tap..tap..tap...is this thing on? ;)
Here we go: so far this week I've almost lost 2 lbs
Oh yeah, back in the saddle!
On Sunday, my mom invited us to head out to Oregon and tour Stronghold Castle....what you say---A Castle in the middle of Illinois?!? Ehhhh...yeah, kind of sort of sure. Stronghold was a family summer home built in the early 1900's. Origionally it was to be shaped like a barn, but the architect/brother in law thought a castle would be much more amusing.
The Castle is only open to the public once a year, during Oregon's Autumn on Parade. Basically it's a small renaissance fair, people dressed in medieval garb, pirates and lots and lots of vendors (my mom thought the boys would love a giant turkey leg...not so much!)
We walked the castle trail while dad got a shuttle ride to the front of the castle (having one leg has its perks sometimes)
The would be barn castle...
This is the "long" room. A lot of the fixtures in the house were handmade be the Stronghold family. This chandelier was crafted by Mr. Stronghold out of a log chain and muffin cups for the candle holders! Pretty crafty!
This is the library, the metal piece on the front of the fire place was too new looking for Mr. Stronghold so he is said to have beat it with a logging chain...the home is in the woods, so I'm assuming that logging chains were pretty standard. Jamie was quite pleased with himself because he found the hidden doorway to a secret chapel.
The boys loved the knight, but we had to hurry up with the picture because the group was trying to get up the stairs.
There's also a pretty neat tower with a winding staircase...very steep...small steps...not cool for someone afraid of heights
After the tour, we went out and watched a pirate show....these fellows were making "stew" and it was pretty funny...the boys loved their silly humor.
Of course no event is complete without a funnel cake or 3 (yeah, my mom goes a bit overboard....and Corey and I had eaten through half of one before I was like--Crap! Not on the Diet!!!) But, we did enjoy them watching another pirate/magic show so maybe the laughter burned off some of those calories?!?
My sister and her hubby spoiled the boys with these hats..soon to be followed by baloon swords...and of course sword fighting in a wooded trail!
Not a bad weekend...and so thankful for the loss on the scale---I don't want to stay in a rut!
So far, no news on a definite date for the fire test, but it looks like Jim and I might be taking a road trip in the near future. On the bright side, airplane tickets were sky high, but Jim found a great deal on a rental car...I've never been to the southwestern states (MO is as far as this country bumpkin has gone!) Hopefully we'll have more news by Friday!
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7 comments:
Whoa... What a mid-week shout out!! Nice job!
Your Stronghold tour sounds much more interesting than the one I was on. It was a private tour; I think only 3 families.
It was interesting---the tour guides were from all over! Our poor girl was from So California...we had long sleeve shirts under sweaers with jackets...she had on burks! Burrrrrr
Oh, what a fantastic place to visit!!! Looks like so much fun:)
Fun! Congratulations on your mid-week! Have a great 'rest of the week'!
Isn't Stronghold marvellous? It was bought by the PResbyterian church in the early '60s. We went there for several years for work camps. We widened the entrance iwth a tractor, shovels and pick axes, dug outhouse pits, and kid other slave labor. They fed us like kings around that big table. Then in the winter we would go back for a long weekend and toboggan on the meadow and toboggan run..... and warm up around that marvellous fireplace. Thanks for the wonderful memories
Looks like a fun time at Stronghold. All of these years and I've never been there.
Road trip? Good for you! And how nice for just you & Jim??
Congrats on the pounds too!
What a cool romp you had! I think my team would love an experience like that.
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