Not the weekend we had planned, but other good things instead

Sunday evening.  Another slow weekend that we tried to fill with things to take the place of what we wished we could be doing.  This was supposed to be the bi-annual Witmer reunion at Refreshing Mountain Retreat in Lancaster County.  But Covid changed those plans.  I'm not exhausted like I would be if we had been able to go, but my heart is not filled with precious memories of fun times and sweet music.  

Here's the group picture that was taken two years ago.

One of the best things to take its place was our sibling Zoom gathering on Saturday morning. Over two hours long!  I lost all track of time.  It was only when our batteries were dying and our bladders were getting full that we finally said our awkward Zoom goodbyes.  There were eight of us.  My brother and his wife and two of my sisters, all of whom live in Lancaster County, one sister from Georgia, one from Idaho, one from New Hampshire, and me from State College.  Other family members came into the rooms and said their hellos from time to time. It was SO GOOD!!  

I was taking screen shots as we talked, and of course caught most of us in unflattering moments, but we don't even care.  

Our Saturday actually started and ended with some pretty good food.  Almost every day I make Dick an omelet for breakfast before he goes to work, usually Western style.  On weekends he either makes his own or I try something different for variety.  Yesterday I decided to make Mexican omelet wraps  for the first time ever.  In addition to the regular peppers and onions, I added cilantro, a leftover hamburger, and cherry tomatoes.  For seasoning, in addition to the regular pepper and salt I added chili powder and cumin.  Then we had the eggs in a tortilla.  When I told Dick that a slice of our regular bread has 17 carbs, but a tortilla has 25, he said, "And we're doing this why?"  I said, "For variety!"  He could eat the same things every day for ten years and it would not bother him one bit!

For dinner I made one of our favorite things.  I chop whatever fresh veggies are in my fridge and a couple of sweet potatoes and a pack of smoked brats, drizzle everything with olive oil, and season it with pepper, salt, oregano, and basil, then roast it in a 400 degree oven for around 45 minutes.  So delicious!

I went to Sam's Club late Saturday afternoon, actually much later than I had planned to go.  I could not believe my eyes when I walked in and saw a display of disinfecting wipes!  I had not seen any in any store in months!  They were allowing only one pack per member, and I think every person coming through the door was taking a pack!  The guy that checked my receipt as I left said that they had just come in within the past hour and were going fast.  I was so thankful I had not gone earlier as I had hoped to do!  I would have missed them.

I got this glimpse of our sunset Saturday evening.  I often wonder what it looks like on the other side of that mountain.  Some evening we should drive up to the top of the mountain just to see it.  

We had beautiful weather for our outdoor service at GBRV this morning.  We definitely had more people than we've had the past few weeks.  

Afterward we came home, and this is how I attended Calvary's service, haha!  As we watched,  I was also uploading the video Dick had taken of GBRV's service to the church's YouTube channel.  

After a late lunch we wanted to hit the road again for some place new.  Mostly I just needed to get my mind off not being with any grandchildren again.  We decided to go to Greenwood Furnace State Park, about 45 minutes from here.  We had driven by it a few times since we live in Central PA, but were never actually there.  

On the way we stopped at an overlook of State College, but it was starting to cloud over, so not a great view.  

We passed our very favorite BBQ joint - Doan's Bones.  

As we arrived at the park the sky was looking like rain any minute, so I carried my umbrella.

A beautiful place with lots of picnic areas and pavilions. 

A sandy shore by the lake. 

Dick was especially fascinated by this waterfall. 

I guess that was the furnace!

I have no idea what this building was.  At first I thought housing for furnace workers, but it looks more like a warehouse.  As you can see, it was already raining when I took this picture through the windshield.  We sat in the parking lot for quite a while during a heavy downpour.  

We passed Doan's Bones on the way home again.  I really hope we can go there sometime this summer.  It does look like they've added more outdoor seating.  I could almost taste That Dam Fish Sandwich, almost always my choice from the menu!

We were planning to go to an outdoor prayer and worship service at Calvary this evening.  It would have been their first official regathering event.  But the rain!  It was online instead, so we joined it at home.  

One more collage here of pictures I took as I walked around the house Friday evening.  

And a collage of silly Snapchat shots!

Have a good week!