playground too. After that we got back on the bikes and headed off to South Beach. We had lunch at the famous Salty Dog.
Our ride back was an easy one, straight along the beach back to the hotel.
The weather was perfect today, we changed and headed back to the beach and pool.
Tonight we ate leftovers, and I packed!

Hilton Head Island Day 6

Finally, the weather has cleared. A simple day today... Going to the beach and the pool.
Monarch butterflies are migrating this time of year, therefore they are everywhere.

Hilton Head Island Day 5

Weather is still not cooperating but at least it didn't rain!
The kids wanted to go to the beach. So off we went. It wasn't exactly swimming weather but when you're 8 and 10 who cares about the temperature.
Shaina and Hunter packed up their boogie boards, buckets and shovels and off we headed.
You weren't going to catch me in the water but off they went. As I sat and watched I looked down along the beach and noticed what I thought was pending rain. I looked a little more to find no-one running for cover... What was in the distance? Mist? No... But thick FOG!
It slowly made it's way up the beach, until we were submerged in dense fog.
The kids kept swimming and playing in the sand. Eventually it got so thick that the temperature dropped so much that we headed back to the hotel and nearest hot tub.
Some more chess was on the cards. And some indoor swimming.
Other than that, that was our day.
Dave and I went out to dinner again.
Fingers crossed for better weather tomorrow.

Hilton Head Island Day 4

Weather is easing today. Rather than going to see another movie, some sightseeing was on the agenda.
We headed off this morning to Beaufort, SC. Once a bustling tourist town and one of the richest towns in America's hay day. It has sucummed to the hard times of todays economy. Many of the once busy tourist shops are now closed and empty. A sad sight to see. A town with a significant historic value is now a ghost town. We did a horse-drawn carriage tour. Very interesting to hear about the history and wealth of the era gone by, but with today's economy many of the homes that were valued over a million dollars aren't even worth half these days. If things don't pick up, I can see this town dropping off the map!
After the carriage tour there really wasn't much left to do. So we decided to head back to Hilton Head for lunch and see what the weather had installed for us.
Cloudy, but warm. We had lunch and headed down stairs for some serious competitive chess.
I was not up to caliber, and had to suffer listening to Dave think that he was more awesome than he really is!

Hilton Head Island Day 3

A fairly uneventful day today. Still pissing down with rain! A good day for a sleep in.
We did manage to get out and see a movie. Money Ball, starring Brad Pitt. Very good even if you're not a baseball fan. Two thumbs up from us. It was rated pg13... Was ok for Shaina, but a bit above Hunter's head. If it is crappy tomorrow we may go see his choice of Dolphin Tale.
We had a sitter again tonight, so Dave and I went out to dinner at one of our favourite island haunts, CQ's. Yummy soups and salads followed by slow roasted short ribs and a trio of cheesecakes for desert.
Tomorrow's forecast is looking better, so hopefully some beach time is in the near future.

Hilton Head Island Day 2

After a few laps of the pool, our room was ready.
Today Dave and I had golf planned. We had organized a sitter (Joyce) whom we've used for years. (ex-school teacher, now retired). She arrived at noon, organized the kids with lunch and activities to keep them occupied for the afternoon. And we headed off. We played at Old South, which is just off the island in Bluffton, SC. Started off well, then the skies opened and down came some serious rain. We couldn't stop laughing, we looked like drowned rats, after only 9 holes we threw in a very wet towel and headed back to the hotel.
The kids still managed to have a great day, playing life sized chess, swimming in the indoor pool and building some sand castles on the beach. They didn't get the heavy down pours that we did.
Hopefully some better weather tomorrow!

Hilton Head Island 2011

Yes, another trip back to Hilton Head Island in South Carolina. This year instead of flying (with free tickets-we have none!) We drove! Stayed last night in Ashville, North Carolina after an 11 hour drive. Today we drove 5 hours into Hilton Head.
Our room isn't ready yet, so the kids are doing swim races in the pool!

The First Day of School 2011/12

The day had finally has a arrived!
Shaina entering grade 4 and Hunter grade 2.
We had a nice morning, so we decided to walked to school. Found our teachers and talked to friends we hadn't seen for 3 months!
All went well, they enjoyed their first day...
I cleaned the house and finished off the piles of laundry that had accumulated in the spare room!
A quiet day!
Then they came home!

Last Weekend School Holidays

Every year The Village (council) of South Elgin hosts Riverfest the last weekend before school goes back for its new year.
I decided to take the day off, considering the Air and Water Show was being held in downtown Chicago and Riverfest was also on, I figured that work would be slow.
Dave and I took the kids for the afternoon down to the river to ride the amusement park rides. Hunter usually rides the quieter rides rather than the roller coasters, but to ours and Shaina's amazement he surprised us all and did all the rides! Without getting ill.
Above are some photo's of the day.
(he still went on the kiddie merry go round!)

