What a trip! Fun was had by all! Pictures, pictures & more pictures **Updated 5/27

[ddstratton]

Hey all! We've been home for a couple of days - got home Saturday evening. I've been working on unpacking (still not completely unpacked) and getting pictures uploaded (not done with that yet either). I thought I should go ahead and get started with this trip report, so here goes:

This little trip report actually starts the day before the trip. This is what we woke up to.

SNOW!!! Not a lot, but enough to show up on the cars! Boy, would we enjoy the Florida weather compared to this!!!


Day 1 -- Monday, May 10, 2010

I got up around 6:00 am. Way before the alarm went off. Apparently, I knew it was the first day of vacation, because I didn't get to bed until after midnight the night before. But since I woke up, I decided to just stay up and start getting ready. I got a shower and got dressed, then played around on the computer and puttered around a bit.

I checked the outside temp -- 26!!! Yikes! No snow like the day before, but still VERY COLD.

DH and DD finally got up and ready. It didn't take much to wake DD up. I just went in her room and whispered that it was finally VACATION and she jumped out of bed. She took care of waking DH up.

DSIS brought Mom down right around 9:00am. We packed the truck and took some pictures. We were all pretty antsy, waiting for time to leave. We weren't supposed to leave until 11:00 am.

Well, we couldn't wait!!! We all loaded into the truck and left the driveway at 9:50 am. This was the temp as we were leaving...

Up next -- Pennsylvania!

 

[heaven2dc]

I'm 1st to post - hurray!!

Brrr....that sure is cold weather - will you be passing through Virginia (didn't I see you on Interstate 95 on your way down to FL? ) Your car was the one with all the smiling faces! (you did drive to WDW, didn't you? )

 

[ddstratton]

I'm 1st to post - hurray!!

Brrr....that sure is cold weather - will you be passing through Virginia (didn't I see you on Interstate 95 on your way down to FL? ) Your car was the one with all the smiling faces! (you did drive to WDW, didn't you? )

Welcome!!!

We do pass through Virginia, but not by car on the way down. We stopped in Lorton and picked up the AutoTrain for the trip South. We do drive back through, though, on the way back. The cost for the North-bound AutoTrain was almost DOUBLE the cost of the South-bound trip. A bit too pricey for me...

You just may have seen our smiling faces from the train cars, though. We were VERY happy to be on vacation.

 

[ddstratton]

When we left off in the last installment, we were just starting out journey. We entered Pennsylvania at about 10:20 am.

We stopped at the Pennsylvania Welcome Center for a quick potty break. This place is really pretty. It overlooks a dam.

After making use of the facilities, we looked around a bit and took some pictures. We also picked up some brochures. One of the tables had advertisements for a local mall, and they had free chocolate bars!! Full-size chocolate, too. DD and Mom each had one, and said the chocolate was really very tasty.

We drove on through the beautiful state of Pennsylvania until we reached Lewisburg. It's a small town just south of Williamsport. We stopped here for lunch at KFC.

We don't have a KFC nearby. We used to have one in the city about 30 miles from us, but they tore that down to build a new Walgreens. I'm not even sure where the nearest one is now.

It just just after noon when we pulled in. The place was busy, but not horribly so. Mom and DD already knew what they wanted. They had been drooling over those commercials for the Double-Down. Basically, a chicken sandwich without the bun -- using two pieces of chicken in place of the bun, with cheese and bacon in the middle. Mom got the crispy version and DD got the grilled version. Hmm.. I guess I only took a picture of the crispy one

Mom got just the sandwich, and DD got the meal with fries and a drink.

DH ordered the Grilled Sandwich with potato wedges and a drink. He was eating the sandwich before I could get a picture. The poor boy was hungry!! I do have a pic of the wedges, though.

I had the mashed potato bowl and a drink.

I love this thing. It's actually very good that there is not a KFC nearby. I would be tempted to eat this every day. Major comfort food here -- mashed potatoes, corn, chicken, gravy, cheese all in one nice little bowl. (drooling here)

One funny little thing to happen -- DD had finished her drink and wanted a refill. We were sitting near the soda dispensers and told her to get her own refill. She tried using the puppy-dog eyes on her dad.

He got up and she did the YES arm pump.

This next picture is blurry, but priceless. He went to fill his own drink and left her cup there!

Mom and I were dying! Her shock at the fact that her dad didn't do what she wanted was hilarious.

All in all -- the food was tasty, service was pretty quick and the restaurant was not overly crowded. We had a good lunch and were ready to hit the road again! We left KFC at about 12:45 pm.

Up next -- we arrive at our first night's hotel.

 

[ddstratton]

In our last installment, we had just left KFC at about 12:45. We drove down through Pennsylvania.

(Mom's view)

We kept driving until we came to Chambersburg, PA. We arrived at the Holiday Inn Express at 2:55 pm.

We went in to get checked in. Total cost after tax for our "suite" was $152.59. I say "suite" in quotes, because it was still just one room plus bathroom. There was a tiny wall divider between the beds and the couch area. There was also a mini kitchen spot, with fridge, sink and microwave.

I had requested a room on the first floor, near the pool. First floor, because DD has a thing about not liking elevators. Near the pool -- well, the kid loves the pool and the less I have to walk hotel hallways in my swimsuit & towel, the better. We were given a room on the third floor, but it was still very close to the pool! We were diagonally across from the elevator, which was just around the corner from the pool! The room was spacious, clean and comfy though. We were happy with it and the location.

We got settled in, then went for a swim.

Mom enjoyed the hot tub.

Around 5:00, we walked over to Red Lobster. It was fairly close to the hotel, only across two parking lots.

The upper-left arrow is Red Lobster, and the right arrow is our Holiday Inn Express.

We started off with salads and the yummy cheddar biscuits.

I had the NY strip steak and rock lobster.

Duane had the fresh rainbow trout.

Mom and Elizabeth had the Lobster, shrimp and scallops.

The food was REALLY good. My steak was absolutely TASTY!!! Total here was $111.98. We had a $4 coupon, and $75 in gift certificates.

After supper, we walked across the parking lot to a Dollar Tree. Elizabeth bought a swim ring and a stuffed lizard. We stopped into Giant and bought 2 yogurts, a gallon of milk (which we mostly finished off by the next morning...), a jar of apple butter, and a Country Magazine for DH's mom (I buy these for her every week). Total was $10.08.

We went back to the pool for a bit.

After swimming, we decided that we were a little hungry again. Not sure how, after that feast at Red Lobster, but swimming will do that to ya. DH, DD and I walked next door to Arby’s. DH got a beef ‘n cheddar, DD got a regular roast beef, and I got a French dip meal. DD and Mom also got chocolate milk shakes. Total here was $17.56.

After vegging in the room for a while, we all went to bed. We were excited for the morning to come. We knew that with morning came our AutoTrain ride!