Papa and Jeannie Get Smart!

The first week we had the grandkids, we racked our brains trying to figure out budget friendly places to go and see...We thought history sites...maybe Gettysburg? Nope! Kids not interested, and it was hotter than blazes...Maybe a trip to some Civil War sites? Nope, not interested....We started hitting our stride with the zoo, and wild animals in the park in the Smokies...a hike or two? OK...but not their favorite thing, and don't make it too long for the youngest one! Scenic drives--naw....too boring for pre-teens....

The second week, we started rollin'....a hike to a waterfalls? Good deal!  A free water park! YEAH! A trip to a candy making factory? OH, BOY!  A trip to the "world's largest general store"? Yee haw! And that's what we did today...We drove a BUNCH of country back roads to hit two places of interest that were on our tourist map...you know those special maps of the area that mark places of interest? The ones that are USUALLY tourist traps?

We visited Callie's Pretzel Factory in Cresco, PA, which was about 25 miles from Timothy Lake where we are staying ..It was a small house, a "mom and pop" run business, run by a left-handed business guy. He even promotes his pretzel place as "the left hand shop" which got Sparky wondering, "What's the deal with the 'left hand shop'"? Nothing....except he has a small bookshelf inside the shop that sells some stuff about famous left handers, some slogans, things like that. It makes you curious so you have to ask!

Trevor outside Callie's Pretzel Factory

They sell all kinds of hard and soft pretzels, popcorn, seasonings...There seemed to be more popcorn stuff for sale than pretzels! You can see pretzels being made on a machine. We bought a few things, but were disappointed in the taste of the pretzels. The best soft pretzels we think, are back in Shipshewanna, IN, at Jo-jo's Pretzels at the Davis Mercantile Store.

















On to the Country Junction, the "world's largest general store". Hm-m-m-m, I think we saw that same claim at a store in Texas, somewhere...But this one, in Lehighton, Pa, was REALLY big, that's for sure. Everything but the kitchen sink was under one roof. Home decor, candles, glassware, kitchenware, kitschy signs, wine, gifts, garden stuff, and a HUGE pet section....Sparky likes to look at all that stuff and the kids did, too....They had all kinds of larger than life characters that sang or talked...like the Blues Brothers group, they were for sale....

Sparky's fortune telling friend, Zoltar, was there...you could purchase him for $8,000.

Want your own Cabela's animal scene? A mere $22,000.00.....

Want something different than a rocking horse for a favorite new grandchild? (UH-OH!)  Don't worry, Eldy,  too expensive to even think about...But very interesting!

Sparky did think about these cute little kids' chairs...

But what two year old do you know would sit in this for more than 30 seconds?

The hula hoops were popular....

Sparky liked the "Kountry Crystal".....

They had the weirdest stuff there along with the ordinary things....yes, this dragon was for sale, but don't know how much...

Trevor liked the petting zoo the best....Sparky cringed at all the dirty water, droppings and germs that must be present in these kinds of places, so she made sure Trevor used the hand sanitizer after he got done feeding the lamas or whatever they were!

There were some cool roosters and hens there!

It was a fun day for our last day with the grandkids. We topped it off with one more visit to Friendly's...(Ice cream is Eldo's weakness, don'tcha know...) You do now! :-)  Tomorrow, the "Best of the Wurst!"