Summer Vacation Highlights

I’m in the passenger seat of our minivan as we head down I-75 towards home. Emily is driving this leg of the trip, and I’m online. I’m tethered to my Droid. (Can your iPhone do that yet?)

Since the advent of Twitter, I rarely take the opportunity to share highlights from our vacations. This feels a little retro, but here’s what we’ve been up to the last week or so:

• We started the trip in Pittsburgh. That included catching a Pirates game at PNC Park. For Kayla and Jacob, that was the 11th major league ballpark they’ve visited.
• After the game, we ate at Primanti Brothers. The sandwiches are served with cole slaw and french fries…on the sandwich. They’ve been featured on Man vs. Food.
• Last year we watched Independence Day fireworks under the arch in St. Louis. This year we saw the fireworks along the river in downtown Pittsburgh.
• After a couple of days in Pittsburgh, we drove to the Cleveland area where we visited my Grandpa Connavino, an 89-year-old veteran of WWII where he was honored with the Purple Heart. And, we stopped to visited my almost 88-year-old Grandma Morgan, who I’m quite sure is more active than most of you.
• We then drove down to the Columbus, Ohio area to visit with Emily’s family. One of the highlights of that stop was a visit to Marmon Valley Farm where our kids and their cousins had the opportunity to ride horses.
• The kids got some swim time in at the Groveport, Ohio aquatic center which is just down the street from their grandparents’ home.
• After our stop in Columbus, we headed to Piqua, Ohio. That’s where Emily and I grew up.
• Prior to our visit to the National Museum of the US Air Force, Jacob won a PSP out of a game room at a Cici’s Pizza.
• We took the kids to a drive-in movie. That’s the first time I’ve done that since high school. And, seeing Buzz Lightyear talk Spanish was worth every penny.

Those are the highlights of our summer vacation. The next big trip Emily and I are planning will be without kids. It should be bloody marvelous. I hope to share more about that in the next several days.