Monday, April 16, 2012

Visitors

This past week we had a few visitors - Brett's parents came to visit for his "Easter Break". We also had a good family friend, Karen Luthi, and two of her friends come a stay with us for a few days. We had a great time catching up with all of them and loved being able to spend some time with them.
Brett and his parents went to Harmony, PA, Fayette, NY, Niagra Falls, and Palmyra. They left me at home to work and to hang out with Karen and her friends. Here's a few pictures of them in up-state:

Niagara Falls
Palmyra Temple
Unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures with Karen but I sure loved having her visit for a few days. I am glad they got to enjoy New York and we could serve as a good resting place for a few nights. A funny story: Karen was showering and went to turn off the water and the spout broke. Karen had to call for her friends to come help, go talk to our landlords, and shut the water off. All of this happening while I was at work of course... The plumber had to come the next day and completely replaced all of the hardware in our bathroom. Karen is welcome any time at our house as long as she gets us new things when she's here.... :)

We attended church on Sunday and then headed to Philadelphia. We visited Valley Forge and the Rocky Stairs and Elfreth's Alley on Sunday evening. Monday morning we headed to Gettysburg and spent the majority of the day there. Gettysburg was fascinating! We loved it and I am very glad we were able to squeeze it in to the trip. We got a famous Philly Cheesesteak at Jim's Steaks that night and headed back to the hotel.
Tuesday morning we got up and saw the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, Carpenter's Hall, 1st and 2nd National Bank, Franklin's Court, Besty Ross House,  Elfreth's Alley, Fireman's Hall, and pretty much everything that is historical in Old City Philly. We got done a bit earlier than expected so we headed up to Washington's Crossing. We saw the spot where the soliders camped and the hill where they built a watch tower. The tower standing today is a replica of the one they built back in 1776 to keep an eye on the Hessians who were camped out in Trenton, NJ. It was neat to overlook the Delaware and see that famous spot in history. We had a good meal at a little tavern at Bowman's Hill - very quiant and delicious! :)

Rocky Stairs!
Philly in the background
Too bad this picture turned out blurred but
they were such good sports I had to share!
Gettysburg
Graves in the cemetery where the Gettysburg address was given
Newer Veteran Graves in Gettysburg Cemetery
Looking out over Gettysburg from Little Round Top
The City of Brotherly Love
and they were feeling it! ;)
Independence Hall
The room where the Declaration and Constitution were signed
Brett was in heaven at the Fireman's Hall
View from the top of Bowman's Tower at Washington's Crossing
We put Craig and Sue on a flight and sent them home to Utah. We miss them already and wish they could stay but we are glad we got to enjoy them for a week while they were here!