Day 12 - Our full day in Detroit

Our day started out with a sweet stop at the Sanders Candy factory in nearby Clinton Township.  The traffic was very thick and took us 45 minutes to go about 10 miles.  We got a tour about the making of chocolate and then into the factory.  Solinda bought 2 boxes of caramel and almond bark and everyone enjoyed some fresh ice cream made from real cream from nearby dairy farms.

Nathan looked at the map and found the Metro Beach Metropark on Lake St. Clair.  We drove about 10 minutes and paid a small fee before entering.  We loved the Nature Center and Sariah got to put a freshly-hatched Monarch butterfly on the flowers outside.  Timothy liked reading about muskrats.  Samuel was investigating 2 snakes.  Nathan learned about populations of deer, moose, and elk in Michigan from the Michigan State student working there.  He also showed us that Lake St. is the connector lake between Lake Huron and Lake Erie.  It averages only 10 feet deep with the deepest point at 24 feet.  It is also known as the "Heart of the Great Lakes" due to its shape and geographic position.  We then went down by the lake past the golf course where everyone got to feel the water.  We then played catch with Sam's Pittsburgh Steeler football and enjoyed the cool breeze for half an hour.  We loved the 75-degree sunny day.

Solinda chose lunch at Cracker Barrel which was our best meal of the week or trip for everyone.  Perkins in Minneapolis is the rival.  Nathan loved the Campfire Chicken meal which include a quarter chicken, potatoes, corn, tomatoes, onions and cornbread all cooked to perfection.  It reminds him of Old-Timers down by Memphis from last summer.

After resting back at the hotel for an hour and a half, we headed down to the Tigers game at Comerica Park against the Seattle Mariners.  We went early and arrived to the stadium at 5:30 for a 7:08 start time.  We were in the last box of Miguel Cabrera bobbleheads being distributed to all fans at the left-field gate.  We found out after the game that they are collectors due to the fact that each bobblehead has the MVP award as both American and National League in separate places.  The game was very entertaining and the weather was perfect.  It was 76 degrees at the start of the game and ended at 71.  After the game, which Seattle won in dominating fashion 7-2, there was country music and fireworks.  The game was a sellout and the fans were very good-natured and supportive of their Tigers.  This, the Pirates and the Twins games were our favorite experiences so far.  Our departure out of the stadium and downtown was under 10 minutes!  However, on the trip back to Warren, there were almost two accidents in front of us and we almost got hit from the side by a different driver.  Definitely the most aggressive set of drivers anywhere in any cities we've yet seen in any of our summers so far!  Nathan was so blown away - he stayed in the far right lane for the last 5 miles back on the 75.

Our beds were waiting for us after a fun-filled and action-packed day...

Day 11 - Kirtland to Detroit

After getting back late and watching the 12th inning on TV as the Diamondbacks won in 12 innings the night before, we rolled out of bed slowly as Nathan decided it would be better for everyone if everyone could sleep in, get breakfast and then head to Kirtland.

So, we arrived at the Visitors' Center just before 11:00.  The tour of the grounds ran for an hour and 45 minutes and we loved it.  So much important organization and building was done by the Lord in the building of His Church here in this small area.  We toured the Whitney store and Timothy was quick to notice how many supplies (several pages worth) his ancestor Truman Angel purchased in a 6-month period in the registry. We loved sitting in the room of the School of the Prophets, touring the the Whitneys home where the Prophet Joseph Smith stayed for 6 weeks and then seeing maps of the original settlement showing where everyone lived.  The last spots we visited were the sawmill (which actually works) and the only remaining ashery in the U.S. which was were a coal-like substance was formed and then sold to make glass and many metals.  As we left to go down the road, the lasting impressions were the great faith, obedience and devotion to the gospel required and exercised so willingly by all of these faithful saints who gave all of their material possessions to the Lord for His work each and every time they moved with the Church.

Our next stop was the Morley farm for about 30 minutes.  It was again impressive to see how prepared the entire area was for the work of the Lord to visit in 1830.  Isaac Morley came there in 1811 and was a strong figure in the area, where he and his wife farmed and started a school for local children in the traditions of learning from Massachusetts.  Amazingly before that, he had come back and forth from there to northwest Ohio to prepare a farm and home before going back to get his childhood sweetheart, marry her and then bring her out.  This journey was very slow and was about 600 miles on foot...what devotion!

