Pennsylvania Vacation: Day 3

We went to the 9:00 service on Sunday morning at the church my family went to when we lived in Newtown...the Presbyterian Church of Newtown.  The service was at the historic church which was built in 1769 (they have another church building located a few blocks away built in the 1930's).  General George Washington used it as a hospital, jail, and P.O.W. camp back in 1776 and many revolutionary soldiers are buried in graves behind the church.  Two of my most fond memories here were an Easter celebration service when the young people of the church led worship and I got to sign "Via Dolorosa" (by Sandi Patty) while our pastor, Blake, played the guitar as an accompaniment, and during another service, an African American woman singing "His Eye Is On The Sparrow" acapella from the balcony in the back.  Her beautiful voice just filled the entire church.  I'll never forget it.

After church, we drove by the high school and The Brick Hotel...also a former place of employment during my time there.  From there we drove to the Washington Crossing Sate Park.  We took a short self-guided tour of the historic buildings near the Delaware River (you weren't allowed to go into the buildings without paying for a tour guide...we didn't think the girls would have had the patience for that) and did a little shopping in the gift shop.  We then drove 3.5 miles up the street to Bowman's Tower (built in 1931 as a monument to George Washington and his army).  We rode an elevator up most of the way and then walked up a very narrow spiral staircase to get to the rooftop lookout.  The view was beautiful!

We then drove to a group of specialty shops about 10 minutes away called Peddler's Village.  One area of the shops is called Giggleberry Fair which has lots of activities to keep kids busy.  We let the girls take a ride on the 1922 Grand Carousel and then looked around in a few nearby shops.  Right when we arrived at Peddler's Village, it began pouring rain.  It rained hard the entire time we were there, so walking from one store to another without getting drenched was nearly impossible.

Our next stop was visiting and having dinner with my family's former neighbors.  Our neighbors across the street (the Barry's) hosted and we were treated to wonderful appetizers, dinner, and dessert!  The company (4 of our former neighbors) was even better!  The people that now live in our old home are friends with the Barry's and offered to take Brian, the girls, and I on a tour of the house!  It was so fun getting to see it again as it brought back so many memories!  How often do you get the chance to do that?

  

The historic Presbyterian church.

 

Some photos from the graveyard in the back of the church.  The headstone on the right is for a woman buried in 1799!

  

My former high school.

   

This front corner of the building is where I spent a lot of time...the music wing!

  

The Brick Hotel

   

This candy was a favorite of mine and one we can't get here in the Midwest, so I made sure to pick up one or two (or a few!). :-) 

 

Washington Crossing State Park...I bought the bonnets and child's costume (on sale for $15!) in the gift shop.

 

The approximate spot of where Washington crossed the Delaware river.

   

Walking by and peeking into the windows of the historic buildings.

 

Some of the cannons and boats used back then.

 

We enlisted Hailey to take this photo of us...not bad, right?  

 

I'm not sure this stroller was really meant for two riders!

 

Pennsylvania is very hilly, so we told the girls to put their arms up when we would go down a big hill. :-)

 

Bowman's Tower

 

The view was beautiful!  Hailey and Brian took the spiral staircase (a little wider than near the top) down the entire way to the bottom.

  

The Grand Carousel at the Giggleberry Fair in Peddler's Village.

   

Our old home in Newtown!  The new owners added a beautiful brick patio and landscaping to the back of the house. 

 

Our former neighbors!  L to R: Us, the Wiggins', the Levys', friends of the Barry's (who were relocating to North Carolina and staying with the Barry's in the interim), and the Barry's.  One other neighbor, Tina, came by after this picture was taken.