Big Summer Vacation 2011

This post should really be two or three posts because the last 10 days have been so full of adventure and fun. But instead, I'm just going to give a really superficial summary of our fabulous 2011 Summer Vacation! We started out two Thursdays ago, driving 8 hours to Harrogate, Tennessee where JD used to live before we were married. There, we visited with his old friends and neighbors, Margaret and Edward.
Friday, we drove 3 more hours to Lake Lure, North Carolina where we spent the next 9 days. We spent the first weekend with some of our favorite people in the world, the Farrises: Clay, Stacy, Nora, and Caleb. It was a whirlwind, and the kids had just as much fun as us. We sure do miss those guys!

JD, Stacy, and the kids check out the koi pond at our cabin.

The views from our backyard were incredible!

Everyone enjoyed the hammock.

Sunday morning, we had some coffee and shopping in downtown Chimney Rock.

The boys.

Monday morning, we drove around the lake to meet up with my family in the cabin that we had rented for the week with them. Michael got to try out his new float, which he loved at first and then realized that he couldn't get out of, which made him mad.

We rented a pontoon boat on Tuesday and toured the lake, enjoying the beautiful scenery.

When Michael tried driving the boat, he found the horn and wouldn't stop honking it.

Wednesday morning, Mom, Dad, Michael, and I hiked Chimney Rock for some awesome views and some incredibly sore legs the next day.

Thursday, JD, Michael, and I went white water rafting. It was quite a ride, and we had one particularly harrowing experience. (I didn't know JD put my helmet on backwards for this photo).

Friday, Mom, Michael, and I went horseback riding. Even though my horse was as slow as molassas, it was a fun morning.

Friday afternoon, we drove to Asheville and took in the sights, sounds, (like the 23-drum bongo party we came across), and tastes of the fun mountain city.

It was hard to come home, to leave the family yet again. But it's also nice to have Michael back on a routine and to settle down into our lives again. Only 4 more weeks until school starts!

Walking Michael

Here are those promised splash pad pictures! And I have a walking video for you. We had looooong videos of him walking, but it takes too long to upload them to blogger. So here's a small taste of our new walking boy!

Happy Fourth of July

I should have titled this blog post: "How Many Pictures Can I Fit Into One Post?" This week has been soooo fun! I can't even describe all the fun we've had with birthday parties, our 5th wedding anniversary, the Fourth of July, and JD being on vacation. Summer is great. I'll be brief in my rundown and use pictures to tell the rest of the story.

We got to celebrate Emily's birthday last Monday at the lake. We repeatedly had to keep Michael from running off the cliff right into the water.

As usual, he had fun with Danielle!

We also had a cookout with our small group where Michael showed off his new (if oversized) tractor and where some heated badmitton games were played.

We also visited Epiphany Farms on Sunday where we got a fresh (and I mean we saw it killed) chicken, which we then ate with the Liberts Sunday night. The boys shared (and I mean fought) over the push toy all evening.

The Fourth saw us at the Libert's home, playing with Miles's toys this time and riding in his new wagon!

Miles, stop looking at me!

The police car was a hit. When Michael couldn't be in it, he happily helped push Miles around the porch.

JD has one more day off, and we plan to spend today at the park picnicing and playing on the splash pad. We can't wait to share those photos with you next week!