The Last Days of Summer School Holidays

One week to go and this years summer holidays will be over.
We hadn't been downtown Chicago at all this summer.
This time we thought we would do something different. Today we went to the Museum of Science and Industry. One exhibit called Body Worlds, which shows the human body and all its organs without skin. Including the lungs, liver, kidneys, heart, skeletal system and everything else. Hunter, I discovered was not built to see this in quite such detail! He almost lost his breakfast. He sat and rested for a few minutes to regain his colour, then we had to leave and try another exhibit.
Next was trains! Right up his alley! We spent longer there than I would prefer, but he enjoyed that much better.
Then onto a submarine exhibit U505, a German sub captured in WW2. Very interesting.
Next was lunch and then the remainder of the day wandering around Millennium Park. We caught the train downtown, so the ride back gives me the chance to update this blog!

The end of Thornwood Thunder Swim Team for 2011

Last night was the final meet of the season. A hot humid night, with lots of excited swimmers.
Shaina and Hunter competed in 3 events each (the night was all team relays).
Somewhere between 300 and 400 swimmers competed.
Shaina managed a 7th place in the 100 Freestyle Medley.
Hunter received his first 1st place ribbon in the 100 Breaststoke Medley.
I also competed in the parent 100 Freestyle Medley! I don't think I have done a competitive dive since I was 15! So I imagine I looked pretty awful diving in. The swim part was fine... I think we came in 3rd.
There are still some pretty serious swimmers out there!

We had our end of season banquet on Tuesday night at the pool. Lots a pizza, chips, biscuits (cookies) and lollies (candy). Dave and I snuck in some rum to add to our Coke's... Apparently we weren't the only ones! A fun night had by all, and looking forward to next season 2012!

RV Trip Over :(

We are back!
Up early again and on the road by 8am.
Arrived back in Chicago just after lunch. Unpacked and cleaned the RV in rediculous temperatures! I almost melted!
Made it to the swim meet on time. The kids swam in between events and everyone else watching just sweated!

Day 11, RV Trip

Another early start today. The kids and I now look like a Nascar Pit Crew when we are setting up and packing up... In less than 15 minutes we are road ready!
We headed for Toledo, Ohio today. Another hot drive. We stopped for a quick lunch break, then off again.
We arrived around 2:30pm after a 7 hour drive. Set up the RV and headed to the pool!
Tomorrow is just a short 5 hour drive... We need to make it back in time for a swim comp (meet).

Day 10, RV Trip

The Drive Home!
We hit the road fairly early today, around 8:15am. It was going to be a toasty one. As you know we had no airconditioning on the big drive east, so that needed to be fixed. A friend from camp (a mechanic) had a look at the engine and concluded that the pump was still functioning, the problem must be low freon. I decided to tackle the problem myself. After making numerous calls to auto repair centres with no one able to fit me in. I decided "screw it" I'll fix it myself! Off to Napa Auto Parts to buy tubing and a can of freon. I opened the bonnet (hood) in the carpark (parking lot) hooked up the hose and ta-da! I have cold air!
So the drive today was more pleasant than it otherwise would have been.
We are spending the night in Bath, NY. Heading out early tomorrow for Toledo, Ohio.

Day 9, RV Trip

We are spending 2 nights in Randolph Center, so today was just a day for the last of the sightseeing before the big drive back west.
Today started with a 15 minute drive up the road, on the "smallest dirt road in the world"... I found myself having to backup AGAIN because a petrol (gas) truck was coming the other way... All went well. Just a mile down the road was Fat Toad Goat Farm... And yummy goat cheese.... Yes we bought some!
Also in the area was Neighbourly Dairy Farm. We caught them on a cheese making day. It was very interesting, and yes we bought more cheese!
After the cheese extravaganza, we hit the road again for a half hour drive to Quechee Gorge.
The pictures say it all...

Day 8, RV Trip

We said our goodbyes to everyone from camp. Fed the pigs and chickens for the last time and headed off again.
Today we went to the famous Ben and Jerry's Ice-cream Factory. Did a tour that ended with a tasting of their current flavour. Yum! We wandered around the property and saw the graveyard of flavours gone by and no longer. Kids did some arts and crafts, then it was time to move on.
Up next, we visited Bragg Maple Syrup Farm. Watched a short video, learned that you can only get maple syrup sap from the Sugar Maple Tree for only 6 weeks of the year from late February through to early March. We had a tasting and of course bought some syrup!
After another full day of sightseeing we headed to our next campground in nearby Randolph Center. I did some much needed laundry and the kids swam in the campground lake (dam!).

