Summer U.S. Trip 2014 - Part 4

The last destination on our U.S. itinerary was a visit to my family in Iowa.  My family was in good form - doing well and in a good mood.

FABJ was signed up for a week of pony camp again, but we didn't sign ORBJ up for anything (a mistake in hindsight).  Still, we had a couple of enjoyable activities - a morning at a splash pad and a snowflake making activity at the library (a somewhat odd choice in July).

ORBJ at the splash pad

One of the most enjoyable trips was to the Iowa Children's Museum.  It was about a 45 minute drive away, and it had a ton of fun stuff for the girls.  In fact, we basically ran out of time.  We will definitely visit again, if only to visit the "Blue Room."  It was a room full of giant blue blocks.

The blue room

Taking your order in the science museum

Another fun part of the trip was a dinner out with LBJ, as my sister and brother in law took the girls for a sleepover.  So we went to a local Cuban restaurant, which was extremely tasty (and modestly priced).  We hope to go there again!

I look forward to the next visit home to see the family.

Summer U.S. Trip 2014 - Part 3

It was a rather painful travel day to Chicago.  I foolishly suggested the scenic route out of the park.  It seemed to add 5 minutes to the drive and avoided Gatlinburg & Knoxville.

It was scenic and enjoyable.  Until ORBJ threw up, that is.  At least it was at the end of the curvy road.  LBJ and I did well, I thought.  However, we used up the time allotted for a stop then, so we had to eat our snack in the car and skip the fuel stop.  So we paid the ridiculously high cost for fuel at the rental car place (for 3/4 of a tank - a difference of $30).

But the car rental and security at Nashville airport was a breeze.  The girls were well behaved on the flights (yes, plural - got to spend an hour or so of quality time in Detroit's airport).

But it was great to see our friends in Chicago (TK, JK, and their kids AK and LK).  They were the gracious hosts as ever.  We had an enjoyable time renting paddle boats on a nearby "lake".  Too bad the boats were designed for people 6+ inches shorter than me - rather challenging (and painful). 

ORBJ and LK enjoying their paddle boat ride

In fact, LBJ and I needed a rest after that outing:

Worn out after 1 hour of paddle boating

But the kids were not fazed by our absence, having fun of their own.

Another day, another princess costume

All too soon, it was time to say goodbye and make our way to the promised land, Iowa (ok, maybe it's not the promised land, but it is always nice to see my family).

Whiskey School, Part 2

Sorry for being out of order.  I didn't realize that I forgot to the posting for the second day of Whiskey School.  Although, to be honest, the second day wasn't all that busy.

School in session

It was enjoyable, as I got to watch "my" whiskey go through the triple distillation process.

My barrel, from Jim Beam

Also my barrel

At the same time, there was a lot of waiting around, while the distillation occurred.















The other side of the barrel - which I'll get to keep after the whiskey is bottled.

Difference in color between sherry, bourbon and port barrels

Photo-op with the distillery's owner

Receiving an important document from the master distiller

After-the-fact quality control

Now, I just have to wait 5+ years for it to age.  (As well as figure out what to do with all the bottles - some friends have expressed interest in a few bottles, which is good.)

Summer U.S. Trip 2014 - Part 2

We settled into a routine in TN.  We would load up the vehicles, particularly the S's minivan, head "down the mountain" to the National Park to do an activity in the park.  Then, we would have lunch at a nice picnic spot (Metcalf Bottoms?  Something like that) along the river.  After lunch, the girls would play in the river.  If we weren't too tired, we would stop at the community pool on our way "up the mountain."  We'd cook dinner in, the kids would play, and eventually go to bed.

Junior ranger waterfall hike / talk

The girls got their junior ranger badges, to match their ones from Yosemite last year.

Part of the waterfall hike

I ducked out one day to give a talk at UT-Knoxville and meet with a future co-author.  It was very productive, but it did make the trip feel less like a vacation for me.  To try and compensate, I left early and did a hike on the way - even saw three wild turkeys on the hike.

Did we see bears again this year?  You betcha, Margie!  Did I get any pictures this year?  No ma'am.  The second bear sighting was in the road as we were leaving for the airport.  As usual, I was speechless and didn't think to take a picture until the mama bear and her two cubs were in the woods and out of sight.  Still, it was quite exciting, especially for FABJ and me as the bears were on our side of the car.

Other highlights?  We bought an inner tube (and a tiny inner tube) and spent one afternoon taking turns rafting down the river near our lunch spot.  It was a short ride, but it had good entry and exit spots.  Once we realized that you needed someone to help with the dismount at the end of the ride.  Poor CS, as she basically had to dump KS in the water (who was in her lap), in order to get up out of the inner tube.  So the inner tube floated on down the river.  It took me 15 minutes to wade downstream (even the water was at most 1.5 feet deep), retrieve the inner tube, and return to our exit point.

Earlier that morning, FABJ and I did a scenic drive and hike through an old homestead.  It was quite interesting, and FABJ told me later that she had a great time (she really likes history).

My little hiker (wearing SS's dress)

The Smokies

It was an enjoying trip to the Smokies.  I'm already thinking of parks for future trips.  Shenandoah?  Rocky Mountain?  Yellowstone?  Glacier?  Acadia?  The list is so long!