WELCOME to our monthly collection where we offer links and ideas for you to explore with us.

This month we (Eva) spent two weeks on vacation. First up was a stop at Fountain Run, KY. I taught school there years ago, and made lasting friendships. Next we stopped at Hickory, NC to visit hunter friends that come to SD every fall and stay with my mom. Pennsylvania was next on the list. We spent five days at McVeytown with my older brother and his family. Lastly, we stopped in Michigan to visit an uncle and aunt and cousins. Weston got to go fishing on Lake Michigan while I spent the day with old friends. It was really fun! We headed for home on Sunday afternoon and got there Monday morning at 7am. I was never so glad to get home! I didn’t care that I had mostly missed a night of sleep. Home is the best place ever! These links are things we saw or became interested in because of where we were traveling.

If you are looking for a cool way to keep kitty litter out of sight, check this out. The hole in the wall goes into the garage where the litter is. I couldn’t believe how smart of an idea this is. Kitty litter inside always turns me off a bit and this totally solves the problem. This smart setup is for Oscar and he lives with James and Tam in KY.

After we left NC we headed north for Pennsylvania. The road took us through beautiful country, spoiled only by ALL THE TRAFFIC. I’m from the plains of SD, and that traffic really took me by surprise. I got my husband convinced to take a small detour and stop at Moxie 33 coffee shop. It is owned by Tyson and Kari and I used to know both of them way back when. It’s in the town of McGahaysville in Virgina. I bet you don’t know how to say that, right? Ma-GAK-ees-vill. I had to ask, too! By the way, my iced vanilla latte was really good! Beat Charbucks all to pieces!

One of my favorite things to do when I go to someone’s house is check out their bookshelves. You can learn a lot just by the books they keep close by. And just in case you are on the fence about buying books, this post will help you make that decision! By your favorites. They are like friends that you can take with you wherever you go.

My brother has a bakery that you should definitely stop at if you are in the McVeytown area. Look for The Cookie Jar sign and stop in. They make breads, doughnuts, soups, take and bake pizzas, and other baked goods. Everything I tasted was delicious!

Of course a trip to PA wouldn’t be complete without going to Big Valley to do all the Amish stops. We packed a lunch and headed out one morning to cross the mountain to see what we could see. I think my favorite part of that day was stopping at the top of Jack’s Mountain and looking across into Big Valley. That is such a splendid view. (Did you know that Big Valley’s real name is Kishacoquillas Valley? No wonder it’s called Big Valley. I’m guessing not many outsiders would know how to say that. What is it with the east and unpronounceable names!?) Parked up at one of the stores we stopped at was an Amish lady that my sister-in-law Mamie knew. Mamie asked her is her would be willing to give our children a ride. Amish lady (also named Mamie, by the way) was willing. She handed SIL Mamie her baby ( sleeping in a car seat, no less) and loaded up the children. They enjoyed a comfortable ride in the yellow top buggy. Apparently, the yellow tops are Cadillacs among buggies. That, of course, sent me down the rabbit hole of what different colored tops mean. It is interesting. Read about it here.

At the end of Big Valley day, we headed around the back side (or was it the front) of Jack’s Mountain to Lewistown. Mamie wanted to show us Asher’s Chocolates. It’s a little chocolate shop that still makes their own chocolate. Incedentaly, we learned that Asher started making chocolates two years before Hershey. The chocolates were really good. In fact, I think it’s better than Hershey’s. You can order online and it would be worth your time to try it. Read the short history of chocolate they have on the website. It’s worth a couple minutes of your time.

Phrase I learned:

SEMANTIC SATIATION You know when you were a kid (or maybe you still do this!), you sometimes repeated something until it sent you into paroxysms of laughter because it sounded so weird? That is called SEMANTIC SATIATION. Try it now to bring back a little of your childhood. Here’s the explanation, if, like me, you need to know!

I noticed a phenomina on this trip. I have prided myself on my girls not being picky eaters. Well, we all know that pride goes before a fall. More than once I heard my girls saying things like ‘I don’t like that’ or ‘I don’t want that’ while we were gone. I was embarrassed. I do understand that being away from home can mess with your digestion, and there is nothing like Mom’s cooking. But. It has continued since we got home. It appears like they want to eat at anytime but mealtime and junk will be just fine, thank you. Here is my theory. If I allow my children to eat at times other than meal or snack time, it takes away the desire for real food. Adding in junk food which is the easiest food on a tip and you have a compounded problem. It’s way more fun to eat party mix than eggs and bacon. So I am on a mission to solve this problem, although my girls are still in bed and it’s 9:30 already. No regular breakfast time here 😦 How do you deal with picky eating? Here’s some tips to get you started.

That’s all for July. What have you been interested in lately? Let us know in the comments.

-Eva

Here is another post about traveling