A Weekend Away

As I mentioned in my last blog post, Ryan and I decided to have one final "weekend away" before my school year starts.

Friday night, some friends from church/dental school invited us to Seneca Lake, one of the "Finger Lakes" about two hours away from Buffalo, for an overnight of bonding, games, eating, and chatting.  It was a great time!  They reserved the use of a house on a beautiful campground, and we all shared the cost.

We chowed on pizza for dinner, walked down to the dock at sunset, played lawn games, chatted around the fire, played board games, and talked until 4 a.m.  It's been a while since I've been up that late!  It's wonderful to be able to relax with friends.

The next day, we did some tame kayaking (I just sat in my kayak and let the wind take me about 20 feet away and then I came back...I am a true athlete), and we went to one of the historical sites of our church, the Peter Whitmer Farm where the LDS Church was officially organized in 1830.  I love going to the church historical sights.  I feel a special reverence and gratitude as I remember the sacrifices that were made so that I can be part of a religion that I love and that brings me incalculable strength and joy.

Outside the Peter Whitmer home

From there, Ryan and I parted from our friends and journeyed to Watkins Glen State Park.  We had heard about this place from friends, and it did not disappoint.  The "hike" (it was more of a walk...I did it in flip flops) into the gorge was breathtaking with 17 waterfalls along the route.  Of course our camera died mid-way through the adventure, but here are a few shots that we managed to get:

It was romantic to walk holding hands through the craggy gorge past rumbling waterfalls.  At one point in the hike, you actually go behind a waterfall, and it's possible that I pulled Ryan into a dark nook and gave him a kiss.

Watkins Glen also has a free, Olympic size swimming pool, and we enjoyed a brief dip.  (We actually did this before the hike, so we could be walking at dusk.)  This sign cracked me up--I mean honestly, who swims when they have diarrhea?  (I guess enough people that they had to make a sign...Gross!  And please notice the second plea on the list.  Okay, now I'm going to throw up.)

That night, we camped and stayed nice and cozy in our tent.

The next morning, I had my run-in with Officer A. Madaffari.

I was reading my citation today, and it has this part at the bottom that says, "Please take notice that pursuant to section 71030(1)(A) of the criminal procedure law,  the people intend to offer at a trial of the above entitled action evidence of a statement made by you on 8/29/2010 at 11:00 a.m. to Officer A. Madaffari, a public servant, in which you substantially stated as follows: "Was I speeding?"

Oh man--"Was I speeding?"  Do I sound lame or what?  I hate it when they ask you if you know why you were pulled over!  (Not that I would know from past experience because I have never been pulled over before...wink wink.)

After attending the last hour of church (remember, we arrived there late, thanks to our friend the public servant), we spent the afternoon exploring Ithaca, New York.  The lake-front Farmers Market is funky and fun; the nearby state parks are filled with incredible gorges and waterfalls.  AMAZING.   We waded around in the water and climbed on to some waterfalls.  (Wish I had our own photos to prove it, but due to our dead camera battery, I'll have to rely on an image from yahoo.)

Pretty stunning, yes?

We drove home that evening and saw the sun set, and then there was glowing mist on all of the farmland.  I've never seen that before.  It reminded us of a Civil War movie.

I am going to miss the beauty of Western New York when we leave this place at the end of the school year.  But hey, we could end up living somewhere equally beautiful or perhaps more beautiful.  Ryan got his first interview offer for pediatric residencies today, and you'll never guess where:

Hawaii.

I think I could handle living there for two years.  

(But the final decision on that is still months in the future.  Who knows where else he will interview and where he will get accepted.  Still, it's exciting.)

xoxo.