3-in-1 Trip

We just returned home from three trips in one. First to Hershey, PA, then to Pittsburgh, PA, and off to Washington, D.C. It was hot and muggy, but we really enjoyed ourselves.

Hershey

We just love Jet Blue Airlines. That’s all I can say. TV’s in the back of each seat, nearly guaranteeing peace and quiet from our girls, because Nickelodeon and Disney are both shown, nice comfy leather seats, and fun mystery snacks. But you don’t want to hear about the flight, do you.

We rented the car and drove off…through the center of WDC. I became very excited when we saw the Capitol building and Washington’s Memorial from a distance. It very nearly felt surreal—as if we were in someone else’s dream. It overwhelmed me that little old me was in this monumentally—literally—historically significant place.

The drive to PA brought us some beautiful sights—not since the Carolinas have I seen so much green! We stopped at one of the great rest stops. I am serious—the rest stops in PA have Starbucks! Burger Kings! They have all kinds of small little kiosk restaurants and ice cream stores. Plus this one had an active Farmer’s Market. I got my fruit fix so wonderfully well! Ripe peaches, Yellow plums, Donut peaches with little heart-shaped pits.

We checked-in at the hotel, and unpacked, getting ready for our Dec Mom’s 10 year reunion. It promised to be small in quantity, but huge in quality.

Six moms, (Alabama Mom A wasn’t in town yet) three dads, and thirteen children and one very special guest met the next day at breakfast, then off to Chocolate World we went. The tour, the stores, the lunch…it was all good, and we liked the special little free samples we got at the end of the tour. I planned to go back before we left the town to get some gifts.

After Chocolate World we visited Hershey Gardens. Such a beautiful place. We had been warned of thunderstorms coming, and thought we’d hurry through, because this was really our only opportunity to see this part of the resort. T-storm #1 hit, and we ran for cover. Well, I ran for cover, my daughters danced in the rain. What a special and lovely thing to see—children laughing and dancing in the rain. We stayed there for a very long time, in between raindrops, and finally some of us just sat in the gazebo, chatting with other rain refugees as each t-storm began and ended.

On the way back to the hotel, we got hit by a thunderstorm cell. I’ve driven in these a few times, but for only a few minutes. This lasted about 15 minutes, and I was glad I wasn’t driving, but it was kind of scary. We made it safely to the hotel, where there was no rain, and the kids all wanted to go swimming. We made them go to dinner instead.

I got to be productive while we waited for a table. A children’s clothing shop was just a few doors down, and lots of items were on sale. My daughters’ school clothing shopping is nearly done! For less than $150, too!

That night we enjoyed a very special dinner at Macaroni Grill, where our server very kindly brought out chocolate cakes for each child and the whole restaurant staff sang Happy Birthday to them. That was a great time! The parents got a bite or two of each of those cakes and they were oh! so good!

That is certainly enough…I’ll post Hershey #2 next.