The pork chops come from a pig that has never left Jackson County, the bacon 🥓 wrapped jalapeño poppers came from our garden as well as the zucchini.

Heidi’s recipe for the zucchini is a winner: spray pan with olive 🫒 oil; lay out discs of zucchini, garlic 🧄 salt and pepper, top with shredded cheese 🧀. Bake at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes. Heidi likes to get some cheese straight on the pan because they become “cheese chips.”

This year’s garden has been one our most productive.

This masterpiece featuring our pool view has Wischmeier Brothers sweet corn 🌽. (We harvested about 12 dozen ears from our garden and are saving it for winter.) Btw, I nailed the grilled chicken.) 🐓

This oak “wood cookie” is also from Jackson County from a felled tree near Lake and Forest Club. I sanded, stained and finished it and I like the way it turned out. The official seal of approval is that Heidi wants another one for the other side of the porch.

Sequim, Washington (skwim) is on the Olympic Peninsula and where we stayed while visiting the national park.

The Black Bear Diner is the spot! Even with some squealing kids at the next table ( kinda wanted to tell the parents that they are more of a McDonald”s Drive-Thru kind of family), this breakfast would not be denied!🙅

Heidi and I shared The Grizz. Scrambled eggs 🥚, ham 🐽 steak, sausage link, thick bacon, country potatoes 🥔 cheesy grits and pancakes 🥞.

The fluffy pancakes 🥞 were as good as I can ever remember having. Absolutely delicious!!!

The evergreen 🌲 forested mountains 🏔️ and the fields of lavender are a beautiful backdrop to the area.

The Black Bear Diner started in California. If our travels bring us west again, we will visit again!

Welcome to Washington!!! This state has a lot to offer! Boom 💥!!!

The main attraction is Olympic National Park 🏞️. After that, there is some fine dining on the peninsula. First, a peninsula is surrounded by water on three sides. Here, those would be the Pacific Ocean, the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and the Puget Sound.

But wait, the food is also da bomb.com. 💣

Phase 1 of this trip has been wonderful and exhausting.

To celebrate Heidi’s birthday 🎂, we traveled to Louisville for a wonderful evening of food adventures and fun. The first stop was Pier 17 on Hurstbourbe Lane.

Crab 🦀 Legs, corn 🌽, potatoes 🥔, broccoli 🥦, smoked sausage, shrimp 🍤. It was a homerun!!! ⚾️ Every part was delicious!🤤 A bit messy, but absolutely delish!!!

Right around the corner from Pier 17 is Jeff’s Donuts. 🍩 If you are that close, you might as well stop 🛑 on in.

After that, it was on to Butchertown and the South Seas Tiki Bar. A cool 😎 neighborhood and some quality cocktails. 🍹 🍸 Our bartenders Christian and Ben were hip and the drinks were da 💣 bomb!

Capping off the week with Skyline Drive in the Shenandoah Valley was fantastic. We pulled off at scenic views, hiked the Appalachian Trail and experienced Dark Hollow Falls. Also, like real hikers, we picnicked for lunch.

After the 17,000 steps Heidi put me in charge of dinner. I came up big with Green Leaf 🍃 which specializes in Cajun fare.

Every place I order shrimp and grits, they are always a bit different from the previous. This dish was superb. Headed home in the morning to catch up with kids, grandkids and dogs. After that, golf ⛳️ and multiple jobs around the house. See you later.

We started with a Billsburg Radler (lemon shandy) beer and Heidi had a blackberry cider. Delicious!

How they know the crabs are all girls? Idk. But the She-Crab soup was fantastic!

The shrimp and grits? Holy Cow! 😇 🐄! They deep fried a glob of grits, added BBQ pork belly and shrimp on a skewer. Incredible!

The entree, grilled 🍤 shrimp, Oysters Rockefeller (half shell oyster baked in garlic 🧄 butter and cheese 🧀.) A crab cake with potatoes 🥔, carrots 🥕 and green beans. Wowzer!!!

Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia has been a wonderful experience for us. The food and history has been remarkable!

“Almost heaven, West Virginia…” put New River Gorge National Park on your list. We had a wonderful experience from the natural beauty, the adventure, to the food!

We had a tasty lunch at the Cathedral Cafe. An old church transformed into a coffee house/restaurant.

Then, rafting on the river. We had a great guide on the Upper New River for a four hour trip that included class 3 rapids. Heidi was a boss!

We had a fine dinner at Pies and Pints, a craft beer 🍺 and pizza 🍕 place. The next morning it was breakfast at Biscuit World. The best biscuit in West Virginia.

After Biscuit World we walked all the way across the catwalk beneath the bridge. 800 some feet above the river.

💥 Boom 💥!!!

To quote Chicago Cubs Hall of Famer Ernie Banks, “ Let’s Play Two!”

My Rock Star 🎸 ⭐️ mother-in-law Nina Hackman makes not one, but two strawberry 🍓 pies 🥧!!! I started counting right away. Nine people for dinner, 16 slices of pie. “I’m taking two!”

Four ingredients: cream cheese, powdered sugar, whipped cream and strawberries 🍓!! 💥 Put that mixture in a graham cracker crust and “It might be, it could be, a homerun!!!” ⚾️ (Harry Caray reference.)

I failed to mention the main course. Ribs, green beans, rolls with applebutter, and cheesy hash browns.

With all of this, let me also quote Lila Kate Spray: “Nobody wants a skinny Grandpa.”

On Baldwin Street in beautiful downtown Bargersville you can find the Taxman Brewery and restaurant. We travel through here often to visit the grandchildren in Mooresville and we’re on the way home from a Tee Ball game today. ⚾️

The cheese curds were square and served with house made ranch dressing. Some of the best fried cheese we have ever had.

Lawyer recommended the Smashburger and he was on point. On a toasted brioche bun, bacon 🥓 and melting American cheese, excellent!This is a career Top Five burger 🍔 for me. The Belgian frites were tasty as well.

The Taxman has a variety of brews that we didn’t even get into on this visit. 🍺 🍻

I feel a flight coming my way sometime 🔜 .

While in Newburgh, Indiana for the Isaiah 117 House 🏠 golf ⛳️ scramble, we had some fine dining opportunities. (Isaiah 117 House is a nonprofit organization that has a house in Evansville that provides for children removed from their homes.)

We are not very good golfers, however, we are pretty darn good friends and family. Chris and Jon grew up in Merrillville as cousins and next door neighbors. I met them both in the 1980s and have been fostering this friendship for 40 + years.

When Christopher was about 5 years old and we played baseball ⚾️ in their side yard, we would let him bat, but he never “counted.” As he often reminds today. Now though, when he out drives both of us, we let him “count.”

After the scramble we had pizza 🍕 and Honey 🍯 Blonde 👱‍♀️ Ales at Turoni’s which was delicious. *Note to self. Bring growler next time.

Chris had a baseball game to get to so it was just Jon and myself for 🍳 breakfast. This morning it was Nellie’s Restaurant and it is also worthy of notice.

Sophie said she has an extra waffle 🧇 iron she will let me have as I have been craving waffles recently and want to learn how to make some good ones.

Next time!!!

The menu was huge and I have found something I want the next time I visit. Above are pans of banana 🍌 pudding with meringue on 🔝 . Pretty sure I could get Heidi on board to share one of these with me.