Sad News

Our dear friend Geri, (Pat's Mom) lost her battle with cancer this past Wednesday. This next weekend we will not only be celebrating Labor Day but also Mom's birthday. On September 11th, Mom and Dad will be attending a PBR (Professional Bull Riding) Event in Greenville. They are real excited about this as they are avid PBR fans. On September 14th, we will be hitting the road again with stops in North Carolina and Lake Gaston in Virginia. I will be getting more active on the blog as we start traveling again.

HOT CAROLINA

I'm sorry I haven't posted anything recently but we did make it back to South Carolina, where it is HOT and HUMID. During the week, we come to Dave and Pat's to stay with Pat's mom while they are working. Lenny and I like that because we get to play with Dave & Pat's dogs, our cousins, all day. When the day is over, Lenny and I nap all the way back to the trailer as we are tired out from playing so much. Mom an Dad like being back in South Carolina because they get to see more of their grand daughter Peanut, who is growing like a weed and is becoming much more animated. Mom and Dad, not being biased, think Peanut is one gorgeous little girl.

Take care everyone.

Cereal City

We left St Clair and headed to Battle Creek, MI, the home of Kellogg's and its founders. Battle Creek was also the home of Charles Post, founder of Post cereals. While Mom and Dad were taking grave site pictures of Kellogg and Post, they came up on Sojourner Truth's grave. Truth, a former slave who championed women's rights and anti slavery. Battle Creek was a stop on the underground railroad for fleeing slaves during the civil war. From Battle Creek we went to Batesville, IN but had to change our plans so that we could return to South Carolina to help with the care of a family member. More later.

Winding Down St Clair Visit

We are winding down our visit to the St Clair, MI area. Monday morning we head out for a two day stay in the Battle Creek area before heading to Batesville, IN. Lenny and I haven't been real busy while we were here but Mom and Dad have been on the go. One day they went to lunch in the Bay City area with Dad's cousin Carolyn and her husband Charlie. After lunch they stopped in Frankenmuth at the world famous Bronner's Christmas Wonderland store to pick up some Christmas items. Dad says the store is so big and spread out, they give you a map when you go in so you won't get lost. Mom and Dad really enjoyed spending time and visiting with Carolyn and Charlie.

On another day, Mom and Dad went to Henry Ford's Greenfield Village with Dad's cousin Sandra. Dad hadn't seen Sandra in over 28 years. Dad had been to Greenfield Village when he was a young boy and he always wanted to go back. Now that he has done it, he can scratch that off his "bucket list". Greenfield Village is a wonderful historical park set up by Henry Ford. He brought historical buildings to Greenfield Village so they could be preserved and enjoyed by future generations. Some of the sights included one of Thomas Edison's labs, the Wright Brothers' boyhood home and one of their bicycle shops, Noah Webster's home, poet Robert Frost's home and the Heinz House where HJ Heinz made his first product, which wasn't pickles or ketchup but horseradish. There were also old trains and Model T's throughout the park. Henry Ford also built a chapel in the park to honor his mother and mother-in-law. The bell in the chapel's belfry was cast by Paul Revere. After visiting the park, they went into Detroit to Henry Ford's grave to get a picture for their album.

One evening, Mom and Dad went to Sandra's for a wonderful dinner. Another one of Dad's cousins, Mary, was also there. Sandra's son Mike and two of her grandchildren were also there. Dad enjoyed reliving old times with Sandra and Mary.

Lenny and I did see the vet while we were here. Both of us got good reports and Lenny's diet has paid off as he has lost 14 pounds since last December. Since we had a good vet report, Mom and Dad took us into Canada one day. It was Lenny's first trip out of the US. We did some sightseeing and then we had a nice hamburger lunch at A&W.

Lastly, Dad wants to thank the dumpster truck traveling South on I-75 in Pontiac, Friday, for kicking up the rock and providing us with the opportunity to buy a new windshield for our truck.

Take care everyone.

Hello From Michigan

Today we left Ohio and made our way to the Thousand Trails Park in St Clair, Michigan. The first 3 hours of our trip today was in a heavy rainstorm which wasn't any fun. Michigan is the 31st state Lenny has visited since he began traveling with us 16 months ago. Since we are so close, we may even take him into Canada while we are here. We are glad to be out of Ohio where it was so hot with very high humidity. We didn't want to be outside playing in that heat. We did have a shocking experience while in Ohio. Lenny and I each wear a remote trainer collar. If we misbehave, Mom and Dad can hit a tone button to let us know we need to behave. If we don't behave then they can hit the shock button to give us a small shock and then we behave. We were having problems with my collar not working so Mom and Dad called the company. They walked them through some tests and come to find out the remotes had gotten crossed. When Mom or Dad hit my shock button, Lenny was getting shocked. He wasn't the least bit happy about that. Mom and Dad were able to get them reprogrammed so now they work properly. Lenny is happy now that he is not getting my shocks. While in Michigan, we plan to do some sightseeing and also visit the vet to get our annual shots. Later folks!

North Carolina

After three active weeks in South Carolina, highlighted by the birth of grand baby Kennedy Rae, we hitched up this past Sunday and headed for the Forest Lake Thousand Trails near Lexington, NC. Mom and Dad are still Ga Ga about Kennedy. On Wednesday, being one week old, she had her first pediatrician appointment. She gained 7 ounces and now weighs 8 lbs and grew 1/2 inch and is now 20 inches long. She is in great shape.

Monday, Mom and Dad toured the Childress Vineyards and Winery in Lexington. It is owned and operated by NASCAR team owner Richard Childress. According to Mom and Dad, it is a beautiful place and a first class operation. Wednesday, they went to Welcome, NC and toured Richard Childress Racing Headquarters and museum. Dad found it very fascinating as he is a NASCAR fan. NASCAR ownership is definitely not a poor man's operation.

Today was a road trip for me and Lenny. Mom and Dad took us to Mt Airy, NC, better known by many as Mayberry. We toured the town and saw many things from the Andy Griffith Show, from Sheriff Taylors office, car and jail to Floyd's Barber Shop to a statue of Andy & Opie to Andy Griffith's home from 1936 to 1966. Lenny and I got our pictures taken in the jail, in front of the statue and eating lunch of burgers and fries at the Blue Bird Diner. That was the highlight of the day for us. The Blue Bird Diner is pet friendly. They keep a water dish and a bucket of doggie treats out front for their 4 legged friends. We lunched on the front patio.

We leave Monday for Ohio. We will be making a one night stop at a campground on the original Bob Evans Farm, where the Bob Evans Restaurant idea was born.

OUR BUNDLE OF JOY HAS ARRIVED!!!!

Mom and Dad are now the proud grandparents of Kennedy Rae Gordon, born at 7:42 this morning, weighing in at 7 lbs 9 oz. She is a gorgeous little blonde with blue eyes and chubby cheeks. Momma Sharon and Kennedy are doing fantastic. Daddy Trevor is still on cloud nine.