Wheeewww...this vacation stuff is exhausting! We've been on the go, go, go and having all kinds of fun in and around the Erie area.

We went to the Blues & Jazz Fest on Saturday & had a BLAST. It was the first time we'd ever been there, but it won't be the last. How fun! Our running friends were there with a giant tent and a BUFFET (oh...and a few libations, too...hey...why do you think we run!?!). The girls may have a future as an inflatable air band.

I had been working a booth for the paper at the Jazz Fest & was in charge of bringing home the ETN seagull, Seymore. We couldn't resist having a little fun with the BIG guy. Here he is lazing our in our pool on Sunday morning.

Sunday was the big Cass family reunion (and I mean..big). Always fun to catch up with old friends and family!

Monday..it was Freeport Beach for a picnic and afternoon in the sand, surf and....lots and lots and lots of freakin' algea. I'm still trying to get this stuff out of their hair!

Tuesday was Build-A-Bear where i purchased the most expensive stuffed animals I ever bought in my life. ("Excuse me. 50...what? uh...OK...uh, yeah..Visa."). I rationalized it all..see I figure we're saving money on actually traveling anywhere...so...

Tuesday night we FINALLY went for a Pedal Boat ride in Presque Isle Bay. We've tried to do this a few times, but it's always too windy or too hot or too cold. Tuesday was juuuussst right and we had a blast. On the way there, I was lamenting that I should go for a walk & get some exercise, but then...we got in the boat and realized...uh...pedaling through the bay IS exercise! It was fun...but it was a workout!

Then...we were off to the 8 Great Tuesdays concert at Liberty Park where we..once again..met up with our running friends (yes..our friends like to party..and run). Now you know why my kids refer to them as our "runnin' family" (cause we see them more than we do our own family).

Wednesday was Niagara Falls with my parents. At the recommendation of a friend, we went to the Butterfly Consevatory which was WAY cool. OMG...it was just unbelievably cool and worth every one of the $12 it cost to get in (kids were cheaper & kids 5 & under are free ...woohoo!). One word of caution though...if you're not a bug person and get a little freaked out by flying insects..this is not the place for you...they are buzzing all over...landing on you. You will be tempted to swat (which will get you some seriously glaring looks from the "conservation officers" there).

Then...we headed for the big falls where we did something I've never done before and rode on the Maid of the Mist to the base of the Canadian waterfalls. It was really cool...and...again..worth the $12 (I think it was $12) and kids ...again...5 & under are free. It was HOT standing in the sun baking in blue plastic, but...we were soon rewarded with some nice cold showers, courtesy of one of the 7 wonders of the world.

We ate at the Rainforest Cafe which is where we blew the most of our vacation wad -- $50 for my meal and one kids meal (oh...and two beers..hey...I run and did I mention that I was traveling with my parents...you'd happily shell out $10 for beers, too).

Today, I dropped the kids off at the sitter (no, I really did!) and I have the afternoon to myself. I was considering doing yardwork, but then...mother nature just opened the skies and said..no...I think you should go the mall, honey. So...I'm off to the mall...to pick up my new PC (yes...finally bit the bullet and ordered one!).

Tonight..it's party time...off to the Block Party with friends.

Not sure what tomorrow holds...but...hopefully, a nap (yeah...right...:-)

Anyone who says there's nothing to do in Erie ought to take a week off with me! :-)

I'll be posting sporadically next week while we're on vacation. Another vacation close to home...but we never lack for things to do here in Erie. Free music and fun things to do can be found from one end of the county to the other.

Here's hoping the weather is better than my last vacation in June when it was...what...50 degrees and raining!

I had to smile when I stumbled upon this post at Zen Habits called "5 Powerful Reasons to Drive Slower, and How to Do it."

I used to have quite the lead foot. Everywhere I went, I went in a hurry. And, if you were in front of me and I thought you were driving too slow, I was MAD and I'd usually let you know it by doing all the things that jerky drivers do (tailgating, motioning, yelling, blowing by you at the first chance).

Yes, I did. And, I am ashamed of my former behavior.

Then, I witnessed a serious road rage incident that changed my driving ways forever. The husband and I were driving down to my parents house and there were two trucks in front of us that were obviously engaged in some sort of back-and-forth road-rage thing. I think one cut the other off at some point. At the stop light, the guy in the truck in front got out, came to the truck behind him and was screaming at the other guy and proceeded to punch his windshield so hard that it broke.

I was terrified, even though it wasn't me...because it could've easily been me.

That was about 3 or 4 years ago and I can honestly say that I have never gone back to my wild-driving ways.

I am now the person you think is driving too slow. But, I'm perfectly happy to pull over and let you go by if you have somewhere you need to be fast. If you cut me off, I'll let you (I'll probably even wave). If you are waiting to pull out into traffic, I'll be the one to let you through.

My drives are much more pleasant and calm and, sure, I'm usually late wherever it is that I'm going. But, I arrive there happy and serene...instead of angry and irritated.

And...with gas prices today...my slower driving habits pay off at the pump.

Three things I'm loving this week:

1. Free music everywhere! From North East to Edinboro, you'll find a host of free concerts in and around Erie on almost any day of the week. Don't believe me -- pick up a copy of Showcase in today's Erie Times-News and read the fine print. Just this week, I have four free concerts on the old family calendar. We didn't make it to the 8 Great Tuesdays concert with Jake's Blues this past Tuesday, but we made it to Whitford Park (in Harborcreek) last night and enjoyed a folk band. There's a concert on the concert of Penn State Behrend tonight and, of course, free blues & jazz music all weekend at the Erie Art Museum's Blues & Jazz Fest at Frontier Park. There are also concerts in the park in North East and Edinboro. The Erie Philharmonic is even getting in on the action with a free concert at lunchtime in front of the Warner Theatre on Aug. 12.

2. Football training camp. The boys are back. The NFL training camps opened this week and I've got football fever....even if the news out of the Steelers camp gets worse every day with some key player getting injured or pulling a muscle and otherwise causing Steelers fans to anxiously twist their Terrible Towels. The whole Casey Hampton-is-too-fat thing is pretty funny though. Seriously...if you were getting paid millions of dollars to stay in shape, don't you think you'd lay off the Big Macs and corndogs and get your fat butt to a gym once in awhile? Ah...but, don't worry, Casey, I still love you...you big, overgrown tackle.

(AP photo)

3. Rudebekia, otherwise known as Black-Eyed Susans. These are one of my most favorite perennials. I have them in almost every flowerbed in my house and just seeing their big, yellow petals makes me smile -- even if they are pushy perennials that have taken over half the beds. (The other nice thing about this plant is that it's very easy to divide and thin out).

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