We had a lovely, relaxing vacation with the Withrows and the Rice families at Mindy’s girlhood home, Rice Orchards, in Northwood Ohio. Here is a fun little breakdown of our trip, by the numbers, with apologies for a few inside jokes:
days: 3 1/2
nights: 4 (if you count arriving at 3 am as one “night”)
miles traveled: 1000
Average daily temperature: 36
mornings we woke to an alarm clock: 0
seats at the Rice family table: 24
children under the age of seven: 11
number of turkeys consumed: 2
bookstores visited: 4
new books acquired: 2
books added to wishlist: 21 (9 for Rachel, 12 for Mike)
cups of coffee consumed (best guess): 21
conversations about Einstein, wormholes, and the speed of light: 3
James Bond debates (misogynistc, lackluster writing vs. genre-specific fun?): 1
Elf viewings: 2
Museum viewings: 1
Man Cave viewings: 1 (this is Mindy’s dad’s smoking room upstairs in the barn)
Walks in the orchard: 1 (see average daily temperature, above)
car accidents on the way home: 1
car accidents on the way home that were our fault: 0
The Crowning of St. Catherine
Peter Paul Rubens, 1577-1640
Toledo Museum of Art
Thanks again to our dear friends for a lovely holiday. Hope you and yours had an enjoyable weekend with much to be thankful for as well.
–Photography courtesy of Brandon Withrow.
If you were to total the number of hours spent talking, I think you’d agree that the coffee servings estimate is on the conservative side. You’ll be glad to know that the broken mug has been replaced by OUR Sary, but (perhaps) disappointed to realize that we forgot to send you home with the vinegar. The kids want to know what happened to their new pretty red-haired friend whose name is in the Bible. James Bond was, is, and ever shall be a stain on the entertainment industry and its consumers. Miss you already!!
Hi Min, I actually thought about the vinegar at some point on the way home. Too bad! We’ll just have to come back another time. Tell the kids that they have one more “Auntie” and “Uncle” if they are ever in Philadelphia. Mike says to tell you that he is about to make a pot of coffee and that he will be drinking his shaken, not stirred.
Miss you back!
LOL!! What fun you had!! well, except the car accident? not fun!! but 36 degrees leads to conversation/coffee/movies/anything inside!!? carol
hahaha…this pic is from out trip to the ICE exhibit last week. They give you parkas because many people come unprepared, not realizing you will be walking around in a room set to 9 degrees. Even if you do come prepared, the parka helps alot. Underneath that I had on two shirts and my pea coat!