Hi-Ho, Hi-Ho…It's Back to Columbus We Go

A jaunt to Columbus, OH is always a fun little road trip. In less than 3 hours, we can be in immersed in all the amenities that the big city has to offer.  Some doctor appointments in the area have necessitated a few trips back there over the last few months.  Of course a trip to Columbus almost always involves a pilgrimage back to Easton.

What's Easton? I'm glad you asked!

Easton Town Center is an indoor/outdoor shopping complex, whose buildings and streets are intended to look like a self contained town reminiscent of American towns or cities of the early part of the 20th century. Easton has a has a great variety of well known retailers, restaurants and other service oriented business. This shopping mecca attracts around 21 million visitors each year.
Coming from the bustling metropolis of Houston, we are used to having all these great retail sources at our disposal. And so we kind of took it for granted. And then we move to an area where a trip to say, Trader Joe's, Crate & Barrel, or Nordstrom can't be found within a 150 mile radius.
Eeeek! We suddenly realize we can't live without them! And then we make a trek to the big city, and all these stores that we don't have easy access to anymore instantly become so alluring and novel! The old adage "you don't miss the water 'till the well runs dry" suddenly rings true. I mean, its not like I have ever been a true shopping warrior but there is something about just knowing you have all these retail resources at your beck and call that is comforting. The big city offers a wonderful array of brick and mortar retail establishments there for the spending whenever you want.

Yes indeed, a visit to Easton is always a good time.

Another perk of a big city is the professional sports teams.

Last summer we took note of the Columbus major league soccer lineup and saw that the Columbus Crew were playing the Houston Dynamo. "Let's book it" we thought and this was the inspiration for our first road trip to Ohio.

Off we went to Columbus Crew stadium to cheer for our beloved Dynamo.

The Dynamo may not have pulled off a victory but we were there to cheer for  

our hometown team and have a good time. 

And that we did. 

In an exciting turn of events, William got to meet one of the players up close and personal.

Kofi Sarkodie is a defender who was drafted in the first round by the Houston Dynamo in 2011.
He is originally from Ohio and his friends and family showed up en masse to cheer him on.
We just so happened to be seated in the same area as the Sarkodie fan club so it was a thrilling
moment for William to meet a pro soccer player in person.

And our trip just wouldn't be complete without a visit to the Columbus Zoo, which has a renowned reputation due to the efforts of director Jack Hanna. In recent years the zoo has been named by USA Travel Guide as the number one zoo in the United States. Over 9,000 animals representing 700 species call the Columbus Zoo home and they welcome over 2 million visitors each year.

 

Other zoo amenities include the Safari Golf Club, an 18 hole golf course and Zoombezi Bay, an adjacent water park, which looked so inviting that hot summer weekend when we were there last August, but you can only squeeze so much excitement into a quick 24 hour field trip. 

Until next time... 

Happy Father's Day!

God took the strength of a mountain,

The majesty of a tree,

The warmth of a summer sun,

The calm of a quiet sea,

The generous soul of nature,

The comforting arm of night,

The wisdom of the ages,

The power of the eagle's flight,

The joy of a morning in spring,

The faith of a mustard seed,

The patience of eternity

The depth of a family in need,

The God combined these qualities,

When there was nothing more to add,

He knew His masterpiece was complete,

And so, He called it…Dad.

-Author Unknown

Wishing fathers everywhere a blessed weekend and a Happy Father's Day!

Happy Mother's Day

Today is a day to honor and celebrate mothers, motherhood and maternal bonds...

Here's a bit of interesting trivia for you:

The first Mother's Day holiday was celebrated right here in West Virginia!

In 1908 Anna Jarvis held a memorial for her mother at St. Andrews Methodist Church in Grafton, WV.

By 1914 Woodrow Wilson signed a proclamation creating Mother's Day as a national holiday to honor mothers on the second Sunday in May.

Happy Mother's Day to mothers everywhere!

What Is A Mother?

A mother is someone to shelter and guide us,

To love us, whatever we do,

With a warm understanding and infinite patience,

And wonderful gentleness too.

