Family Time..

Cynthia and Greg came up for the weekend with the kids. It was definitely good to see them. It was particularly nice to see Max doing so well after his medical difficulties. It was also nice to be able to show them around the area. It was the first time that they were all able to visit and see where we live.

They came in around dinner-time on Friday. I made some pasta and we watched episodes of Doctor Who.

In the morning, we got up early and headed out to Boalsburg for the People's Choice Festival. It was a bit of a hike, but I had already made plans to go out there before I knew they were coming.

Above is a picture of Cynthia giving Max some water while he rides on Greg's shoulders. It was a scorcher and was REALLY HOT!

One of the major reasons that we wanted to go was to visit with Gina Chalfant of White Swan Illuminations. She's got really lovely glazed ceramics. I love the references to art history and literature. Her pieces have an air of antiquity, but are thoroughly modern and simply magical. She also makes jewelry and is how we first met her. Greg and I met her and her daughter years ago at a bead show in Pittsburgh.

Another of the reasons that I wanted to go out to Boalsburg is that my friends Christina and David recently relocated to the area. I've been friends with Christina for over a decade now. We met while working at the Orlando Sentinel. I hope that they like it here! They moved to Bellefonte, which I discovered was really cute and very charming.

Speaking of very cute and charming, above is a picture of Max asleep. He was wore out after a long day of activities. After our trip to the art festival, a flat tire, a call to AAA, and a short exploration of Bellefonte, we had dinner at Mountain Palace. It's a restaurant that recently opened up in the neighborhood that serves delicious Northern Chinese cuisine and also features Chinese art like porcelain and silk embroideries.

The next day, we started the day off as every Sunday should start off... good coffee, music, and a yummy breakfast. After breakfast... well, we started cooking lunch. I made a chicken curry and we all helped in making the gazpacho.

We let the gazpacho marinate while we showed them the future location of our store in Ligonier. We had just enough time to stop in, take some measurements, and check out the space some more. Greg picked up some books from the bookstore and we got ice cream at the cafe on the diamond.

Our late lunch was delicious. The gazpacho was cool and refreshing and perfect on a hot summer day.

Before it got dark, we went out to do photo shoots with Cynthia and Azalea's dolls. Above is a picture of Azalea setting up a shot with her Monster High dolls. It was a beautiful evening that was not too hot. Fireflies dotted the landscape. Bats swooped in great arching circles in the fading twilight. When Azalea wasn't taking pictures, she and Max were running up and down the hills and rolling in the grass with Suni.

It was a lovely trip and I'm sorry to see them go. It definitely did my heart good to see some of my family.