October 19th - 23rd:
On Monday the 19th we drove to Buffalo New York and stayed in a rental house. It was built about 100yrs ago and was clean & super cool (and a little creepy)! When Perry told his math teacher, Mr. Young, that we were heading to Niagara for Fall Break, Mr. Young said those were his "old stomping grounds!". He suggested we go to Duff's for the best wings and Mighty Taco (he claimed it was the local Taco Bell). So on our first night, we went to Duff's for dinner. There were lots of people there; almost all of them were dressed in Buffalo Bills football jerseys. We thought that was odd, until we noticed everyone cheering at the tvs. The Bills were playing and they all came to watch and eat wings! It made it a more fun experience. But the wings were great! Based on another suggestion by Mr. Young, Perry ordered a loganberry fruit punch and loved it! He loved the wings and made no fuss about the giant mess all over his face. Kaden, of course, wiped his hands & face repeatedly. He used the most napkins by far! :) Back to the rental house we went, to get a good sleep in preparation for our adventures ahead.
October 20th,Tuesday was wonderful! We spent the day in Palmyra! We saw the Book of Mormon publishing site, but it was closed. We bought lunch at a local pizza place then went to a couple antique stores where mom bought some keychains for the kids (the favorite was a mini etch-a-sketch). Then we drove over to the Sacred Grove. We ate our pizza in the car then read Joseph Smith's First Vision. We encouraged the kids to take a minute to pray if they had anything in their hearts they have been wondering about.
It was rainy and wet, but it was still very peaceful and beautiful. We walked around a bit, then took some pictures on the trail and at the Smith's little farm house. We then drove over to see the temple (which was closed for Covid). Kaden and Dad got out to take a drone shot of the temple. Then we went and explored the Hill Cumorah site. The kids ran up the hill and Spence and I walked the zig-zag path. The view from the top by the monument was beautiful! Kaden took more drone shots. They turned out nice.
For dinner, we ate at Mighty Taco. Another recommendation from Perry's math teacher Mr. Young. While his suggestion to eat at Duff's was spot on... Mighty Taco was a flop. Probably the worst most bland fast food of all time! Mr. Young said it was the local Taco Bell. uhhh, nope. Wasn't anything near resembling even the taste of a taco! It was more like a flavorless, sauce less chicken wrap with some iceberg lettuce. The taco sauce was basically ketchup. We laughed so hard about this! As disappointing as the dinner was, the memory of how bad it was is worth it the experience!
October 21st, Wednesday... our first look at Niagara Falls. I have wanted to go there my entire life. I have seen pictures and videos of it since i was small. But nothing prepared me for it!
First you can see the mist rising up like a thick cloud. I thought it was a cloud! Then you hear the roar of the water rushing over the edge long before you get near it. Before you can see the water, you can feel the mist on your face. When we got near, I started to get emotional! ha ha! I can't explain it, but the sight, sounds, and feel of the falls with its completely gorgeous and majestic nature, stirred up a lot of emotion in me. We walked right up to the rails on the US side. The water below was a beautiful turquoise color, that I didn't expect! The color of the water against the backdrop of autumn leaves was incredible! The kids were oohing and ahhing with the biggest smiles. Kaden was jumping up and down; we were all just blown away. Spencer had an awed look in his eyes and a plastered grin to match the kids smiles.What a perfectly splendid and amazing earth the Lord made for us!! It was an incredible moment!
We stared at it for a long time, took lots of pictures and video and took it all in. I've always been told that the Canadian side of the falls has a better view. But i'm so glad we weren't permitted to go to the Canadian side (no passports + Covid... you've noticed by now that Covid is the reason for preventing many things this year, but i still have to point it out). Plus, the Canadian side had high rise buildings and attractions that reminded me of Vegas. On the American side, it's more natural. A real park. Actually, fun fact: it IS the oldest state park in the country! Plus, you are literally like 3 feet from the falls! Like so close, that one could easily hop the rail and touch the water. [Which one must never do!!! ...Understand, you kids reading this?!... Some people in history have gone into the falls and some over the falls; some by choice, some by accident. Few have lived to tell their experience. Never attempt it!! I shutter at the idea. Especially now having seen them up close for myself and knowing just how powerful they are.]
To make the most of this experience, we did the most epic thing you can do at Niagara Falls: we rode the Maid of the Mist!! It was so amaaaazing!! We all loved it so much! You have to walk over a big bridge to get to the elevator leading down to the ferry line. The power of the wind on the bridge filled our coats and pants, blew our hair wildly and made it feel like it might blow the kids away. They outfit you in pink hooded ponchos. We knew we were about to get soaked, but it was worth it!
We chose the top deck to look out and enjoy our ride. The Maid of the Mist ferry takes you right up to the falls where millions of gallons of water crash hard on top of huge rocks at the bottom of American falls and the small Bridal Veil Falls. The largest section is the Horseshoe Falls (where most foolish people attempt to go over for fame or money, but mostly end it tragedy). The force of the water spraying and the wind coming from the water spilling over the edge is so powerful! We were laughing our heads off and couldn't hear anything but the roar of the water! The ferry tosses about, so Kaden & Perry decided to let go of the rails and tumbled about on the roof of the ferry. They were having a grand time, until i made them come back to the rails. Spencer's poncho was filled to capacity by the wind and the pink sumo picture of him is perhaps my favorite of all time! :)
After that we hiked around the falls and explored Luna Island (just the jut of land next to the Bridal Veil fall). We took more pictures and stopped to ooh and ahh a lot. Every turn and glance was as beautiful as the last. There is only one word to describe the falls and I've never used it for anything else: MAJESTIC!
We went to Wegmans on the way back to the rental. WEGMANS!! My favorite grocery store when we lived in New Jersey. I was so thrilled to take all the kids there and have them pick a treat from the fancy bakery. I was so happy!
October 22nd, Thursday we went to Fort Niagara. That was also very cool! It's a historic site built in 1726. It was originally built to protect the interests of New France in North America. It is located near Youngstown, New York, on the eastern bank of the Niagara River at its mouth, on Lake Ontario. It is the oldest continuously occupied military site in North America. The kids enjoyed learning from the role play historians there. It was fun!
Thursday before dinner we went back to Niagara Falls. On the way we happened to see a random look out point, called the Devil's Hole State Park. It was so beautiful! We decided to take a family picture. Infact, we decided that it would be our Christmas card this year!
A tour guide told us the other day that there was a place closer to the falls where we could park for free. It was right next to the islands and the walking trail. Once back at the falls, we took a walk around one of the islands. We were pretty much by ourselves. We saw lots of black squirrels and the kids were amazed! They were so tame that you could feed them from your hand! (The squirrels, not the kids, ha!) I asked them not to but they couldn't help it. Finally i saw a sign from the park saying "don't feed the wild life". So they finally just ate their own snacks and stopped sharing with the critters.
We waited a long time for the falls to light up. In hindsight, we should've just waited to come at dark. It would've been more of a "wow" contrast. But it happened so slowly that the kids (and their parents) were starting to lose patience. Still, it was pretty cool.
To end the night, we went back to the rental and got ready for bed. We enjoyed ice cream and played games. We laughed a lot and just had a great night. It was a perfect end to an epic trip!
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