Day 5 Lancaster County Paradise Bird in Hand

After frightening myself each time I opened the cubby in the Yukon... we finally found a place to get this Uncle and friend's photos laminated.  Why?  Well, they couldn't come along on the trip, so we decided to put a life size photo of them on a stick and then when we took photos, it would look like they were there too!

... it's also a great way to creep out Snow White ...

Ruth laminating her friend

Then it was more visiting and a day trip into Lancaster area to "Amish" territory.  It was going to be a short trip, we were having a hard time leaving the house.

Renita did a bun in Kate's hair and told her which pins may work good.  We didn't find the pins on our trip, but we'll take a look online.

Traveling through Bird in Hand, Paradise and Lancaster gives you a quick "tourists" peek into the lives of Mennonites and Amish in the area.  It would have been nice to walk as the vehicle traffic kept you going at a pace that made it harder to look around.

There are hand made wooden toys and iron works....

Dresses for dolls (they would fit your American Girl dolls)

Amish dolls

I really don't need to say anything about the above photos do I ?

Quilt Hangers that I wanted and couldn't find later on

Look at the workmanship! 

Now I just need to get my folks to come along next time!

Lots of farms

Almost every yard had their wash out on the line... it was the first sunny day in awhile!

We went to a place called the Kitchen Kettle and it's set up to accommodate tour buses, etc.  It has many things to offer, but doesn't feel very Amish like.

Ahh... Kettle Korn.  They had a roaster for making toasted candied almonds.  Gregg and the girls had a nice chat with the young man running it about the machine and how it was unique ~ it roasts with the candy coating on, doesn't add the sugary goodness later.  Makes for an unique wonderful flavor.

Our friends said to have the Ice Cream for we did ! Butter Brickle for Chrissy!

This ice cream was very good...Jersey cream!  We actually passed their farm on our way home.

Now the best part... we didn't eat lunch because we were told that the samples here would fill us up!  

They have corn chips and crackers and you can sample anything you wish.

Jams and Jellies

Peach Vinaigrette 

Each day their kitchen is making something different.  The day we went was Pickles day.

Mei's favorite was the chicken noodle soup

Bought me some overly sweet Whoopie Pies

 Now Whoopie Pies were something I remember from my Ontario days.  The" little girl me" would look forward to any church function that I knew these treats would be there.  Now, well, they are too sweet.  It was a nice walk down memory lane though.

 While we were shopping in one store, a young gal hitched her horse up to the railing right by our window.  She did her shopping and then we got to watch her load up and drive her buggy away.

 We ended up going into one very LONG store...first it was fabric, then it was toys, etc and then housewares.  I think they were three different stores.  They seemed a little surprised to see us, as I don't think it was a real tourist hot spot.  Lots of wooden spoons though... just in case you need some!

There were lots of very cute aprons too

Each day their kitchen is making something different.  The day we went was Pickles day.

It's so hard to pick out a souvenir, but I finally decided on one of the above figurines. 

Not too Amish sounding

You can mail a letter !  Too bad we never did find postage stamps in order to mail any of our post cards!

Most houses or barns have a star like this

Saw lots of horses and buggy's and boys on push scooters and bikes. The young men on scooters could really go!  They were the "push with your leg" style scooters and they shared the road with the vehicles.  I was constantly concerned for their safety.
Took the #897 and saw some Amish and Mennonite farms and beautiful country side.

Kate bought me this card for Mother's Day!

Tempted to get this spatula!

First store we went to in Bird-in-Hand was the best one we stopped in.  Had I known that, I would have bought a quilt hanger.  Most quilts were around the $600 US range.

Lots of fabric pieces with Bible verses or nice family sayings on them.  I did purchase a few panels of those, with high hopes that I will make a wall hanging or such with them.

Had to show the girls what you can make with "Yo Yo's" ... they learned how to make those this winter.

I had actually thought that I'd find some great fabric stores along our journey ~ sadly, we did not.... boo hoo 

Kate really liked these ... wonder why cowgirl?

An Amish Spiderman

It was amazing how many people could fit in a buggy.

We were tourists, trying not to act like tourists... so we snapped a quick photo from inside the car.

We finally found a place with pretzels.  Now I remember street vendors in New York selling fresh soft buttery salted pretzels. Oh how I have craved them ever since!  We slammed on the brakes and went back for these because the sign said "GLUTEN FREE PRETZELS!"

Hey, I'm trying to eat and you're getting in the way of my pretzel!

We bought a rhubarb strawberry pie, but were sadly disappointed.  It was more like a jello inside a crust with crumbs on top.

We were all anxious to get back to our friends and enjoy an open fire supper.

They have a beautiful little acreage... loved the sound of the creek babbling by while we slept at night and how they had a few little laying hens wandering about!

Then and now ... just missing the chocolate chip cookies! 

They taught us how to roast an apple over the fire and roll it in brown sugar and cinnamon.

Yup, that was a rain drop in your eye Jo

Now if they just lived a tad bit closer!

Their yard has a wonderful creek running through it... a perfect spot to sit on the bridge and read or to play in the water of course!

School uniforms from 1984?

When the rain got too bad, we just piled onto the wood pile and visited

Daryl has a great sense of humor, but with the slight accent and dry humor,

 I was always a few seconds behind!

A good way to stay out of the rain

The fire is hot, but I want to roast this hot dog!

In typical fashion, Gregg had to look underneath their antique table.  It was a table passed down to the family, but it had a few wibble wobbles.  Gregg thought a few minor adjustments could fix it.

The kids were all determined to watch Mr. Thiessen do his push ups, so the last night he indulged them.

We brought out our Canadian funny money and let them sniff it.  Ours smells better and has pretty colors... ha ha

The little church in the woods of Ontario that we went to school at. 

My parents as the Zooks would have met them in the early 1980's.  Can't believe my Dad was in a suit!

1983 or 1984.  By the looks on our faces, this could have been shortly after Dad died

There didn't seem to be enough time to visit.  We have been reminded that the world is really a small place and people everywhere share in the same concerns for their families, etc. 

Renita had us playing "household appliances" charades... Gregg was being a piece of paper going through the printer.

Kate was a coffee machine

We stopped by the Zooks to say good bye too.  Never underestimate the power of your influence on your children's little friends.  This wonderful woman left a lasting impression on me on a number of things, 

and I am so thankful for her.

She also gave us some of her jams and jellies and butters!  

We had a hard time leaving and it was very quiet in the vehicle for awhile while we drove away.  A few sighs and a lot of "can we go back again?"   ... Off to Washington DC!
May 1st
Rain stopped this morning.  22C at noon
24 C at 6 pm.  little bit of rain.
Fabric, souvenirs, food at Kitchen Kettle, $ 100