Drive Me To The Moon - Day 2

Sunday

We woke up this morning knowing we had a very very long driving day ahead of us. After a quick breakfast at the hotel, we headed out.

Our first stop was in Waakoneta, OH at the Armstrong Air & Space Museum.  

We didn't have time to explore the museum, but there was a rocket ship and space pod outside to see.

And some great hills for rolling down! 

As we continued down the highway, we saw a number of billboards counting down to the eclipse.

We happened upon a neat store in Monroe, OH with tons of animal statues outside.(Including an anatomically correct horse!)

There was a traffic jam and highway detour as we headed into Cincinnati and decided to take an impromptu stop for some play time.  We remembered how much fun the park was on the riverfront from the last trip we took through the city.  

Logan definitely had fun the first time we were here, but this time was even better!! Music makers, climbing walls, big slides and a flying pig were are thrilling to 3-year-old Logan!!

Just outside of Cincinnati is Futuro - a flying saucer house! We stoped to snap a picture.

We continued on through Florence (y'all)...

And stopped at a rest stop in Georgetown, KY to stretch our legs. 

Eventually, after stopping for groceries, we made it into Pigeon Forge, TN at around 11:30pm.

Drive Me To The Moon - Day 1

Saturday 

We departed Guelph today on what is becoming an annual family road trip. 

This time we're chasing the eclipse and trying to make our way to totality in Tennessee. 

Also, our family has grown again since our last trip! Hamish is our sweet baby who was the reason why we booked this trip last minute.  The problem is that Mr. Mish happens to hate being in the car!  The possibility of driving for days with a crying baby was not appealing at all.  At the last minute, we decided to just go for it, and we'd make it work!

We have mastered the art of packing a car, and worked it out so that there is a seat for me in the back if I need it to sit with Hamish.

We left guelph today at 2:30pm and made it as far as London before Hamish needed a car break!

However....after he had a full belly, we continued on our way.  After a quick stop just outside of Detroit for dinner, we arrived at our hotel in Toledo, Ohio at around 10:30pm.  We settled into our hotel quickly and crashed for the night!!

Ontario Day Tripping - Weekend 1

After our trip to Iceland in the spring, a big summer road trip is not in the budget.  Instead, we will be exploring the sights around us in Ontario!

This weekend we celebrated Canada day in Riverside Park at home in Guelph.   On Friday afternoon Logan enjoyed the free petting zoo and bouncy castles! In the evening we watched the fireworks!!

Saturday Morning we packed the car and headed east on the 401.  Our first stop was Port Hope.

Port Hope is a charming little town!

We were glad to hear that they were still celebrating Canada Day, and headed down to their town hall. 

Every Saturday morning they have a small market behind town hall.  We strolled around a bit and made a couple of purchases.

Right next door to town hall is Memorial park.  The park was decked out for Canada Day weekend.  There was even a lively blue grass band in the band shell! 

After a picnic lunch in the park, we decided to hop on a horse and carriage ride! 

We also took a look at the antique tractor show!

After some serious play time in the bouncy castles, Logan fell asleep as we wandered the town.  

We grabbed a little treat at Sugar Dust Bakery before finding our way to the Fire Fighters Museum. 

There were lots of cool things that Logan would have enjoyed here, but he was sound asleep! 

Before getting back in the car, we couldn't resist stopping at Dreamer's Cafe! They are known for their trade mark Crazy Cookies! 

Heading down the road a little bit we stopped at a super cool Road Side attraction/store called Primitive their huge sculptures help it to stand out! 

This store had so much kitsch! I will not be surprised if we come back here one day!! 

By the time we had finished up at Primitive a Designes, it was almost 5:00.  We agreed that this would have been a great day trip, and well worth the 2 hour drive! With its "Back to the Future" esque town hall and old theatre, it definitely felt like a town stuck in the mid century!  Port hope is full of charm, and we weren't surprised to learn that Steven King is re shooting "It" here next week!   

We knew we would be making a weekend out of this trip, so we hopped back on the 401 east towards Cobourg.  As we zoomed down the 401 we caught a glimpse of the VW Spider on the south side of the highway. 

Making our way into Cobourg, the town was bustling with people enjoying the waterfront festival.  

We went to check out the midway set up on the pier, but decided there wasn't anything there that we wanted to ride on.  

We wandered the streets a bit and found a spot for dinner.

After dinner, we had decided to call it a day, and headed to our hotel for the night. 

Sunday, we went back into Cobourg  to spend the day on the beach! 

Cobourg beach was lovely! I'd definitely recommend it! With a great boardwalk lined with parks and splash pads, it was great fun for kids.  The water was also quite shallow and felt safe as it was monitored by lifeguards. 

We finished up at the beach and enjoyed some late lunch by the bandshell. 

 After a lovely day in the sunshine we decided to head back on the road. We stopped at Dragonfly park on our way home in Guelph for Logan to enjoy some play time! 

This was a fantastic long weekend, and we can't wait to explore more of Ontario!