Well, we’re off! Through the next few weeks we will be Easin’ Along through the Heartland of the United States. As we write this first post we just arrived in St. Louis after a fun night in Clarksville, TN near Ft. Campbell – home of the 101st Airborne.
Hopefully there will be some time to post updates as we make our way through some beautiful country. We will also post our usual update every Friday. In addition, please check out the Easin’ Along Facebook page for information as to our whereabouts. Our journey will take us through MN, the Dakotas, WI, IL, and around the shoreline of Michigan up to Mackinaw Island. We’re pumped! Join us again soon.
There undoubtedly are many Federal Government programs that have outlived their usefulness, but thankfully our National Parks are not among them. These precious treasures are gifts we have given to ourselves and hopefully will live on forever. This August the National Park Service will officially observe its 100th birthday and Easin’ Along wants to celebrate with them.
Helen (adorable wife) and I were preparing for our trip to explore America’s Heartland over the next four weeks so; we looked back over our trip from last summer to see what worked and what didn’t. Without question, our trips through four National Parks were at the top of the list of what worked exceptionally well. Therefore, as we pack to hit the road again in the coming days, we thought we would re-visit those four splendid experiences and share them with Easin’ Along readers during the Park Service birthday party.
The four National Parks we visited were all in the eastern part of the United States. I have listed them below and have links posted to our visits. During these visits we made use of one of the benefits of growing older…The National Park Senior Pass. The details of this program were also covered in an earlier post and I have posted a link to this one also. I hope you will share those experiences with us again and sing Happy Birthday to our National Parks as we celebrate with each one of them.
Wright Brothers Monument
Wright Brothers Memorial – The aviation industry was born here and the story of its birth is a compelling one. We were treated to a presentation of that first flight that had us glued to our seats. For a link to this post, click here.
Cape Henry Lighthouse
Cape Henry Lighthouse – The first lighthouse constructed with Federal funds. This small park is located on the Virginia coast and offered beautiful views of the shoreline. For a link to this post, click here.
Cape Cod National Seashore
Cape Cod National Seashore – A National Park that features staggering beauty where solitude reigns. Don’t miss this one. Click here for the link.
FDR Home – Springwood
Franklin Roosevelt Home and Presidential Library – Visit Springwood, and the Presidential Library to experience the life and the accomplishments of a remarkable figure in American history. For a link to this post, click here.
Senior Pass and Passport
National Park Senior Pass – A great value for us Senior Citizens. For a link to the details of the program, click here.
I hope you enjoy these tributes to some of our National Parks and that you’ll come back next week and join us in St. Louis as we travel America’s Heartland. We’’ll be Easin’ Along for now…
We have a bi-coastal family. One of our sons lives in Southern California and our other son lives on the South Carolina coast. Both are great places to visit. Nevertheless, trying to get everyone together is not easy and, understandably, doesn’t happen often enough for two doting grandparents of four grandchildren, ages three through seven.
Puzzle time
For that reason, Helen (adorable wife and doting grandmother) insists that everyone gather at least one time a year so that all the cousins can renew their relationships and enjoy a little bonding time. We call it Cousin’s Week and we celebrated this blessed event last week. It was truly a treasured experience.
Dueling cameras
Cousins week was enhanced greatly when some dear friends offered us the use of their fabulous home on one of our nearby lakes. Their generosity was overwhelming and made our time together even more memorable. We were certain that the children had a great time when they each said they wanted to come back for two weeks next year. I hope that our generous hosts consider their wishes to be a compliment of the highest order.
Construction in progress
We did all of the usual things that families do on vacation like swimming, working puzzles, playing games, eating great meals, and enjoying each other’s company. Other family members, including the children’s great-grandparents came for a day visit which made great memories for all.
Cousin love!
During our time on the lake we gave each child a disposable camera and asked them to take whatever pictures they wanted. It was a hoot watching them snap away, and soon each camera had all 27 exposures taken.
Rainy morning
For this week’s post of Easin’ Along I have used only the pictures that the children took. Most pictures are quite good and I want to give them full credit. An occasional thumb came between the camera and the subject, but that only made for better art. One or two could have used a little more light but, again, they had a blast.
Happy grandmother!
I have posted many of the pictures taken by the young at heart among us on the gallery page which is listed below this post on the home page of Easin’ Along. Readers can also go to the gallery page by clicking here.
Oops! Finger got in the way…
Our week ended all too quickly, but everyone made some wonderful memories. This was just another blessed step for Helen and me as we’re Easin’ Along on our slow walk through the Golden Years.
