Do you have a National Parks Pass ? We bought one this year since we plan to see several over the next 12 months. While in Buffalo, we visited the Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural Historic Site . It was pretty neat!

Do you like history? Seeing history in action is one of our favorite things! Old Fort Niagara in Youngstown, NY is a really neat preservation of the history of the fort. Originally built by the French to protect their stake in the new world, Fort Niagara was built in 1678 and abandoned a few years later until 1726 when it was put into use again by the French and expanded over the next few decades.

While visiting Niagara Falls , we stayed in Four Mile Creek State Park . The park is situated on the shore of Lake Ontario and offers mostly electric only or boon docking sites. You can also use your park pass to get into other state parks for free while you’re staying. The weather was even perfect for a fire one night!

Did you know that “Niagara Falls ” refers to the city in New York where three HUGE waterfalls are located along the Niagara River? The Niagara River is the boundary line between Canada and the United States between 2 of the 5 Great Lakes - Lake Erie and Lake Ontario.

Spending time in Buffalo, NY a MUST DO thing for us was to eat at THE restaurant where buffalo wings were invented. Steve worked at a wings joint in his younger years and makes really good wings. We wanted to see how different his were than the originals (and which were better!).

Have you had any architectural finds in your travels that have just knocked your socks off? For me (Kate), churches usually do it. I am just awestruck at the immense presence I feel when I walk into them.

Originally a holiday in Oregon in 1887, Labor Day was adopted by over 30 states by 1894 when it became a federal holiday. It is a day to remember those people who work to make our communities and countries better with their labor, ingenuity, and achievements for the betterment of society.

As part of our trip to The Henry Ford, we took a tour of the Rouge Factory. While they don’t allow any photos inside the factory itself, we thought we’d share the photos of parts of the tour we were allowed to film.

Being able to watch the assembly line of the F-150 is incredible. It is a very well oiled machine, with each person doing their part in a timely manner and documenting anything they find out of spec in real time. Probably one of the most interesting thing about the factory itself is how they have engineered it to be green. Two of the initiatives really stood out as being special.

Our trip to The Henry Ford was multiple days. Highly recommend spending a few days in this area to check it out!

Part of the campus includes Greenfield Village - a combined effort of Henry Ford and Thomas Edison - which showcases life in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s in America. They have brought in historic buildings (school house, church, merchant shops, taverns, Edison’s workshop, and even homes of notorious persons from the time) from all over the country which have been painstakingly restored and displayed on the more than 80 acre property.