A Day Away

No, it wasn't a day at the Spa. However, it was just as relaxing and fun. My cousin Barb and I decided to take a day trip back in time (sort of) to the town where we grew up--Archbold, Ohio. Our parents lived there all their lives, and now that they are gone we don't really have any real reason to go back. We do have some cousins who still live there. But it's kind of sad for us, because we really liked going to see our family there, and now it's different.

We stopped on main street at a little gift/floral shop and bought a cheery flower in a vase to take to our Aunt Mable. She is still in a nursing home in Archbold, and is 101 years old! In one month she will be 102. She's a little hard of hearing, but her mind has always been pretty good. She has a sweet smile, and likes to see us,though it sometimes takes a little time for her to remember what family we belong to. This time however, she didn't look as good to us physically, and she had a really hard time communicating her thoughts. We just sort of felt like maybe her time here is nearing to an end. (This picture was not taken yesterday--it was on a previous visit last fall). We prayed with her before we left, and she thanked us for the flower and for coming to see her.

Our next stop was at our cousin Carol's house. We picked her up to go out to lunch with us. We went to "Mom's Diner", which has sort of a 50-60's atmosphere, complete with a juke box. I had a delicious cheeseburger and chicken rivel soup. We sat and visited for a little while.

You may remember seeing previous posts about"Walt's House. It is the house where I grew up (at least from the time I was in grade school). It is now being used as a home for men who have been in trouble and need a fresh start. There are currently 4 men there which is about the maximum they can have). I hadn't seen the house since it had been re-furbished and furnished, etc.. so we were given permission by Cecily, the lady in charge of it, to go by and see it. They have done a wonderful job of fixing it up. I was very impressed. We also met 2 of the men who are staying there.

You have probably heard of Sauder's furniture. Their manufacturing factory is in Archbold, and there is an outlet store there. Barb was looking for a particular piece of furniture to go with her daughter's bedroom set, so we went to the outlet store, and had fun just browsing. They have some unique pictures , lamps, etc.

There is a meat store in Pettisville (just a short distance from Archbold) that has certain meats and foods that are sort of to die for. So we went to the Pettisville meat place. I got a ham loaf (which is one of their specialties) and potato salad (also totally delicious). The ham loaf was frozen, but I'm letting it thaw so that we can enjoy it tonight.

All of us are supposed to be on diets. (Carol has lost a lot of weight and looks great!). But there is a candy place in Archbold that has been there for years and years called "Al-Meda's Chocolates". Barb decided she would like a couple gift boxes of "local" candy to have on hand for gifts. There was a sample dish there, and between the 3 of us we nearly finished it off while we were there. We had to make sure we still liked it! Barb got her gift boxes (I wonder if she'll open one?) and I got a little bag of broken pieces. Just what I needed, right?!

I had to back by supper time, so we took Carol home and headed back home. It was just a fun day of visiting with each other and re-visiting some of the familiar places.