Van's First Visit to PA

We made it back from our big trip to Pennsylvania!

Kaity flew out of Denver with us and was a huge help with Van on the plane! He was fidgety but not fussy. Kaity had the window seat and putting the shade up and down was a big hit.

Nanna and Grandpa Irwin were super excited to see him, and Van ate up the love! He got to meet some new family, too. My aunts Rita and Sue, Uncle Pat and cousins Raegin and Sara... and his cousin Lyrik! If ya didn't know better ya might think they were brothers - they look very much alike.

But the catalyst for the trip was from the other side of the family - my cousin Jennifer's wedding in Pittsburgh. Before we headed down for that event we stopped by the DiGioia household and got to meet Lily and see Mike & Mugsy for a bit. Blondie came by, too, and we got to meet li'l Sadie (her Shih Tzu).

Later that night at the wedding (which was beautiful) Van met his Great-great-aunts and uncles Richard & Joy and Jack & Shirley, and a plethora of other greats. Even I've never seen that much of this side of the family together before!

Friends of Grandpa Irwin's were kind enough to let us use their camp just outside Slippery Rock for the weekend as a gathering place for all the out-of-town guests. It was great! We played croquet on the huge front lawn, grilled out on the patio, went for walks in the woods and played volleyball in the sand court beside the house.

Later that week, back in Titusville, Nanna and Grandpa had a day with Van while Josh, Kaity and I took the kayaks down the Allegheny. It was such a blast!! We started just north of Tidioute and paddled down to the West Hickory Bridge - about 12 miles in all. The river isn't like the Colorado rivers which run fast and are rather narrow. PA rivers are super wide and run a little slower. We saw deer, fish, geese and ducks, and were visited by a bald eagle at one point!

Before Kaity left on Wednesday Grandpa Irwin thought a fish fry would be a good idea - he was right! They had caught a bunch of pan fish the week before and it was time to fry 'em up and put some Yuengling down around the campfire. Kurtis came home and a bunch of old friends came by as well - it was awesome.

Josh, Van and I made it back on Friday with little trouble on the flight back - we even had time to swing through Kent State on the way to the airport and take a drive around our alma mater. It hasn't changed a whole lot. :-)

It's great to be home in Colorado where the air is thin and dry, but we had a fantastic time in PA. HUGE thanks to all our family and friends who took time out to visit with us, and to my parents for putting us up for the week and being spectacular grandparents. xoxo

(click on the photo at top for more pictures of the PA visit)