After a delicious lunch at Zoup's, we went for a tour of the Kirtland Temple.  We all learned a lot about this very special and sacred building and were very happy to learn that Truman Angel was the chief architect for some of the first floor and all of the top 2 floors.

We left at 4:00 and drove over to Detroit - arriving about 7:30 to Warren on the north side of the city.  The drive was only sticky for 10 minutes on the southeast corner of Cleveland and then smooth sailing.  Highlights of the trip included a stop at a state-run Travel Plaza in Ohio which had restrooms, food, gas, shops and was very well-kept.  We got a view of Toledo from the distance and then saw the Ford Factory on the south side of Detroit before downtown and were amazed 70-mph zone all the way through the city.   Bed was late again...

Day 10 - Pittsburgh, Niles, Hiram and Cleveland

The day began with lots of clouds and rain in Pennsylvania as we headed northwest out of the area.  Traffic was very light - the lightest of the entire trip so far.  Green rolling hills continued into Ohio and decreased in size as we headed into Ohio, but the green did not.  Temperatures hovered in the low 60s for the entire morning as we drove.  It is a gentle reminder that so much green and so much water in rivers and lakes in August does not come without a price in the weather for much of the year...

We headed off of the beaten path to Niles, Ohio and were all very impressed with the old homes and all the grass.  Gas prices were much cheaper than in the Pittsburgh area.  After a few pictures and sightseeing, we headed west and north on back roads to Hiram to the Johnson family farm.  We all loved the stop and it is the highlight of the trip thus far.  Not only did the prophet Joseph Smith live there for 1 year, but it was Church headquarters and 16 sections of the Doctrine and Covenants were received there.  It was inspiring to sit in the very room where these were recorded.  At the end, Elder Walker - who gave us the tour - asked for Nathan and another dad to stand on the steps facing south and deliver their testimonies to their families from the exact steps where talks were given.  It was truly a choice and spiritual experience.

We had picked up some info about Mesopotamia, Ohio there - which is the home of many Amish farmers and has the oldest operating General Store in the United States, opened in 1830.  We drove up and ate lunch there, enjoying all the farming and the Amish homes and wagons as we went.  We even ate next to a family.  On our way from there to Cleveland, we bought some Amish popcorn and peaches for the future.

Our hotel in Wickliffe was easy to get to and is in the perfect location, about 13 miles from Progressive Field and less than 10 from Kirtland.  We got in and out of the game with no problems and were there nice and early to catch Game 1 of the double header from the day before's rain out, which Zach Walters won with his first career home run - a walkoff in the bottom of the ninth.  Game 2 went 12 innings, of which we saw 10 before Sariah melted down, we came back to the hotel and then watched the bottom of the 12th as Reed nailed down the save for the Diamondbacks.

Sam loved Progressive Field the most of all the parks this summer and ranks it #2 behind the Rangers ballpark at Arlington.  They had a batting cage, a pitching booth, a baserunning cage, pictures and video games all for free!  Tim, Sam and Sariah all were busy for over an hour in the Kids' Clubhouse on these things and loved it.  One of the workers told us that the Indians organization will be expanding it to 2 floors for next year as it has been a smashing success.  He invited us back for next year.  We all got to sleep about 11:45...

Day 9 - Pittsburgh area

We slept in well and then went to a nice breakfast in the restaurant in the Comfort Inn on the eastern side of Pittsburgh up on the hill in the forest.

We then headed downtown to the Monongahela Incline, which runs up the cliff on the side of the Monongahela River just before it comes together with the Allegheny River to form the Ohio.  It was built in 1870 and runs almost 400 feet up on a cable.  It is still used by commuters.  By the time we got down and headed back to the car, most of the family were dehydrated and hot due to the high humidity.

We then traversed many streets  in soutwestern Pittsburgh up in the heights, the historic well-off area of town full of beautiful old homes, in order to get to the Chick-fil-A so we could use our coupons from the Pirates tickets.  It took an hour to get there, but we enjoyed the sightseeing and the food.

