Tomlinson Run: State Park in West Virginia

We used to visit  Tomlinson Run many times a year every summer but  it hasn't been that often this year.  We visited only  on the first week of this month and it was a fun time for all of us.  Tomlinson Run is  s state park in West Virginia, it is located in 84 Osage Road, New Manchester, WV 26056.

This  State Park sits on 1,398 acres along the small Ohio River and  lies near the foremost tip of the panhandle, in Hancock County.  It is  17-20 minutes drive from our place.

 Our kids are getting bigger and their preference of doing things  is changing but one thing for sure that they still love is exploring nature.  We all share that passion.

 They used to enjoy climbing into the slides but not anymore.  All I get is goofy pose lol.

 They still love catching cray fish though.  That's onething that they always love to do.  We catch cray fish and then we let them go at the end.

 We were not the only family who love to explore the nature.  We've seen several families there.

 They used to end up getting wet at the end of the adventure but this time, they did not.  They learned how to walk on those rocks without falling or busting their  behinds.

 There are so many things to do in this state park but we just love to stay by the water.  I remember a couple of years ago, we all went for a small hike and my kids got  tortured with mosquitoes.

 Going to a state park is one way of unplugging the kids from  their gadgets.  It's a great bonding for the whole family.

 It is relaxing and everyone  always enjoys it.  I always find joy in watching my kids  in this type of  setting.

 I will post a part 2 of this so you can see how many they caught hehehe.  They turned  it into competitionwhich was fun!

How about you, what do you do when you unplug from gadgets?  Do you take away  the ki-ds gadget once in a while.  My kids only get to use their  on weekend and sometimes, they don't get it at all especially when we do things like this.

Hidden and Unknown Stuff, Now Found

When we moved  two months ago, I have uncovered and found things that I dod not  knew we had.  You don't really know how much things you have until you move to another  house.  We even have  some headphone cable that I can't recall where we  got it grom.  Sometimes,  we tend to buy things especially if it is on sale and said, we can use this and then forget about it.  Then when we do need it, we forgot where we put them and then the solution is to buy a new one.  So we end up  accumulating stuff that we don't really need or use.  I am glad w that we have moved though, I was able to sort out things.  We donated  a lot of stuff that we don't need and I sold some stuff.

Family Experience at Fort Magruder

During our short summer vacation in Williamsburg, Virginia, we chose to book at Fort Magruder Hotel and Conference Center.   We chose them because  it includes free breakfast.  We all know how  expensive it is to eat out  in tourist areas, so we figured we can save by eating breakfast there.  We also like how clean and beautiful  it is based on the photos at their website.  

 So when we got there, we were kind of confused  when we checked in because the hotel is currently undergoing renovation.  The ad that we saw  did not mention of any current renovation so we were kind of  disappointed of what we ground out.  I mean, they are still accepting  travelers but inside the hotel, it's  not really in a tip top shape.

 I mean when you look  outside, it was beautiful but as soon as you come in, you will see the carpets with duct tape on it and smells like pure bleach!  As we checked in, the lady told us that  breakfast is not complimentary and we were like, "what?"

I was hoping that when we get to the hotel rooms, our  disappointment will stop but it continues.  The mattresses of the beds are sagging in the middle so it was very uncomfortable to sleep in.  You can also hear the  next rooms noises, ugh, it was a nightmare.  

 I immediately check the  bathroom and hoping that it was clean, the sink is okay and we have plenty of towels so that was a good thing.

 As I inspected  the shower, it was  gross.  They need to clean  those bathrooms really bad.  You can see the  pink and black stuff growing in the tiles and in the  shower..

It would have been nice if they mentioned in their website that they are currently renovating the place.  The other thing I didn't like is the complimentary breakfast they were advertising, it is completely deceiving! Oh another thing, they did not disclose that the  outdoor pool was closed!  If I were to rate them from 1 to 5, I'll give them 1 for not being honest.  

From Music to Sports

This year brings a lot of changes in our  family.  We moved to a new home.  My son have started playing football but he stopped taking piano lessons.  I was a bit bummed out about it but he  practices everyday for football and I don't want him to get overwhelmed with so much things going on.  He said that he might go back to music again once he  learned all the ins and outs of the sports.  He said he wants to learn to play a guitar so that might be something that he  can  try later on.  I guess we won't be  needing folding hand cart since he diverted his interest from music to sport.  It's okay though, we will support what he is passionate about as kong as he is happy.

Short #Roadtrip to Ohio

One week before the school starts, we  decided to go on a short road trip to Ohio.  We went to Tappan Lake and we  also went to  Sugarcreek where the Amish community are.  

 It is always nice to go there because we get to see a lot of farms along the way.  That is something that we enjoy when we go on a road trip.

 The Breitenbach Wine Cellars is something that might be good to explore someday.  We don't drink wine regularly but occasionally we do so this might be a good one to go to.  I believe that they also have cheese so that will be worth trying.

 This farm fencing always  gives me that charm.  For some reason, I always  anticipate  seeing horses when I see this kind of fence and yes, we did see some horses.

 My kids are fascinated how much corn are in the field.  My son exclaimed "Does every people eat corn?".  We old him that  corn are not ju0st for human consumption but  also for animals like cows.

 My husband is always the one driving so I  get to take pictures of just about anything when we are on the road.

 I thought that house is  cute.

 Driving through the road where you can see  lake is pretty awesome.

 It makes for a relaxing drive.

We want to go there  again maybe in Fall or Winter.  We want to see how it looks like in other season.  My favorite season for  road trips is Fall because I get to see the beautiful colors of trees!