We spent a few days in Ohio on our trip. We had a great time exploring the area and visiting with family and friends.
The first full day there, we went to downtown Columbus. We spent a few hours at COSI checking out the Titanic exhibit, the space exhibit, the water exhibit, and many others. The kids had a blast. We walked to a hamburger place where Zachary tried his first chili dog. He loved it and had Ben begging to try one. On the walk back to the car, we showed the kids the replica of Columbus' ship.
Friday, we drove out to Longaberger. It's not a long drive from my aunt and uncle's house in Granville. My mom is an avid basket collector so I got to pick one out for her. After shopping, we headed west. We went to Donatos for lunch. That may not mean much to most people, but I am a huge fan of their pizza. The kids loved it on this visit! Our next stop was the Granville 4th of July street fair. The kids went on a few rides and played a few games. The kids had a lot of fun and would have stayed longer and spent every penny if possible. We headed to Easton Town Center next where we did a little shopping and had an early dinner. After dinner, we met my cousin's family at my grandfather's house and headed to Granville to see fireworks.
The fireworks were great. We had a couple of firsts that evening. The kids held their first sparklers (yes, they are a tad bit deprived)! Of course, when it started filling up and getting dark, we had to stop! Zack's big milestone was that he discovered that fireworks aren't as loud as he thought. It was the first time he watched them without covering his ears and/or using an iPod.
Saturday, we drove across town to see the areas where I used to live. The trees have really grown up, but the houses look relatively the same on the outside. After driving through the old neighborhoods, we went to my friend, Kim's new house. It is beautiful and I am so glad they had it built. We took a tour and went to lunch with Kim and her husband, Steve. It's never a long enough visit. Kim and I love to talk, but the kids are limited in how long they can sit in one place. After we said goodbye, Andy and I took the kids to Tuttle Crossing Mall to walk around and shop.
Saturday evening, we headed to New Albany for dinner and fireworks. We ate at one of my favorite Donatos locations. The kids ate a ton of pizza and then we headed to the New Albany High School campus. Ben and Courtney had their hair painted. Ben got an "X" and Courtney just got a stripe. All 3 kids did push-ups to earn a little football from the booth sponsored by a health club. We enjoyed watching the fireworks sitting on the bleachers and headed back to Aunt Mary and Uncle Wayne's house for the night.
Sunday morning, we left the house early to go to the Columbus Zoo. It is much bigger than it was when we lived in Ohio. It has changed considerably. July 4th in Ohio ended up to be a very hot day. We saw the new polar bear exhibit, the elephants (playing in water!), the penguins, manatees, bears, and many other animals. We left mid-afternoon to go to my grandfather's house and visit with the Brown family. The kids ran through sprinklers with other cousins, ate a little dinner, and topped it off with ice cream. Courtney got plenty of sprinkles! Andy and I decided to get an early start on the drive home so we left about 7:30 and drove until close to midnight.
The rest of the trip was primarily just I-75, bathroom stops, and dinner stops. We stayed at hotels with indoor pools so I took the kids for about an hour each morning before we got into the car. They did really great on the trip!
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