We then headed up towards the airport through a deluge of rain at 30 to 40 miles per hour on the 376 interstate to the Mainstay Inn & Suites.  We stayed there and rested before heading out to the Pirates game against the Tigers on an alternate route from the northern part of the city so as to avoid the traffic in the tunnels from the south.  We arrived a little late and combining the drive home from the game with earlier adventures in the city, Nathan has deemed Pittsburgh the most difficult city to find your way around.

We absolutely LOVED the game and Three Rivers Stadium.  The fans were very well-behaved and all stood to cheer on their Pirates for the last out of the game.  Not only did we have a wonderful view of the Allegheny River and downtown right behind it (we sat high on the third base side of the stadium), but we were delighted at the view of the bluff of the city in the backdrop to the south with an old church and other amazing buildings as a skyline at dusk and into the night.  It didn't rain and the temperature was nice and cool.  The exit from the stadium was our quickest from a large stadium and we the walk back to the car along the river was picturesque and memorable.  After sleeping on it, Nathan decided to join Solinda in naming it their favorite park.  The Pirate-like organ was the best music yet...Cleveland will have lots to match up to :)

Day 8 - Cincinnati to Columbus to Pittsburgh

After a great night's sleep and a less-crowded breakfast, we left our Kentucky room behind and headed to downtown Cincinnati for a trip up to the top of the historic landmark of Cincinnati - the Carew Tower.  The kids loved the trip up two elevators and stairs to get to the 49th floor.  The view of the city, the Ohio River and surrounding hills was breathtaking and we had the place to ourselves.  The kids loved how fast the elevator for the first 45 floors went (30 seconds).  The building was built in 1930 and is still the second tallest in the city.

On to Columbus, Ohio where we looked up the temple.  We had lots of rain in spurts to between the two cities and in them.  However, when we got to the temple it momentarily let up just so we could get pictures and then started up again...Next, we looked up the Ohio Statehouse, got pictures with Christopher Columbus and Walter McKinley (born in Niles, Ohio) statues and then headed inside.  The Statehouse has an incredible rotunda all the way up with neat acoustics and colors.  We mailed postcards down in the basement and then went to the museum about the state government and people.  It was very interactive and the kids enjoyed it, too.  Our trip back onto the interstate took almost 5 miles until we got an entrance (they are really spread out).

Leaving Columbus and heading east on I-70, we left the farmland behind within 10 miles and we headed into the rolling hills and clouds.  The beauty and green in mid-August is breathtaking.  It is like a semitropical rainforest.  Beautiful vistas to the north and south, hills, rivers and streams for 150 miles to get into Pittsburgh.  Zanesville, Ohio and Wheeling, West Virginia are beautiful towns with old, ornate architecture lying along rivers and nestled in the hills.  We are looking forward to someday seeing colors in the autumn in this forest.  It was cool to be in West Virginia for 13 miles - which we didn't expect.

Canonsburg, Pennsylvania is the home of Sarris Chocolates, where we stopped, got some treats and took a picture with the 1200-pound chocolate castle.

We got caught in some normal traffic going into the city at rush hour (yes...this is still very confusing) and lost 1 hour for 10 miles going into the Fort Pitt tunnel before the Ohio river. Exciting at the end, but we won't do that again.  We then headed east for 10 miles and had a nice drive up to our Comfort Inn stay on a forested hill.  The temperature was in the 50s with a wind and as Tim put it, "It felt like January in 29 Palms."  Our room has a nice balcony and the Inn has covered walkway to a covered and heated pool. 

Day 7 - Erlanger (suburb of Cincinnati), Kentucky relaxing

Well, our first day of relaxation.  We slept in until 9:00 and then got ready for Church, where we attended the Highland Heights Ward in the Lakeside Park building.  Some Church highlights were a talk on reverence, friendly members, practicing with the men for a stake choir (Ye Elders of Israel), good youth and a good lesson on baptism in high priests.  Church ran from 11 to 2.

We ate at Steak 'n' Shake and then headed back to the hotel for laundry and then popcorn and bed.  Before bed, we listened and watched a massive thunderstorm.  Right before bed, we realized that we passed into the eastern time zone somewhere in the last 2 days...sleep was at 9...