This is going to be my biggest monthly review so far as it was a very full month - from seeing the Northern Lights to travelling to DC and Niagara Falls it was jam-packed full of fun! So let’s get started!
One of my goals this year is to grow my own pumpkins for Halloween, and after a bit of research, I learned that May is the time to plant them. We went to the local gardening store for seeds and advice - and the advice was to plant the seeds in little pots and keep them indoors until they have sprouted, which takes about 2 weeks. Here are my little pumpkin babies all lined up on the window sill where they can get some sun.
Cinco de Mayo this year fell on a Sunday so it was a long work day for me. We did manage to celebrate a bit with some homemade tortillas that we used for burritos. I had been obsessed with making my own since we went to Chipotle last month. However, while they were absolutely delicious and objectively better than storebought ones, we decided the extra effort just wasn’t worth it for us. Ah well, it’s always good to try something new!
Friday May 10th was a big day. We headed to Monmouth to start the day so we could take the car in to get some (more) work done. Luckily from there it was a short walk into town and we finally did something I have wanted to do since 2020 - have a proper tour of the Shire Hall! I attended work functions in the upstairs of this building, but in the downstairs, they still have the court room and dungeons from the famous Chartist trials of 1839. Here’s Joel pretending to be a judge sentencing someone to death.
From there, when the car was done, we went up the Kymin to spend some time enjoying the view and the weather. It was a gorgeous day so we set out our picnic blanket and I read a book while Joel played on his phone. Around 3:00 Amy said she was ready for us to come over so we packed up and headed out for the 20 minutes drive to their house. Two hours later we arrived! It was the absolute worst traffic I have ever been in in my life. Between a broken down car on the old bridge, a traffic accident on the dual carriageway, road works in town, and then Google re-rerouting everyone to drive on back country roads it was an absolute mess. But we finally arrive at Amy & Ben’s in time to celebrate her birthday with a chocolate cake we brought from Costco!
After the kids went to bed we played “Don’t Say Um” which was really fun, and then Joel started introducing Amy & Ben to “Spirit Island.” I’m not interested in that game so I decided to sit on the couch and scroll my phone. Turns out this was a very good thing because Steve messaged to say that the Northern Lights were meant to be visible in our area. I immediately went outside to check and said I would report back. At first, I didn’t think we could see anything. The sky looked a little weird, but not colorful. Then I remembered something I had seen on a TikTok from Cecilia, who lives in Svalbard an island close the north pole - she said that sometimes you can’t see the lights with the naked eye but you can through a camera lens. So I pointed my phone at the sky and lo and behold!
I immediately went in to get Amy, Ben, and Joel and we spent a good half an hour outside taking photos and marveling at the sight. It was so incredible. This was a bucket list item for me and it was made all the more special to be with good friends and on our home turf! We left to go home around 2am, arriving around 3am, and decided to go for a walk around the castle to see if we could still see the lights. It was so worth it as especially with Joel’s new phone we were able to capture some amazing images!
On Saturday the 11th we watched the Eurovision finals and had fun getting live WhatsApp updates from Steve who was in the arena in Sweden! We made lasagna for dinner as we were rooting for the act from Croatia - named “Baby Lasagna” - to win. They made it to the top two but Nemo took home the win for Switzerland. Even though I was rooting for Croatia I am very happy that Swizterland won - the song is fantastic and the staging was incredible - Nemo definitely deserved to win!
On the 15th-17th I attended my first Superintendent’s Conference which was held in a hotel just outside of Oxford. I really enjoyed meeting other people serving in this role - it helped me feel not so alone! Everyone was very friendly and the learning sessions were quite helpful. I particularly enjoyed this one that had a shout out to a hometown brand - John Deere!
Then on Sunday the 19th I was off to the USA! This was the start of an epic 3-week long trip that I will share part of in this post and the rest in my June post. I began the journey going to Washington DC for a YCWI board meeting and then conference. It was such an amazing week and I came away with more knowledge and friendship, books to read, and people to follow and continue learning from. If I ever find the time I really should write a separate post about the whole week. For now, here is a photo of the board at the end of our 2 days of meeting.
