One of my Bucket List items was to travel the country in an RV.
Obviously, I am going to be able to check that one off the "list."
Obviously, I am going to be able to check that one off the "list."
Another one of my Bucket List items was to go to New England for the Fall.
It's pretty cool that I get to check that one off my "list" also.
It's pretty cool that I get to check that one off my "list" also.
My very favorite time of the year is Fall. I love the leaves changing; the crisp, cool weather; football games; sweatshirts...you get the picture.
This year while on my JOURNEY, I was able to see so much Fall!
It was absolutely AMAZING!
The scenery was so SPECTACULAR!
That's the word I came up with for how beautiful all the leaves were on the trees.
It was absolutely SPECTACULAR!
It was absolutely AMAZING!
The scenery was so SPECTACULAR!
That's the word I came up with for how beautiful all the leaves were on the trees.
It was absolutely SPECTACULAR!
Now, this is coming from a girl who grew up in NJ, but who's lived in Southern California for 30 years, and I don't see very much Fall here. Our leaves (a tiny bit of them) change around December; fall off by January, and start blooming again in about two weeks. I don't consider that Fall at all.
I was one happy girl to get to be in the South for fall; the East Coast for Fall; New England for Fall; Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Indiana for Fall.
There was a little bit of Fall left in Illinois, but just a little bit!
Then there was Fall again in New Mexico and Utah!
I was one happy girl to get to be in the South for fall; the East Coast for Fall; New England for Fall; Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Indiana for Fall.
There was a little bit of Fall left in Illinois, but just a little bit!
Then there was Fall again in New Mexico and Utah!
After Barry and I left NYC, we went back and picked up our truck in NJ from our friend, Jeff. He was the great guy who let us park our truck in his driveway and took us to the train station AND when we got back, he had washed and waxed our truck!
Now, that is an amazing friend.
That blew us away!
Thanks again, Jeff! You're the best!
Now, that is an amazing friend.
That blew us away!
Thanks again, Jeff! You're the best!
Last year, when I was talking about my trip to my friend, John Graham, whom I cleaned for to raise money for my trip, he told me that he had been to Connecticut last October, and it had SNOWED! I was like, "Oh, no! There is no way I can drive a truck and trailer in the snow! I haven't driven in snow for 30 years!"
So that's why we decided to leave the camper in NJ and just take the truck to New England.
It's a good thing we did!
Barry and I were on a major road (no, I don't know the number of the road. That's such a guy thing. My whole trip, guys would ask me, "Did you take Route 2 or 79 or 32 or 52 or 8 or 5 or?"...okay...you get the picture).
I don't know what road we were on, but it was a major road. I cannot tell you how many bridges we had to drive under that the camper would NOT have fit under! It would have been bad....really, really bad! My camper is at least 9' tall without considering the air conditioner. There were bridges that had a clearance of only 9'!
Thank God for John Graham sharing his snow experience, or we would have been in BIG touble towing the camper to Massachusetts and not being able to fit under the bridges of the Northeast!
So that's why we decided to leave the camper in NJ and just take the truck to New England.
It's a good thing we did!
Barry and I were on a major road (no, I don't know the number of the road. That's such a guy thing. My whole trip, guys would ask me, "Did you take Route 2 or 79 or 32 or 52 or 8 or 5 or?"...okay...you get the picture).
I don't know what road we were on, but it was a major road. I cannot tell you how many bridges we had to drive under that the camper would NOT have fit under! It would have been bad....really, really bad! My camper is at least 9' tall without considering the air conditioner. There were bridges that had a clearance of only 9'!
Thank God for John Graham sharing his snow experience, or we would have been in BIG touble towing the camper to Massachusetts and not being able to fit under the bridges of the Northeast!
On that road with the low clearance bridges, we headed to Rockport, MA. We stayed in a cozy, little cottage in Rockport that we rented on a site called AirBnb from a very nice woman named Patricia.
Here's the link to her house: Sea Mist Cottage.
It was such a cute place, and Patricia was great!
Here's the link to her house: Sea Mist Cottage.
It was such a cute place, and Patricia was great!
Rockport is such a quaint, little New England coastal town. It's the kind you see in the movies (The Proposal was filmed there), and they definitely use their scenery for jigsaw puzzles :)
We had a great time walking through the little town and going out for lobster at a really cool place called The Lobster Pool. It wasn't very fancy...paper plates, plastic utensils and plastic cups, but the view was breathtaking, and it was BYOB, so Barry and I got to share a great bottle of Riesling that my friend, Laurie, bought me for my birthday from Napa!
Yes, the bottle traveled from Napa to San Diego all the way across the country to Rockport!
Thanks, Laurie.
All of that was so great, but one thing that blessed me the most was one of the days, Barry was reading his bible on his Ipad (very cool that you don't have to just have that really BIG bible that sits on the coffee table collecting dust anymore).
He said, "I want to read you something. I think this bible verse is about you."
Oh, no!!! That could be really good or really bad!
He read to me Proverbs 31:10-31
"A good woman is hard to find,
and worth far more than diamonds.
Her husband trusts her without reserve,
and never has reason to regret it.
Never spiteful, she treats him generously
all her life long.
She shops around for the best yarns and cottons,
and enjoys knitting and sewing.
