SO sorry about the gap in entries. When we got to Vermont, we discovered, much to our surprise, that the place had no phones in the rooms, and our cell phones got no signal-- we were really out in the country!! Anyway I had to forgo the update briefly. But I'm back. I'm back. I'll tell the stories first and then I'll post some new pictures a little later. I'm at my parents' house in Ithaca right now so I'm actually on a high-speed connection -- woo hoo!!

So we left Long Island on a rainy, wet morning and did what most Long Islanders I know have never done -- took the ferry from Port Jeff to Bridgeport. It was actually a really nice ride and quite a bit more relaxing than driving through NYC on I-95. Our car was positioned right at the back of the boat so we had a great view without even leaving the car. After we de-boated at Bridgeport, we drove up to Middletown, where Wesleyan is, and I showed Cindy all around my old school grounds, and we even ate lunch at my favorite Indian restaurant, Taj, which is still there... and the same guy is actually still working there...scary!! A LOT has changed around there. There's actually a movie theater in walking distance from school!!!! SO jealous about this. We didn't have that!!! Middletown has definitely gotten in better shape. I was bummed though because Manhattan Bagel was closed... wanted some of that french vanilla cream cheese (Arwen knows what I'm talking about... ;) ) Anyway from Middletown we drove up to Grafton, Vermont, an adorable little town in the middle of nowhere -- but fortunately our GPS told us how to get there. Almost right away we saw Kelly who seemed SOOO happy. If you're reading this -- congratulations again Kel & Zoe! Anyway we checked in and panicked at the lack of phone situation... but we got through the withdrawl. Friday night there was a party thrown by the parents with a digital montage of their lives, which was really cool to see. Then we had lots of fun hanging out with Arwen and Dave and Kristin and Jim in the game room... (By the way, I won at pool!! Just had to point out that rare event).

The next morning we took advantage of the free breakfast with Arwen and Dave and then we met up with Kristin and Jim to walk around the town. The main attractions in Grafton include the Cheese factory and a sheep barn. Yes, that's a barn with sheep, and a place where they teach you how cheese is made and where you can buy the cheese as well as, of course, maple syrup! Then Cindy and I wandered around town buying souvenirs and we all met up again at Arwen and Dave's house, which kind of became the communal crash pad (thanks, guys!) since we had already checked out of our room.

The ceremony was beautiful, and we caught up with Lauren there too. Afterwards we were served a really good dinner... (Yes, I'm leaving out mention of the "contest"... those who were there know what i'm talking about and those who were not really don't need to). ;) and cake and ice cream, followed by dancing and some sweet parental speeches.

I wished we could have stayed longer but Cindy and I had decided that we were going to make it all the way to Ithaca last night... so we headed out around 9:30 on a dirt road where we actually saw our first MOOSE! I wish I had been able to take a picture of it but I didn't have my camera ready. Anyway we continued on and drove the back roads to Ithaca, successfully averting deer, racoons, squirrels and cats. We made it here very late and found a large racoon ravaging mom's bird feeders. He's caught on tape though, so he won't get away with it!

Anyway... here we are in Ithaca and I think we're going to explore the falls soon--- tonight I'll post pictures! :)