On Thursday the 23rd I was so blessed that my long-time friend Bridget, who lives in Baltimore, was able to come to the city to see me. She just had a baby so she was on the tail end of maternity leave! We went to a great restaurant recommended by a friend of hers and enjoyed a few hours just catching up and spending time together.
Then on Friday the 24th my parents and brother picked me up and we were off on a family adventure! We drove to Virginia Beach and arrived pretty late in the evening, though Dad and I still enjoyed the view of the beach from our balcony while we had a drink. The next day we went out for a yummy breakfast, spent some time on the beach, went out for Mexican food, and then my brother and I played mini golf at a jungle themed place that was super fun. Here’s Matthew with what I’m pretty sure is a life-sized giraffe!
On Sunday I dragged the family to church with me! One of my favorite things to do when I travel is find out if there are any fellow young clergy women leading churches in the area - in Virginia Beach I had several to choose from. We ended up going to Old Donation Episcopal Church which dates back to 1640 - incredibly old for the USA! My mom and brother attended church in their historical building while Dad and I went to the contemporary service in the new building as that is where the young clergy woman was leading. We both had great experiences!
From there we made our way up to Philadelphia - stopping for some seafood along the way. Mom and dad shared a crab bucket while I got the chicken tenders because I don’t do food that lived in water!
On Monday, which was Memorial Day, we went into Philadelphia to see the Liberty Bell and some other famous spots. We ended up getting to see a Memorial Day presentation in Independence Square that had people dressed up in historical soldier’s uniforms. We also grabbed some philly cheesesteaks for lunch!
On Tuesday we drove to Gettysburg and had lunch at the Dobbin House Tavern which dates back to 1776! It was very atmospheric as you get to eat in the basement where the real spring still runs, and they light it with real candles! The food was also delicious.
After lunch we did a driving tour of the Gettysburg battlefield and memorials. I did not realize the place was so huge! We ended with a walking tour of the Gettysburg National Cemetery. After the battle, over 7,500 soldiers were buried in hasty, shallow graves on the battlefield. A national movement campaigned to build this cemetery and move the bodies to a more respectful place. The cemetery was dedicated on November 19, 1863 and was the location of Lincoln’s famous “Gettysburg Address.” This statue is the soldiers national monument that sits at the heart of the cemetery.
On Wednesday we drove to Niagara Falls via Buffalo, New York. Why Buffalo, you ask? Why, to get some wings, of course! We stopped at the Anchor Inn - the place that originated the famous buffalo wing. We ordered 50 of the original wing and barely managed to finish it all as a family of four.
Then we were off to Niagara Falls! Everyone says the Canadain side is better…but we started on the American side so we could experience both. The park was beautiful and it only cost a couple bucks to go up on the viewing platform. We thought this view was pretty good, but we didn’t know what was in store for us the next day!
The next day we took the iconic boat ride into the falls. Everyone knows it as the “Maid of the Mist” - and it is still called that on the American side. But the Canadian side changed hands in 2014 and is now called the “Hornblower.” Mom and I braved staying on the outside of the ship, while Dad and Matthew chickened out and sat inside. Here we are at the start of the journey with the viewing platform behind us.
And here we are after! We were soaked!
It was so worth it though to get pictures like this…
…and this!
And here is a whole family photo on the ship when we got back to the dock.
After that we got some poutine for lunch, then took a nice long nap before going out for a fancy dinner. From the boat we had spotted a cool tower overlooking the falls and mom wondered if they had a revolving restaurant at the top - it turns out yes! So we had dinner in the revolving restaurant and it was incredible. The food was good and the views were even better. I spotted my first rainbow from the falls!
After dinner we went up another 2 levels to the observation deck and hung out until it was dark enough to see the lights they shine on the falls every night.
On the walk back to the hotel I snapped a picture of the tower. I highly recommend eating here if you ever go to Niagara Falls!
The next day we drove to Toronto and I said “hello” to Joel and Steve who had just flown in and then “goodbye” to my parents and my brother. We shared a final meal at Tim Horton’s and then Joel, Steve and I were off on our RV adventure.
Stay tuned for next month to find out how that turned out…or didn’t!
XOXO, Bethany