How often a mother means swift reassurance in 

soothing our small, childish fears,

How tenderly mothers watch over their children

And treasure them all through the years.

The heart of a mother is full of forgiveness for any mistake, big or small,

And generous always in helping her family whose needs she has placed above all.

A mother can utter a word of compassion and make all our cares fall away,

She can brighten a home with the sound of her laughter

and make life delightful and gay.

A mother possesses incredible wisdom and wonderful insight and skill

In each human heart is that one special corner 

which only a mother can fill.

- Katherine Nelson Davis

Out And About at The Greenbrier

We knew we were in for a rainy end of spring break week back in early April and so on a soggy Friday morning we decided to embark on a trip to White Sulphur Springs, WV to visit the renowned Greenbrier Luxury Resort.

The scenery on the way there was beautiful despite the rainy, dismal weather...

We drove there in a downpour, but luckily once we got to our destination, the rain stopped!

The stately Greenbrier entrance

This opulent resort has a long and colorful history.  In the 1770's the area was discovered to have a spring of sulphur water and thus began the tradition of people 'taking the waters' for therapeutic reasons and to relieve chronic aliments.

The original hotel structure was built in 1858 and in the decades following the Civil War, the resort became a center of post-war society, especially with the advent of the railroad.

Years later during World War II, the resort then served as an army hospital.

In the years following the war, the resort reopened and was refurbished by New York socialite and interior designer Dorothy Draper and it became an attraction for many prominent and influential visitors, including twenty-six US Presidents.

A portrait of Dorothy Draper adorns the wall in one of the resort's restaurants 

Another item of interest about the resort is that it is the site of a huge underground bunker that was constructed during the Cold War as a relocation center/fall out shelter for Congress in the event of a nuclear attack. Under the code name of Project Greek Island, it was a 112,544 square foot fully operational underground compound that included decontamination chambers, dormitories, a power plant, diesel storage tanks, tv and audio communications area, hospital clinic, pharmacy, cafeteria, and meeting rooms for the House and Senate.

Bunker construction in 1960.

Photo courtesy of The Greenbrier

A 25-ton blast door protecting the west tunnel entrance.
The bunker has three entrances designed to withstand a modest nuclear blast approximately
15-30 miles away and to prevent radioactive fallout from entering the facility when it is sealed off.

Photo courtesy of The Greenbrier

Decontamination chamber.

Photo courtesy of The Greenbrier

Original bunk beds in one of 18 dormitories of the bunker.
Each dormitory could sleep 60 people.

Photo courtesy of The Greenbrier

Meeting room for the House and Senate.

Photo courtesy of The Greenbrier

The bunker location was kept active for over 30 years until an article exposing the facility ran in the Washington Post in 1992.  At that time, the government began de-commissioning the The Bunker.
Today, the general public can come for an informative tour and learn about this fascinating time in American history.

Here is the main entrance view…it definitely has that "wow" factor

Notice all the tulip sprigs coming up…soon there will be beautiful vivid bursts of color everywhere.

Inside the lobby the boys quickly made their way over to an elaborate Easter display 

made with over 700 pounds of chocolate!

That's ALOT of chocolate!

More artistically designed confectionery delights.

Some of the bright and colorful decor--trademarks 

of interior designer Dorothy Draper.

Ornate chandelier in The Cameo Ballroom.

A hurried pace to catch a Bunker tour.

The Bunker was constructed during the Eisenhower Administration-hence the life size cut out of Ike. 

Here we are in front of a 25-ton blast door which protected the tunnel entrance.

We like Ike!!

Enjoying afternoon refreshments at Cafe Carlton.

Partaking of an after tour dinner at Draper's. 

Paying homage to the splendor.

After a trip to the hotel toy shop for a new soccer ball the lawns

 of The Greenbrier provided the perfect opportunity for an impromptu match!

It's not every day that you have this kind of opportunity, so why not?

A great time was had by all and we barely scratched the surface of all 

the amenities that The Greenbrier has to offer. 

That just means we'll have to go back for another visit!