Gettysburg was so much more than I anticipated. I’ve never been much of a Civil War buff, but this made it more real and heart-wrenching that I’ve ever understood it to be.

Lancaster City’s Central Market. It never fails to charm me.

Wheatland, President Buchanan’s home. I never knew he was from Pennsylvania until Scott started researching things to do on this trip.

The Cork Factory Hotel. Seriously comfortable beds. A good place to start a vacation.

First night of vacation. After a day of teaching classes, hustling to get out of town and finally getting to our hotel, all I had energy to photograph was this wacky bar of soap in the hotel bathroom.

A peanut butter pie for Mikey and Jennie.

Some days, Philadelphia is remarkably lovely.

Cheese to pair with jam. Plotting and planning an assortment of flavors to pair with these puppies.

Dusk. We went to look at the kittens in the window of the pet shop on 20th Street before getting a treat at Capogiro gelato.

A handful of cherry tomatoes, grown on my living room floor in my hand Aerogarden. It’s not a backyard, but it’s better than nothing.