Well, we did it!  We finally hit the road and it feels…. surreal!  Right now it just feels like we’re on a vacation and I’m wondering at what point it will really sink in that we will be on the road for 10 months.  But, for now we will just take it one day at a time, one trip at a time.  And the first trip?  Beautiful Niagara Falls!

It was but a short 3.5 hour trip from our home base in Hudson, OH.  The kids and I did school on the drive and we were able to explore the Grand Island KOA we were staying at when we arrived.  The campground is very nice with a fun store, two playgrounds, two dog park areas, a jump pad (which the kids LOVED), and what looked to be a really fun pool when in season.

The pool had two big twisty slides that the kids were dying to go down.  Never mind that it was 70 degrees and closed!  There was quite a bit of highway noise and if you were staying here during the summer months, I dare say you might get some noise from the amusement park right next door.  But our experience was a good one.

The next day, we decided to explore Old Fort Niagara.  I really enjoy history and I thought that this might be a fun place to learn a thing or two.  And it was a fun place to learn a thing or 5 million!  It was a bit confusing trying to figure out what part of the fort was built when and by whom since three different countries all laid claim to it at one point of another for the past 3oo years.

But from what I could gather, the French had it first in the mid-late 1700’s. Then the British for a while before the US gained control shortly after the War of 1812.  One building mentioned that the Brits used it during the Revolutionary war and that loyalist to the King who were living in the Colonies would go there for refuge from their colonist neighbors.  Elsewhere I learned that it was used as a training base for soldiers in both World Wars.

There were men dressed in period garb and we saw a mortar firing demonstration that the boys really liked.  Zac was really awestruck by the slanted floors and ceilings in one of the buildings… to each his own I suppose!

That evening, we took a trip to Niagara Falls State Park on the New York side of the falls.  This is the oldest state park in the country and while we didn’t explore the whole park, we did enjoy seeing the American Falls all lit up at night.  Also, I caught 4 Psyducks in a row here on Pokemon Go.  Bonus!

The next day after school was done, we headed out to cross the border into Canada.  The kid’s first time going into another country!  Albeit an extremely similar one to our own.  It counts!!!  The view of the falls from the Canadian side is hands down better than the side view you get from the NY side.

There is SO much to do there, it’s ridiculous.  If we had had more time we maybe could have done some of the more tourist-y things they have to offer there.  The kids were wanting to go to the Ripley’s Museum or the Guinness World Records Museum, but we told them that since we only had a few hours, we were going to grab lunch, see the Falls, ride the boat, and head up to Niagara-On-The-Lake for some ice cream.  We took the Hornblower boat tour that they offer from the Canadian side and it was well worth it.  You just can’t get a better view of the falls than that.  We were up close and personal, and we got WET!  Good thing it was a warm day!

After we got off the boat, we jumped in the car and took the scenic drive up to Niagara-On-The-Lake.  I had heard that they had some great ice cream there and who can pass up that opportunity?!?!  The town was really quaint with many wine bars and boutiques.  With the kids in tow, we decided to stick with the ice cream.  We weren’t sure which ice cream shop to stop at, so we landed on Cows.

It did not disappoint!  The kids had mint chocolate chip that was laced with a gooey fudge and I had something called Messie Bessie that was divine.  Zac was also a big fan of his Gooey Mooey flavor.  They also had some super clever marketing with t-shirts lining the walls of cows in various themes from star wars to pokemon to minions.  It’s like the ice cream equivalent to Chick Fil A in there!  Definitely stop by if you’re ever up there.

For more pictures, visit our Facebook page!  Packing up and moving on to our next location tomorrow.  See you then!