Perrin's Midwest 4th of July

Perrin arrived in Ohio and all of the other Dragonfly's Hollow dolls were thrilled to meet her.  She was just in time for an exciting Columbus Friday night consisting of Target and the Olive Garden.  

Perrin may have had one too many at Olive Garden.

She was feeling pretty cool after

Perrin was especially excited to enjoy the annual fourth of July parade.

 I swear these are my husband's hairy arms and not mine :)

 Perrin was a little nervous about fireworks and had to cover her ears for the first few but then really got into it.  Unfortunately we forgot the camera.


Perrin wanted to go check out the Santa Maria so we took her for a tour.

She thought she was a pirate...

Perrin spotted a nearby park with a unicorn to ride on.  She wanted to know where the rainbow farts she heard so much about were.

Perrin went to our local children's museum.

She was sad that she couldn't go in the water area and had to keep the baby company.

We wrapped up our visit with Perrin with a trip to our local foody market.  Lots of great smells to take in. 

 We were all sad to see Perrin go and had a wonderful time with her.  We look forward to hearing of the rest of her adventures. 

Canada, The True North Strong and Free..

Perrin arrived in Canada again this time she came to visit Toronto, Ontario. She arrived on a grey but warm day in June. As grey as it was, Perrin was so happy that it was warmer than her last visit north.

Special Delivery!

A little history on Toronto from Wikipedia; Toronto is the largest city in Canada and the provincial capital of Ontario. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. The history of Toronto began in the late 18th century when the British Crown purchased its land from the Mississaugas of the New Credit. The British established a settlement there, called the Town of York, which its lieutenant governor, John Graves Simcoe, designated as the capital of Upper Canada. The city was ransacked in the Battle of York during the War of 1812. In 1834, York was incorporated as a city and renamed Toronto. It was damaged in two huge fires, in 1849 and 1904. Over the years, Toronto has several times expanded its borders through amalgamation with surrounding municipalities, most recently in 1998.

The city has 2.6 million residents, according to the 2011 Census. Based on these census figures, it is currently the fifth most populous city in North America. The census metropolitan area (CMA) had a population of 5,583,064,[2] and the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) had a population of 6,054,191 in the 2011 Census.[3] Toronto is at the heart of the Greater Toronto Area, and of the densely populated region in Southern Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe. Its cosmopolitan and international population[4] reflects its role as an important destination for immigrants to Canada.[5] Toronto is one of the world's most diverse cities by percentage of non-native-born residents, with about 49% of the population born outside Canada.[4][5][6] As Canada's commercial capital, it is home to the Toronto Stock Exchange and some of the nation's largest banks.[7]Toronto will host the 2015 Pan American Games.[8]

CN Tower Toronto's Landmark

All the ladies at the Franklin household were so excited to finally meet their long lost traveling cousin and had

gathered together dressed up to the nines to welcome her.

Canadian cousins excitedly waiting to meet Perrin

Perrin was both pleasantly surprised and overwhelmed to to meet everyone after her long journey. The girls quickly got her dressed in an appropriate Canada dress so she'd feel right at home.

Meeting her Canadian Cousins

Honorary Canadian

Holding on tight to the liquid gold

Perrin wasted no time finding one of Canada's best known secrets... ICEWINE.

Though Icewine's roots can be traced to centuries old German winemakers, there is nothing like Canadian liquid gold (as it is sometimes known). To make Icewine, grapes are left on the vine well into the winter months to concentrate and intensify the flavours, as water content freezes, thaws and dehydrates in each precious Icewine grape. What is left is an amazing dessert wine.

The next day it was time to get legal. Perrin packed up her passport and we headed out to Lester B. Pearson International Airport (Toronto's main international airport) to get her passport stamped by Canada Border Services Agency. The Agent was so nice to include a little message too!

We took a walk around the tarmac.

Air Canada plane

Perrin wanted to get closer to the planes but the chain link fence was as close as she could get.

Looking out onto the tarmac Perrin contemplated on her journeys past, present and future.

The final adventure on this trip was a visit to Canada's Wonderland. Perrin was in awe of the fabulous fake mountain and huge flower made Canadian flag.

Canada's Wonderland

Staring at the flower flag

The water is so clean and blue

One final wish for a safe journey made in the fountain and it was time to start packing for the next adventure.

Making a wish

Alas it was time to say good bye. We had a great time showing Perrin around. Leif came out of the closet to wish Perrin goodbye and a safe journey. Moosie decided he would keep Perrin company on her trip to remind her of the true north strong and free.

Perrin in the city of angels

The DFH gang welcomed Perrin to Los Angeles!

And she met up with an old friend, Saylor, the traveling mouse!

Next Perrin got to choose her very own sweater to keep her warm for her journey.

She insisted on rainbow hearts...

Then it was time for some sight-seeing. Her first stop was a hike to see the Hollywood sign.

Perrin really enjoyed the view.

Next stop was the Chinese Theater.

Owen helped her compare her footprints to C3PO's.

Next Perrin visited Venice Beach.

She loved the Venice Art Walls.

It was a cool day, so she snuggled with her friend Saylor.

And they watched the surfers ride the waves.

Thanks for stopping by, Perrin!!

The Blue Ridge Parkway and Time to Say Goodbye

Even though it was cloudy and cold, Perrin wanted to visit the Blue Ridge Parkway and a few other sights town before she left.

She learned a lot about the Parkway on her trip, and she especially liked this sign.  She felt like it was made just for her!

She enjoyed getting stamps in her Passport book and helping us build a wooden arch at the Visitor's Center.  "It stayed up!  Hurray!"

Then we went to see all of the handmade goodness at the Folk Art Center, which is located on the Parkway.

As usual, Perrin made some new friends.  She was not even frightened of the big bear. She spent a lot of time talking to him and stroking his soft fur.

On the way home we stopped by the Grove Park Inn, which is where President Obama stays when he is in town (as did Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush, and many other famous people).  We tried to take in the view from the balcony, but it was a cloudy, overcast day.

So we settled on relaxing for a little while by the teeny, tiny fireplace.

Soon it was time for Perrin to head on to the next stop on her voyage.  The kids posed for one last picture with her as we got her ready to go.  We were sad to see Perrin leave, but she is such a sweet, fun girl and we loved having her here.  Bon Voyage dear Perrin.  Enjoy the warmth and sunshine at your next visiting place!