The time has come for us to say goodbye to my family here in Vermont and pack up for LA.Genny and I have been working tirelessly on making final preparations for our trip, which is now set to kick off in 4 days!Our routine consists of waking up, catching a full hour of Jon and Kate plus 8 reruns while having breakfast (if you have never seen the show, don't start watching, it's like crack…not that I know what crack is), and then working off of two computers to organize our notes and work out the last details of our trip.

We've had a great time here in Vermont, reconnecting with family and friends in the area.Thanks to a visit from our friends Wyatt & Tina from Monterey, we've also been doing some touring about. I can't remember the last time I drove around my home town and did touristy things.

Our activities have included:

1. A tour of the Ben & Jerry's factory (can you say, "free samples!" They might discontinue those after our visit)
2. A stop at the Vermont Cheese House where we sampled some local cheeses (if you come across a cheese with the words "truck driver" in the title, don't eat it, it tastes like feet!)
3. A driving tour to observe fall colors.
4. Sunset over Lake Champlain.
5. A visit to the Bennington Battle Monument (a look alike to the Washington Monument in D.C. but this one commemorates the battle of Bennington during the Revolutionary War, which actually never took place in Bennington, or Vermont for that matter, it still looks cool though. Not sure why they have a monument)
6. Apple picking and all of the yummy goodness that results when you have multiple bakers in one house and a surplus of apples. An apple actually fell on my head. Unfortunately, I did not have any revelations like Newton.

All in all, it has been great being in Vermont.