121 Pennsylvania State Parks

 

121.
Pennsylvania has 121 State Parks. 
The top picture is the very cool tracker I bought on Etsy. (She didn't have PA, but made one for me...Whake Studio. Check them out.)

Here's mine after I put all the tiles for the state parks I've hiked...pathetic.

I know. Four.
So lame. 
Now the four I've hiked I've done three of them A LOT more than once. Still, as a Pennsylvania fan, it's a sad performance. I'm hoping over the next decade or so, to hit them all. Yes. EVERY SINGLE ONE. I'll make sure I post about all of them. (You didn't think you could escape it, did you?? LOL)

So here we go. My first four PA State Parks not in chronological order.

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I'm going to start with the one in my own backyard...Presque Isle State Park.  It's a peninsula that extends into Lake Erie. There are great trails to hike, beaches for swimming and the lagoons for canoeing. We just started canoeing a few years ago and it's one of my favorite places to go. There's always something to see! 
Susan and I have done a few of our Trippin' with Holly and Susan videos out there. You can find them on YouTube 1, 2, 3

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Next on my sad, short list is Erie Bluffs State Park.

This is a newer state park that's just a short drive for me. It's a short hike through a field until you reach the woods, then all the way to the bluffs overlooking Lake Erie. We discovered it a few years ago and have been out a few times since. The Minions enjoy it!

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Cook Forest State Park is a family favorite. I went when I was a kid. When my kids were young, we went almost every fall. We didn't have much money and it was far enough away to feel like a vacation. We rented a cabin out there one year (a certain toddler unwound an entire roll of toilet paper...), but most of the time it was a lovely day trip. The kids loved riding horses, hiking and when we took the Minions we found a petting zoo/restaurant. I know, how could that be wrong?
This was in the spring of '21. Tallulah enjoyed the hike! The fire tower is so cool...but I don't climb more than a few levels.  

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The last of my first four parks is Ricketts Glen State Park. We went last year and hiked the Waterfall Trail Loop. According to my All Trails Hiking app, this one's a moderately challenging trail. And it was. It wasn't the trail that did me in. It was the Minions who ran around like mountain goats...I had palpitations, worrying about them falling off a cliff. My right leg was still a bit wonky, so with Himself's prompting, I bought some hiking poles. Oh, man I love them. We're hiking in Yellowstone this summer, and they're going in my suitcase.

That's it...I've hiked 4 out of 121 State Parks. But I've already planning a couple more state parks in the near future so keep your eye out. I'll be post about them. Just 117 State Parks to go!!

Holly

Check out my books...

A View to a Kiln: A Harry's Pottery Mystery
Kindle
iBooks
Kobo
Nook

Have you missed any of my Hometown Hearts series? Here's the list:

Crib Notes: Hometown Hearts #1

Kindle, Nook, Kobo, iBook

A Special Kind of Different: Hometown Hearts #2

Kindle, iBook, Kobo, Nook

Homecoming: Hometown Hearts #3

Kindle, Kobo, IBooks, Nook

 Suddenly a Father: Hometown Hearts #4

Kindle, Kobo, Nook, iBooks

Something Borrowed: Hometown Hearts #5

Kindle, Kobo, Nook, iBooks

Something Blue: Hometown Hearts #6 

Kindle, Kobo, Nook, Apple Books

Something Perfect: Hometown Hearts #7 

Apple Books, Nook, Kobo, Kindle

Something Unexpected: A Hometown Hearts short story 
Amazon

A Hometown Christmas: Hometown Hearts #8
Kindle 
Nook
AppleBooks
Kobo

Victory Garden...Here Right Matters

There's so much going on in the world right now and I've been thinking about how I can help.

During WWII my grandmother was a Rosie the Riveter. Her husband went off to war and she went to a factory and worked there until retirement. She started working to do her part and help...she stayed because it was her job. She did her part. The world is in tumult again and I want to do my part.

So, I'm going to cut my consumption.

I already don't drive a lot, but I'm going to try to drive less. I try to figure out how to combine errands, minimizing the miles I drive. I'm going to see how many errands I can do on my bike.

We already keep our heat fairly low, but I'm lowering my thermostat another two degrees. And I'm turning off lights. I'd switch to better lightbulbs but we've already done that. LOL We're planning on solar panels but they're not going in for a while. This is my stopgap measure.

We've had a garden for years, but this year I'm going to proclaim mine is a Victory Garden. If I grow it, it doesn't have to be shipped from somewhere else...saving gas. Bonus...I know it hasn't be treated with chemicals. The US Department of Agriculture estimated that 20 million plus victory gardens were planted and that 9-10 million tons of fruit and vegetables were harvested. They made a difference then and could make a difference now. And I remember that buying local supports my local farmers and community!

I know they're all little things. They're literally just a drop in the bucket. But a tidal wave is just a bunch of drops. Of course, I'm donating. CNBC has a list of the top charities. https://www.cnbc.com/.../heres-a-list-of-top-rated...

The world is in crisis. And I'm hoping rather than driving a larger wedge in our divisive country, people of good heart band together and remember, as Alexander Vindman says, "Here Right Matters."

