Well, you now have seen the pictures that I took with my new digital camera. One of the things that I forgot on our trip was the battery charger for my camera. It lasted the first day and then died! What a bummer! We checked several places for a compatable charger or battery but of course, my camera is so new that they were not available anywhere. I ended up taking mostly videos with my new Flip. I still need to figure out how to get those on here so hopefully those will be coming soon. Carl took pictures with his phone which are pretty good but they are in a different place and I have to figure out how to get them to post on here. Hopefully I can do that soon.
We had a terrific time in NY. After we left Niagra Falls, we drove to Syracuse and picked up Shanae's parents. We went back to Ithaca from there to prepare for Ben's graduation. Saturday we went to Watkins Glen. It was a beautiful fall that we could hike up to and under. I did well hiking. We went to the farmer's market which was a great spot! Sunday was graduation. We got there at 10 am. It was full of pomp and circumstance! The graduates walk through campus where the professors line the sidewalks and clap as they pass. There were 6,000 graduates! It took an hour for them to be seated in the football stadium. The program was about an hour and a half. Thank goodness they didn't read out each name! They only named the different degrees and had them stand up. There was a separate ceremony for each department. We headed to that after the program and waited for Ben to arrive. It was neat to hear his name as a Master in Hotel Management. There was a reception afterwards with champaigne - of course, we toasted with our water! We went to a park on Cayuga Lake for a picnic afterwards. It was quite a celebration!
Monday we headed to New York City! Four hours in a Ford Taurus with six people was quite squishy! When we arrived, Carl and I took off for a tour through town in a double decker bus. We got off at Ground Zero and walked all around it. We had dinner in Chinatown and then took a taxi back to the hotel where we met Ben. We went to Central Park and took a carriage ride through the park. Shanae and her folks had gone to a Broadway play. We took a taxi after our carriage ride to find Papaya Dog stand. Supposed to be the best hot dogs but we were not impressed - we think Costco dogs are better! Tuesday morning Carl and I hit the M&M World! Three floors of M&M stuff and a wall of candy in every variety. The newest flavor was Strawberried Peanut Butter. Of course, we got a supply to last a while. We then went to the Manhattan Temple for a session. It is sort of obscured by the tall buildings surrounding it but it is still a beautiful temple. It was nice to slow down for a bit since we had been moving full speed since we had arrived. After the temple, we packed up and checked our bags while we took a bit more time to tour around. We went for a ride on he Circle Line Boat to see the Statue of Liberty. It was really neat to hear about all the places around there as we rode to the Statue. I am sure that our guide was Jerry Seinfeld! He sure sounded just like him! Carl and I went to 5th Avenue and checked out the shops - Saks 5th Avenue, American Girl, Rockefeller Center and Trump Tower - while Ben and Shanae went to the Top of the Rock (an elevator ride to the top of Rockefeller tower. We left NY about 6 p.m. and headed back in the rain. We had enjoyed beautiful weather until that afternoon when we were leaving. We arrived back in Ithaca about midnight after another squishy ride. Wednesday morning we headed to the airport in Rochester with a short stop at the Peter Whitmer Farm historical sight. What a whirlwind trip but a blast for us!
On May 15th Erin gave birth to her firstborn son, Liam Anthony Mills, and our 6th grandchild. We now have 3 granddaughters and 3 grandsons. I was privileged to be present for his birth. What a blessing! Erin did have a tough labor and delivery but she did well. Liam weighed in at 8 pounds and 2 ounces and was 19 inches long. He has a nice head of light brown or reddish blonde hair. I was glad that she had him before our trip to NY. She wanted me to be there for her and it was getting awfully close to the time of our trip on the 20th. He is a precious gift from God and we are so happy to have him in our family! We look forward to Ben and Shanae's baby girl in July!
