Trip Back in Time

A Trip Back in Time

The last two days were spent traveling back in time with the people of Mantua Township and Drexel University.  Earlier this summer I read an article in the Courier Post about a fossil site in Gloucester County and I wrote to the reporter about how we could visit the site.  To my surprise, he wrote back to me and put me in touch with a person from the Mantua Township Government.  She was the most amazing government official I have ever had contact with.  She got in touch with me almost immediately and was very eager to help us out.

A few weeks ago she contacted me with dates that I would be able to take Billy to the fossil site and when I responded she also informed me of a trip that they were taking to Drexel University to visit the lab of the paleontologist who is working at the site in Mantua.  Of course I jumped that this opportunity.

On Monday night at 5:15 we meet up with about fifty other people who were interested in going to Drexel and took a bus into the city to learn about the fossils found in Mantua and also in Argentina.  The building at Drexel was amazing with its five story spiral staircase and its living wall.  The lab was also pretty cool with its three dimensional scanner and printers.  Finally, the lecture was unbelievable, as we learned about some of the rare finds that occurred both in Argentina and in Mantua.

Then today I took Billy with me to the fossil site and we spent over two hours looking for fossils.  Billy loved every minute of it and found a bunch of little fossils and had lots of questions for the people who worked there.

We are hoping we get another chance to go there soon and I am sure these are memories that he will never forget.

Trip to Cherry Crest Adventure Farm

Yesterday Billy and I took a trip to Lancaster to go to the Cherry Crest Adventure Farm and we had a great time.  I feel like this might be the last year where he will enjoy a trip like this and I enjoyed every minute of watching him experience all the things that are available at this farm.

We arrived right when the farm was opening for the day and we immediately went to the peddle cars.  We were able to ride them for about 10 minutes before anyone else showed up to join us on the track.  Below is a picture that I took as I went flying past Billy on one of the laps.

After we played on the carts we then did every other activity that the farm had to offer.  Everything that is simple and hands on and you feel like you are totally in control of your experience.  I prefer this type of amusement to the ones that you find most places where you are a passive passenger on a ride that does the same thing hour after hour and day after day. 

One of the things that Billy most enjoyed was the crawl through hay maze.  The maze is created by bales of hay that are stacked in such a way that once you enter the maze you are in complete darkness.  The only time you get any light is about halfway through the maze where they created an opening that you can climb out of and get on top of the hay bales.  Billy really enjoyed this part of the maze.  I followed him through the maze once and he did it at least three more times by himself.

After we did all the different stations that the farm had available, Billy wanted to go see the animals and specifically to see the chicks.  They have an area where they are constantly hatching new chicks and you can watch the entire process at the different stations they have available.  Conveniently the final station is the lunch counter where they sell the freshest chicken sandwiches you will even encounter.  Billy most enjoyed the station where you get to hold the chicks in your hand.

It was sad to leave the farm and I hope that he will want to go back again next year, but if not, I have many great memories of the times that I have taken him here in the past.

2011

2008

Ryan Madson in Glassboro

Today I took Billy to see Ryan Madson at the Grand Opening of the Liscio's Bakery in Glassboro.  Billy is a big Phillies fan and he was very excited to see his first Phillie up close and personal.

We arrived at around 10:40 am and Billy was able to take part in the Whiffle Ball home run derby.  We then saw the mayor cut the ribbon to open the store and finally we waited in line for almost an hour waiting for the our turn to meet Ryan Madson.

Rowan Planetarium

Billy and I went to the final show at the Rowan Planetarium using the old planetarium projector.  The venue will be closed for a few months and reopen with a high definition projection system.  This is very exciting, but we will miss the old projector.  It won't feel like a planetarium without this old projector.

Snowman

Today Billy and I spent some time sledding at the high school.  The temperature also rose to a high enough value to make some nice snow balls and also snow men.  If you are driving by the high school in town, just look out into the open field and you will see the snow men that we made.

Penn's Landing Skating

As a family we were able to spend the day, December 28, 2010, at Penn's Landing and the Independence Hall area of Philadelphia.

We started out the day by going to the Constitution Center.  I was not overly impressed by it, for I felt like I could have spent the same amount of time on the internet in my house and learned more than I did from visiting the center.  There was a nice presentation in the theater and the art of the American Solider exhibit was nice, but all the permanent exhibits seemed like I could get the information from the internet.

After the center, we spent a few hours skating at Penn's Landing.  The ice was a bit rough; in fact, I think the ice in the parking lot was smoother than the ice on the rink.  Still it was a great day.  Billy did great and would have skated all day if he wasn't overcome with hunger.

We went to a little Mexican restaurant that is right by Penn's Landing and had one of the best meals of our lives.  All in all, it was a great day.

Dover Air Force Base

Billy and I spent the day with Uncle Jimmy at Dover Air Force Base.  We not only were able to see the museum and the planes outside the museum, but we were treated to see a few live planes in takeoff and landing maneuvers.  We had a great day and look forward to going back again when the weather is a little less cold.