Washington D.C.

Here we are standing between the Washington Monument and Lincoln Monument.

We visited our nation's capitol in late October, 2009. We were in awe of the magnificent buildings and monuments - and didn't have nearly enough time to see all that we wanted.We toured 4 of the Smithsonian museums - entrance is free, but parking is not - and that was a hassle. The museums are great - and we can't wait to get a chance to go back.

We took a guided tour of the Library of Congress. A truly magnificent building - and I hardly saw any actual books inside! We couldn't go in the reading rooms!

GOD BLESS AMERICA - the LAND OF THE FREE!

New York City ! ! ! !

Our first trip turned out to be a cloudy day - but we enjoyed the train ride down from Poughkeepsie to Grand Central Station. Then we rode a city bus down to Battery Park. After 2 security checks, we were allowed aboard the ferry that took us to Liberty Island. There she is...We walked around the base, then inside the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty. It was quite a view of Manhattan from just the pedestal balcony.On our second visit to "the city". We met up with our friends from Kansas, the Hanson family. We toured Central Park, and the Natural History Museum. There are a lot of bones in that place!! Then a subway ride over to the Astor Theater for a matinee performance of the Blue Man Group. It exceeded our expectations - we were thoroughly entertained!!

After that - a trip to Times Square and then to a famous Pizza place.

If I weren't such a country girl, I'd move here. :-)

We made it to the BIG APPLE!

Made it to Maine

One Saturday we headed out in the car from Windsor, New Hampshire and drove all the way to the Atlantic coast in the state of Maine. Sounds far - but it was just over an hour's drive.
Below is the Nubble Lighthouse.

A little too chilly to swim - but warm enough to enjoy a walk along the beach in Maine.

As we drove through Ogunquit, Maine, we saw this beautiful stone library. Just had to take a picture.

Niagara Falls

The Prowell family had a fantastic time exploring the Niagara Falls area. We are so glad we could make it up there for a few days of R&R before heading to the next work project.

Exploring around Pittsburgh

From Mt. Chestnut outside of Butler, we drove 30 miles to downtown Pittsburgh, PA. There we spent time on the campus of University of Pittsburgh. Here is the Carnegie Library. It's just part of a massive structure also housing a history museum and art gallery.Here is the impressive Cathedral of Learning. Tallest schoolroom in the world. It looks like a medieval castle inside and around the perimeter are rooms depicting education in other countries around the world. This was awesome.

For fun one weekend, we attended the Butler Farm Show with Dr. Steve and Glenda Dillman. We looked at all the farm animals, tractors, and rode some rides.

Visiting Cade & Vicki in Ohio

After we left Indiana, we drove through Columbus, OH and to Cade & Vicki's house on the East side of town. We had a great weekend together. One day we drove downtown to visit the sights. First we visited a huge book store called The Book Loft. Room after room on several floors - we got lost for hours.
Then down by the river to see a replica of The Santa Maria. Legend has it that Christopher Columbus got this far inland - so they named the city after him. I'm skeptical about thatBack home, Cade gave Emma some archery pointers in the back yard. You should have seen their awesome garden, too!

Trip to Downtown Indianapolis

One Friday in July, Emma and I drove to downtown Indianapolis and had some fun. Here is the war memorial that is the centerpiece. It is a masterpiece.

On the circle around the monument sits one of the oldest churches in the city. We went inside and heard the noontime pipe organ recital.

There is an amazing glass structure called Artsgarden that connects the shopping mall to an office building and hotel.We went to the food court and ordered sandwiches at Chick Fil A - then went to the Artsgarden to eat -with traffic driving right beneath on the city street.While we ate, a jazz ensemble entertained us - isn't this a cool stage?