Holly

A View to a Kiln: A Harry's Pottery Mystery
Kindle
iBooks
Kobo
Nook

Have you missed any of my Hometown Hearts series? Here's the list:

Crib Notes: Hometown Hearts #1

Kindle, Nook, Kobo, iBook

A Special Kind of Different: Hometown Hearts #2

Kindle, iBook, Kobo, Nook

Homecoming: Hometown Hearts #3

Kindle, Kobo, IBooks, Nook

 Suddenly a Father: Hometown Hearts #4

Kindle, Kobo, Nook, iBooks

Something Borrowed: Hometown Hearts #5

Kindle, Kobo, Nook, iBooks

Something Blue: Hometown Hearts #6 

Kindle, Kobo, Nook, Apple Books

Something Perfect: Hometown Hearts #7 

Apple Books, Nook, Kobo, Kindle

Something Unexpected: A Hometown Hearts short story 
Amazon

A Hometown Christmas: Hometown Hearts #8
Kindle 
Nook
AppleBooks
Kobo

Enough is as good as a feast.

 I've been working on my family tree again. For a long time, I thought just my maternal relatives came from PA. But it turns out a number of my paternal branches started their lives in the US in Pennsylvania. So many of their stories have been lost, but I do know they came to Pennsylvania for freedom—they were Mennonites and Quakers looking for a place to worship as they saw fit and William Penn's woods offered them a chance for that.

My cottage is deep in Amish and Mennonite country. I know a bit about their religion. But I didn't know much about Quakers...so of course I bought a book.  

I will confess, I love used books...they come with a history.  My favorites are those that are marked up with notes and highlights from those who read them before me.  So I found a book...How the Quakers Invented America (David Youst). It's a simple book about a simple people. "Enough is as good as a feast," is a line that caught my eye—and I was obviously not the first one to notice it.

So much of my life (and my posts online) are about simple things.  A beautiful sunrise.  A walk in the woods. A day in the studio. Tallulah and her antics. 

My life centers around my family and those simple things. They're what gives me glee.  And those simple things are everything.  I think that's my magic power...I know what matters. My family and those simple things. I have to wonder if some of those people from so far long ago left me with that knowledge buried deep in my mitochondrial DNA. Enough is as good as a feast.  Yes, it resonated with me.

That love of simple-things is there in my books. They're not big epic tomes, they're  small stories about regular people.  They're about people who know enough is as good as a feast. The greatest compliment anyone's ever given me about my books is, I wish she was my best friend.  

I think Harry in my new book, A View to a Kiln, is that kind of character. The book opens with her husband telling her he's not happy and leaving her. That moment is a turning point for Harry. She realizes she deserves to be happy as well and changes her life...for the better. That is until she finds a dead body in her kiln! 

I hope you check it out, and I hope you take a moment today to look at the little things in your life that give you glee!!

Holly

PS I'm posting this on TwosDAY...2-22-22. It's a simple thing that has had me smiling all day!!

A View to a Kiln: A Harry's Pottery Mystery
Kindle
iBooks
Kobo
Nook

Have you missed any of my Hometown Hearts series? Here's the list:

Crib Notes: Hometown Hearts #1

Kindle, Nook, Kobo, iBook

A Special Kind of Different: Hometown Hearts #2

Kindle, iBook, Kobo, Nook

Homecoming: Hometown Hearts #3

Kindle, Kobo, IBooks, Nook

 Suddenly a Father: Hometown Hearts #4

Kindle, Kobo, Nook, iBooks

Something Borrowed: Hometown Hearts #5

Kindle, Kobo, Nook, iBooks

Something Blue: Hometown Hearts #6 

Kindle, Kobo, Nook, Apple Books

Something Perfect: Hometown Hearts #7 

Apple Books, Nook, Kobo, Kindle

Something Unexpected: A Hometown Hearts short story 
Amazon

A Hometown Christmas: Hometown Hearts #8
Kindle 
Nook
AppleBooks
Kobo

February 8, 2022 Newsletter

Move over Quincy Mac... Meet Harriet Lawe! First there was Markie Malkowicz who tripped over a dead body on her way out the door one Monday. Then there was Quincy Mac, who accidentally cleaned a murder scene. Today, is the first release in my new cozy mystery series. Meet Harriet Lawe. She leaves a lucrative career as an attorney and starts her own pottery studio...Harry's Pottery. Everything's going fine until...she finds a dead body in her kiln. Now she's trying to find out whodunnit to save her new business! A View to a Kiln: A Harry's Pottery Mystery Kindle iBooks Kobo Nook I started taking pottery classes a few years ago at Mercyhurst University. (This is one of my Face Planters!) One day I asked the professor if I could cremate a body in a kiln. And thus Harry's Pottery was born. (After I took my last class he retired. I think I might have broken him!) Combining my love of pottery and books was such a thrill! I hope you enjoy Harry's first adventure. Her second book, Slip and Fall will be out in '23!) If you want to take a tour of my studio, check out my video! As always, thanks for everything! Holly Keep an eye out for my July release, Chances!    Find Out More

Check and see if you missed any of my Hometown Hearts series!

Have you missed any of my Hometown Hearts series? Here's the list:

Crib Notes: Hometown Hearts #1

Kindle, Nook, Kobo, iBook

A Special Kind of Different: Hometown Hearts #2

Kindle, iBook, Kobo, Nook

Homecoming: Hometown Hearts #3

Kindle, Kobo, IBooks, Nook

 Suddenly a Father: Hometown Hearts #4

Kindle, Kobo, Nook, iBooks

Something Borrowed: Hometown Hearts #5

Kindle, Kobo, Nook, iBooks

Something Blue: Hometown Hearts #6 

Kindle, Kobo, Nook, Apple Books

Something Perfect: Hometown Hearts #7 

Apple Books, Nook, Kobo, Kindle

Something Unexpected: A Hometown Hearts short story 
Amazon

A Hometown Christmas: Hometown Hearts #8
Kindle 
Nook
AppleBooks
Kobo