Day 7, RV Trip

There was about a dozen of us that made the trip back to camp, some as far away as Washington State and Florida. Some still live in nearby towns and Rich still lives on the same road, a mile from camp... We all camped at his place.
One of his neighbours was away for the weekend so the kids had the opportunity to feed their chickens, pigs and sheep.
We all had farm fresh eggs for breakfast!
We spent the morning walking around the old camp, it hasn't been used in 3 years, the Girl Scouts are looking to sell it. It was pretty run down and some of the cabins had been burned to the ground! For the most part it still looked the same. I showed the kids where I used to stay... It was called the Lodge. Calvin Coolidge used it as his summer home during his presidency. It still looks the same. We all swam in the lake where I used to teach and life guard.
After lunch we drove to Caspian Lake, had some ice-cream. The kids swam again! After cooling off, we headed on a hike around part of the lake.
That night we had a campfire, cooked like the early settlers, sat under a clear sky with a full moon and told stories.

Day 6, RV Trip

It has been a few days since my last update. We have been out in the wilderness away from civilization and mobile (cell) phone service!

Day 6: We left Lake George around 11am for the short drive (4 hrs) to Hardwick, VT. This is where it all started for me way back in 1994 as a camp counselor (swim teacher) at the Wapanaki Girl Scout Camp!

It was an easy drive, so we decided to take a diversion an hour south and visit the Lincoln Family Home called Hildene, located in Manchester, Vermont.
It was home to Robert Todd Lincoln, the only child of Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln to survive to adulthood.
It is a very beautiful home and is now owned by the non-profit organization, Friends of Hildene. There are no living descendants of the Lincoln family.
After some sightseeing we hit the road for a 3 hour drive to camp.

Day 5, RV Trip

On our trip to Walmart yesterday we purchased a toaster for $6, what a bargain! So today we had a sleep in and enjoyed a very tasty breakfast, something to sustain us on our day of bike riding.
We got our bikes ready, put air in the tires and headed on a 3 mile (5k) ride to the quaint town of Lake George. Once in town we went on a ride on a paddle steamer called the Minnie-Ha-Ha, built in 1815.
We went on an hour ride, saw the million dollar homes on the lake front and saw where the book The Last of the Mohicans was based.
After that we toured Fort William Henry, learned about the battles between the French, English and of course the Indians!
Then it was time to have lunch. We ate at The Best View Cafe, which it was! But could have also been named The Most Pathetic Food in Town! Oh well!
Hunter was desperate to play a round of minnie golf that we rode by on the way into town. So we did. We discovered that it was GREAT! It was called Golf Around the World and Golf Around the USA. I soon discovered that it has been rated in the top 10 minnie golf courses in the country and featured on the travel channel.
It became time to head back to camp. Most of the ride to town was down hill, so guess what! The ride back was up hill.
Made it back in a timely manor, pretty tired. Had dinner and were all in bed by 9:15.
Tomorrow we head to Hardwick, VT.

Day 4, RV Trip

An early rise today, hit the road at around 8:30am and headed for the USA border. By some miracle we passed through immigration in under 10 minutes and headed on our way to Lake George, NY. It was an easy 7 hour drive that included a gas stop and a lunch stop.
We arrived at Lake George RV Park at around 3pm. Before checking in we headed down to the local Walmart to stock up on a few supplies and witness the usual scary Walmart shoppers! Always a treat to see who has crawled out from under their rock!
The RV park is the Ritz Carlton of the rv world. Words can really not explain. It has 5 swimming pools, 2 movie theaters, game rooms, tennis courts, baseball fields and miles of bike tacks.
We are spending 2 nights here. Tomorrow we will bike ride to the lake!

Day 3, RV Trip

Niagara Falls! Amazing!
The previous night I had a knock around 6pm on my RV door. A man in a shirt and tie offering tickets for an all day Niagara Tour. "On Sale" I was rather sceptical, originally priced at $140 per adult, children under 12 Free! He was offering $80, but if I agreed straight away I would pay only $60, so I figured why not...
Next morning we were to meet the tour bus at 9am. 9:10 rolled around and I figured I'd been ripped off... But at 9:15 our chariot arrived! We headed down to Niagara Falls to ride "The Maid of the Mist". We had a great and long day. 9am-6pm. Well worth the $60 for the 3 of us!
We walked around the town of Niagara, toured Mt. Carmel Monastery, tasted wine at Joseph Winery, had lunch in the beautiful town of Niagara On The Lake, toured Fort George and visited a chocolate factory. Not bad for $60!
Tomorrow we head to Lake George, New York.