She’s like a trading ship that sails to faraway places
and brings back exotic surprises.
She’s up before dawn, preparing breakfast
for her family and organizing her day.
She looks over a field and buys it,
then, with money she’s put aside, plants a garden.
First thing in the morning, she dresses for work,
rolls up her sleeves, eager to get started.
She senses the worth of her work,
is in no hurry to call it quits for the day.
She’s skilled in the crafts of home and hearth,
diligent in homemaking.
She’s quick to assist anyone in need,
reaches out to help the poor.
She doesn’t worry about her family when it snows;
their winter clothes are all mended and ready to wear.
She makes her own clothing,
and dresses in colorful linens and silks.
Her husband is greatly respected
when he deliberates with the city fathers.
She designs gowns and sells them,
brings the sweaters she knits to the dress shops.
Her clothes are well-made and elegant,
and she always faces tomorrow with a smile.
When she speaks she has something worthwhile to say,
and she always says it kindly.
She keeps an eye on everyone in her household,
and keeps them all busy and productive.
Her children respect and bless her;
her husband joins in with words of praise:
“Many women have done wonderful things,
but you’ve outclassed them all!”
Charm can mislead and beauty soon fades.
The woman to be admired and praised
is the woman who lives in the Fear-of-God.
Give her everything she deserves!
Festoon her life with praises!"
Ummmm I don't really knit or sew or make clothes or a lot of other things that scripture says, and
Barry doesn't even know that that's the one part of the bible most Christian women want to be about them!
I was and am very blessed that Barry thinks that about me.
And if Barry thinks that about me, I thank God because only through God could those things be possible!
Thanks so much, Barry!
Thank you, God!
Yes, the bottle traveled from Napa to San Diego all the way across the country to Rockport!
Thanks, Laurie.
All of that was so great, but one thing that blessed me the most was one of the days, Barry was reading his bible on his Ipad (very cool that you don't have to just have that really BIG bible that sits on the coffee table collecting dust anymore).
He said, "I want to read you something. I think this bible verse is about you."
Oh, no!!! That could be really good or really bad!
He read to me Proverbs 31:10-31
"A good woman is hard to find,
and worth far more than diamonds.
Her husband trusts her without reserve,
and never has reason to regret it.
Never spiteful, she treats him generously
all her life long.
She shops around for the best yarns and cottons,
and enjoys knitting and sewing.
She’s like a trading ship that sails to faraway places
and brings back exotic surprises.
She’s up before dawn, preparing breakfast
for her family and organizing her day.
She looks over a field and buys it,
then, with money she’s put aside, plants a garden.
First thing in the morning, she dresses for work,
rolls up her sleeves, eager to get started.
She senses the worth of her work,
is in no hurry to call it quits for the day.
She’s skilled in the crafts of home and hearth,
diligent in homemaking.
She’s quick to assist anyone in need,
reaches out to help the poor.
She doesn’t worry about her family when it snows;
their winter clothes are all mended and ready to wear.
She makes her own clothing,
and dresses in colorful linens and silks.
Her husband is greatly respected
when he deliberates with the city fathers.
She designs gowns and sells them,
brings the sweaters she knits to the dress shops.
Her clothes are well-made and elegant,
and she always faces tomorrow with a smile.
When she speaks she has something worthwhile to say,
and she always says it kindly.
She keeps an eye on everyone in her household,
and keeps them all busy and productive.
Her children respect and bless her;
her husband joins in with words of praise:
“Many women have done wonderful things,
but you’ve outclassed them all!”
Charm can mislead and beauty soon fades.
The woman to be admired and praised
is the woman who lives in the Fear-of-God.
Give her everything she deserves!
Festoon her life with praises!"
Ummmm I don't really knit or sew or make clothes or a lot of other things that scripture says, and
Barry doesn't even know that that's the one part of the bible most Christian women want to be about them!
I was and am very blessed that Barry thinks that about me.
And if Barry thinks that about me, I thank God because only through God could those things be possible!
Thanks so much, Barry!
Thank you, God!
New England coastline - just beautiful!
Rockport, MA
Some Fall :)
This is "Motif #1" located on Bradley Wharf in the harbor town of Rockport, Massachusetts, it's a fishing shack well known to students of art and art history as "the most often-painted building in America."
Enjoying coffee
This is a hiking trail we took to an old quarry on the ocean
A sea angel :)
We added some stones to the piles
The old quarry
The Lobster Pool restaurant
Me and my bottle of Riesling from Laurie :)
A beautiful sunset to go with our lobster and wine
This is in the little town of Rockport. I thought it was funny because it goes with a blog post way back in the beginning of my trip. See: Can the Maker of Sunrises Make Bad Things Good, Part 1 where God had given me a vision of Gumby for the tire repair guy.
So funny!
This is Patricia, the owner of the Sea Mist Cottage, where we stayed. She was a great hostess.
As Barry and I were leaving, we asked Pat if we could pray for her. She said yes. We prayed for her, her kids, her business etc. She was very touched. She said, "No one that has stayed at my cottage has ever prayed for me before."
We were happy to do that!
Thanks for everything, Pat. We enjoyed meeting you and staying in your cottage.
Hope you're following along on the JOURNEY :)
