July 26, 2007
Hi all,
Forgive all the pictures-I either get one or all. I still am learning. But since Vermont is so beautiful I don't regret very much sending all these. We arrived here in Waitsfield last Friday and we leave in the morning. I know that the fall foliage will be beautiful but seeing the lush green mountains is truly beautiful My advice is to come to New England in the summer and just stay until after the fall foliage is over.
We are staying in the Mad River Valley and the river is like many we see in CA with lots of rocks and falls. It is really a pretty sight. The first picture is in the little town just a mile south of here named Warren. We just happened upon it and it was so pretty I had to take a picture.
We drove up to Stowe and visited the original Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream Factory and
besides lots of ice cream there were lots of people. The lines were so long we did not even get any ice cream which was no real loss.
We drove a little further north and up the mountain to the von Trapp Family Lodge which is quite large as they now have timeshares built there but nevertheless it is quite picturesque. We had lunch at the Austrian Tea House and you can see the view from our table. It was a gorgeous day to out and about and sitting outside could not have been more beautiful. The von Trapp family said, "A little bit of Austria in Vermont" and it seems quite true.
We drove to Burlington a couple of times and it is a lovely town. They close off about 4 blocks of the main street as a walking street and it was fun to see. In fact, we had lunch at an outdoor cafe there too.
We also went to Montpelier and walked around there too. It is another pretty town with interesting sights.
We will be reporting in to New Windsor Monday morning for our two months of volunteering.
It will be fun to see some of our old friends again.
Our new granddaughter Sarah Esther arrived early morning July 24-all 9 pounds of her.
Mom and baby are fine, Dad has a few new gray hairs. (He had to do so much) Granddaughter Carmella is just excited and I am sure a big help to Mommy.
We trust this finds you in good health as it is sent to you, and remember us on the road the next few days.
As always, don't forget to drop us a line. That way I know you did get this. Sometimes I just have to wonder!!
Love and hugs.
Dad, Mom, Grandmother and Granddaddy, Ric and Jan(ice)

15 great iPhotos