A Visit From the Guys
Last weekend we had visitors once again. I swear we see our family more since we moved than when we lived two hours away. We are having a blast with all our visitors, so please keep them coming!
This time it was Dad Spangler and Danny. The boys made a stop at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and then headed into Fredonia Thursday afternoon. Danno was a little wired after having been in the car for so long, so we headed out to Luensman Overlook Park, which is up on the ridge that runs through Chautauqua County. From the park you get a great view of the vinyards and towns as well as Lake Erie. It really is beautiful. On a clear day, you can even see across the lake to Canada. Dan rode his bike around for a while before blowing a tire.
We spent that evening watching the Cardinals with Game 4 of the world series. We all have our Cardinals superstitions. Rach wears the same outfit during every game, Dennis had a lucky cap, Danny cannot wear anything red, and Susie always has to get food when we are tied or losing in the the third or fourth inning. What can we say? We love our Cardinals. Danny also pledged to drink a beer an inning and lived up to his promise.
On Friday morning Susie had to work, so Dad, Danny, and Rachel took a trip up to see Niagara Falls. It was Dan's first trip, but he wasn't in the best condition to enjoy it, what with the Cardinals-beer pledge the night before. It was also very cold out, but the forecast was rain free. What we had not planned on, however, was the massive amount of mist thrown up by the falls. Last time we were there, it was about 85 with no wind. This time it was 40 with the wind blowing right in our faces. This sent all of the freezing cold mist right down on top of us.
We were only able to stand being cold and soaking wet for a few minutes before we hitched the rail car up the hill to grab some lunch. The view from the top was pretty good and Dan got some good pictures before heading home.
After we got home, we spent some time at the bar before settling in with wings and drinks to watch the Cards game. We all took part in our various superstitions, and as you probably know by now the Cardinals won. We screamed and yelled and cheered and hugged and even cried a little. It was perfect. We couldn't have asked for a better night. It was great to have family here to share the experience with. We are still a little bit in shock about the whole thing.
Saturday we went wine tasting. Dad found some expensive wine that he really liked, and Dan got to learn a little bit about tasting. We have really become very fond of Vetter Vinyards. We also visited Johnson Estates. The weather was turing, bad but we still drove home along the lakeshore.
Later that evening we headed up to Ellicotville Brewing Company for a great dinner and some micro-brew. Afterwards, Danny decided to check out some of the college haunts while Dad, Susie, and Rachel took in the college hockey game. We were treated to a great game that went into overtime before ending in a tie. This was apparently quite the feat becuase we were playing the NCAA #2 team, and we were supposed to lose pretty solidly. We were impressed with the level of play on the ice and the level of fanaticism in the stands. Without knowing it, we stumbled on the place to be on a Fredonia Saturday night.
Sunday we woke up to unexpectedly great weather. Danny suggested we head back to the Overlook. He wanted to try out his new bike tires on the trails, and the rest of us felt up for a hike so we went back to Luensman. It was a perfect day and we took a beautiful trail through the woods. We also got some wonderful pictures. A few of Dan look like something you'd see in an ad. Here are a few of them.
This time it was Dad Spangler and Danny. The boys made a stop at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and then headed into Fredonia Thursday afternoon. Danno was a little wired after having been in the car for so long, so we headed out to Luensman Overlook Park, which is up on the ridge that runs through Chautauqua County. From the park you get a great view of the vinyards and towns as well as Lake Erie. It really is beautiful. On a clear day, you can even see across the lake to Canada. Dan rode his bike around for a while before blowing a tire.We spent that evening watching the Cardinals with Game 4 of the world series. We all have our Cardinals superstitions. Rach wears the same outfit during every game, Dennis had a lucky cap, Danny cannot wear anything red, and Susie always has to get food when we are tied or losing in the the third or fourth inning. What can we say? We love our Cardinals. Danny also pledged to drink a beer an inning and lived up to his promise.
On Friday morning Susie had to work, so Dad, Danny, and Rachel took a trip up to see Niagara Falls. It was Dan's first trip, but he wasn't in the best condition to enjoy it, what with the Cardinals-beer pledge the night before. It was also very cold out, but the forecast was rain free. What we had not planned on, however, was the massive amount of mist thrown up by the falls. Last time we were there, it was about 85 with no wind. This time it was 40 with the wind blowing right in our faces. This sent all of the freezing cold mist right down on top of us.We were only able to stand being cold and soaking wet for a few minutes before we hitched the rail car up the hill to grab some lunch. The view from the top was pretty good and Dan got some good pictures before heading home.
After we got home, we spent some time at the bar before settling in with wings and drinks to watch the Cards game. We all took part in our various superstitions, and as you probably know by now the Cardinals won. We screamed and yelled and cheered and hugged and even cried a little. It was perfect. We couldn't have asked for a better night. It was great to have family here to share the experience with. We are still a little bit in shock about the whole thing.
Saturday we went wine tasting. Dad found some expensive wine that he really liked, and Dan got to learn a little bit about tasting. We have really become very fond of Vetter Vinyards. We also visited Johnson Estates. The weather was turing, bad but we still drove home along the lakeshore.Later that evening we headed up to Ellicotville Brewing Company for a great dinner and some micro-brew. Afterwards, Danny decided to check out some of the college haunts while Dad, Susie, and Rachel took in the college hockey game. We were treated to a great game that went into overtime before ending in a tie. This was apparently quite the feat becuase we were playing the NCAA #2 team, and we were supposed to lose pretty solidly. We were impressed with the level of play on the ice and the level of fanaticism in the stands. Without knowing it, we stumbled on the place to be on a Fredonia Saturday night.
Sunday we woke up to unexpectedly great weather. Danny suggested we head back to the Overlook. He wanted to try out his new bike tires on the trails, and the rest of us felt up for a hike so we went back to Luensman. It was a perfect day and we took a beautiful trail through the woods. We also got some wonderful pictures. A few of Dan look like something you'd see in an ad. Here are a few of them.
That evening we topped off the boys' trip with some good Halloween fun. Dad and Dan had picked up a pumpkin on their way into town. We wanted to turn the pumpkin into a monument to our World Series Champions STL Cardinals. Since Dan is an artiste extraordinaire, he was able to freehand the design by looking at the St. Louis logo and Ta-Da there is the best pumkin ever!
We were sad that the boys had to go home on Monday, but we think they had as good a time as we did, so hopefully they will come back some time soon.
posted by Rachild | 4:05 PM
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