Westward Bound

We set off for Ohio from the city Friday afternoon. Before we knew it our scenery went from buildings and bridges to fields and flowers.

We decided to make the long weekend a vacation. Rather than push through Pennsylvania, only stopping for potty breaks, we took our time and enjoyed the back roads.  

We parked the truck and rode bikes into State College on Saturday afternoon, arriving just in time to meet paper Mitt and a welcoming tailgater.

Dominic even got to rub the lucky rock with paper Barack 

We made a pit stop at the coffee pot before finding a hotel for the night. Although my co-workers questioned my hotel choices during all those trip to Seattle over the years, I realized the effort paid off during this trip. Choice Privilege reward point hotels are everywhere. Need a place to stay in Somerset, PA? There are at least three hotels in a five mile radius. It has been perfect since we didn't make any effort to plan this adventure.

Dominic made a friend near Bentleyville, PA. Big Jim, the metal cowboy, was quite the sight for road-weary eyes:

If we could do it again we would have planned ahead and made a visit to Falling Water. It was on our list, but the tickets were sold out this weekend.

There was something special about this trip for me though. It may have been the flexibility we felt, perhaps it was the Amish buggies we spotted along the way. I think it may be the reality that this trip marks the end of an era in our marriage. Dominic and I have lived away for years and we have talked about being closer to family since Armenia. I wouldn't trade our experiences in Seattle and New York for anything, but I'm really excited to insert our lives into the network of extended family in Ohio. Watch out Buckeyes, we're on our way!