Grandpa Visits

We are so incredibly lucky that our kids know all four of their grandparents. When we're in Conneaut Lake they get to see three of their grandparents daily and the fourth when he visits the lake. Here are a few pictures of Grandpa's last visit.

With his granddaughters.

And with his grandsons.

We're going to miss the lake and all the goes with it. It's time, though, that we move on to other summer adventures. I still have a lot of pictures and adventures to share from the summer, so I'll continue to blog a few times a week. I won't have a daily post as I have during out time at the lake, but I'll get something up every few days, so please check back.
~Becky

Midway Civic Club Dinner

We love going to the Midway Civic Club Dinner on the beach each summer. A bargain at $4 each, the catered dinner is surprisingly tasty. And hey, who doesn't like to have dinner plans every now and then.

On the menu - burgers and pulled pork, green salad, pasta salad, baked beans, cookie, and brownies.

How cute is my nephew?! He can barely see over the table.

Bob and I at the dinner.

The White Elephant and the Scavenger Hunt

Each summer, when all of the cousins are visiting, the kids go on a Scavenger Hunt. They're divided into two teams, boys vs. girls. Among the items on this year's list were a Hank's flavor schedule, a packet of Sweet 'n Low, and a small American flag. After receiving the list of nearly 20 items, the girls head in one direction and the boys in the other. At a set time, they meet up at the cottage and we see who found the most items. One item on this list surprised us all...think White Elephant!

The girls look over the list before heading out.

 After returning, we read each item on the list and the kids hold up the item if they've found it.

One item on this year's list read, "An unusual item smaller than a breadbox...think white elephant".  Well, when we got to that point in the list, the boys beamed as they pull a white elephant out of the bag. The girls, meanwhile, said, "Oh, we couldn't fine a white elephant!" None of them had any idea what we meant by 'white elephant'!  Who would have thought that someone would have a real white elephant to give the kids.

Do you know what we meant by white elephant? I thought it was a common term.

River Ridge Farm in Franklin - Inside the House

A few days ago, I promised to post some interior shots from our visit to River Ridge Farm. Bob's grandfather grew up in one of the workers' houses on the property of this vast estate. Often referred to as a castle, the grand house is absolutely impressive. It is not, however, a historical site and has not been preserved as such.

Above are the three original walk-in refrigerators. The tops of the doors are on the bottom of the shot. The small doors at the top held ice that cooled the 'refrigerators' below. Each refrigerator was the size of a large closet. They're used for storage today.

The house is full of details that would make any historian cringe. Different owners over the years have adapted it to fit their needs. Acoustic tiles cover ceilings, rooms have been subdivided, wallpaper borders decorate walls, etc. Amidst all of these added bits, however, are many original details. Below is an intercom system that must have been state of the art when the house was built.

I love, love, love this original cabinetry in the butler's pantry. I wonder what the original countertop was made of.

This was the most remarkable thing to me. They still use this coal furnace today! All winter long, they shovel coal into the furnace to heat the house. I didn't even know you could still buy coal.

The view from a bedroom window, below, shows the Allegheny River on the left and the town of Franklin on the right.

~Becky

Pittsburgh Dad

Have you seen the Pittsburgh Dad series on YouTube? If not, you must! The creator has nailed the entire essence of being a Pittsburgh Dad. Chris Wooten grew up in Pittsburgh and is now an actor in Los Angeles. He and a childhood friend created the Pittsburgh Dad character based on one of their fathers. Each 'episode' is only a few minutes long. The Mister Rogers-like intro is a nod to Mister Rogers being filmed in Pittsburgh. I'm telling you, Pittsburgh Dad is hysterical even if you've never been to this neck of the woods. If you're familiar with the Pittsburgh area at all, however, it's even funnier. This really is how people in Pittsburgh (and Conneaut Lake) talk.
One recent episode was particularly funny. In it, Pittsburgh Dad is tricked into seeing Magic Mike, the movie.  There are always local references, like the Pizza Joe's shirt in the Magic Mike episode. As an aside, my own parents and my aunt were 'tricked' into seeing Magic Mike last week. I had asked them if they'd like to join the kids and I and go see the Katy Perry movie. They scoffed at that idea, and chose a different movie at the same time. Once they got in the theater, my dad saw he was the only man and knew he was in trouble. Let's just say, they wish they'd seen the Katy Perry movie instead.

Watch it, you won't be sorry!
~Becky

They're Back - Chimney Swifts

Last summer we had a strange chimney swift incident at the cottage. In short, a pair of chimney swifts had built a nest in our chimney, as chimney swifts are known to do. Unable to perch, these birds spend their days flying through the air, eating pesky bugs as they go. They only rest when they cling to vertical surfaces, such as chimneys. Chimney swift nests are made of twigs glued with spit to the edge of the bricks. Last summer, a nest fell the entire length of our chimney to the very base of our fireplace, with only a thin wooden fireplace guard separating the babies from actually being in our cottage.
Fortunately, the dutiful parents tended to their babes the entire summer. Round the clock, they noisily swooped down the chimney, fed the birds and then exited again.
A few weeks ago, I smugly posted that the chimney swifts must have built a stronger nest this year. We could hear them, but only faintly since they were way up in the chimney.
I spoke too soon. A few mornings ago we heard a familiar sound and peeked into the fireplace to confirm our suspicions. Three eensy little chimney swift babies. Here's one little guy in part of the fallen nest.

I'm hopeful that mama and papa are as attentive this year as they were last. But, what do I do in the future? Should I put a guard on the top of my chimney so they can't build a nest again? I hesitate  because these birds eat so many mosquitoes and gnats and have few places left to nest. What would you do?
~Becky

River Ridge Farm in Franklin

This past winter, we discovered a great deal of family history that had, for whatever reason, been kept secret. Among the details was the fact that Bob's grandfather grew up on River Ridge Farm in Franklin, which is about an hour from Conneaut Lake. Bob's grandfather's father (Bob's great-grandfather) was a night watchman at the farm. This farm, you see, wasn't just any farm. It was the 'experimental farm' and castle-like home to the wealthy Joseph Sibley. Joseph Sibley made his fortune in the booming oil business, went on to become a congressman, and even conducted a failed run at the Presidency.
River Ridge is now privately owned by a religious group. We contacted them and they kindly spent an afternoon showing us around the impressive main house. The main house, of course, wasn't where Bob's grandfather grew up. He lived with his family in a small stone house on the property.

This, picture doesn't do the house justice. My lens wasn't nearly wide enough to capture the entire house. This website has fabulous pictures and a complete history of River Ridge.
The entire house was built in just nine months by hundreds of Italian stone masons. It is remarkably solid even today.

Joseph Sibley was an incredibly generous man, and the farm, by all accounts, was a wonderful place to group up. Many families lived and worked on the farm. Each Christmas, Sibley gave each child living on the farm a gift. During the Great Depression, he offered workers' families steep discounts on food and allowed them to grow their own plots of vegetables, thus softening the blow of the Depression to these families.

I'll save the interior shots for another post. 

~Becky