Getaway

We just spent the last four days in the mountains on our first official family vacation!  The weather was gorgeous, the scenery was beautiful and we all had such an amazing time!  The kids were pretty excited and their energy level was even higher than it normally was.  I am pretty sure it is going to take us a few days to recoop, ha ha.  We did so much in our short little trip- a visit to a Nature Center, hiking, swimming, paddle boating, mini golfing, tennis playing, basketballing, enjoying local foods, knitting on the porch whilst enjoying the cool breeze and of course, taking in the breathtaking views.  Everytime we venture up into the mountains, it gets harder and harder to leave.  At one point, we were in a gorgeous valley surrounded by fields and fields of wildflowers.  It felt like heaven.  The kids enjoyed it just as much as we did.  Jacob even said "Thank you mommy and daddy for making this trip".  It was a good reminder that we need to try and do this more often.

A visit

This past weekend we took a drive up to Greensboro to visit Aunt Kristen and Uncle Spencer.  The weather was pretty nice and we decided to drive over to the Military National Park just up the road for a picnic and a hike.  The park was the site of one of the battles that took place during the revolutionary war.  Not only did it have two museums, one focused on the soldiers and their weapons and the other focused on colonial life, but it also had beautiful hiking trails.  Blake and I got a little carried away snapping photos of mushrooms along our hike.  I believe we came across at least 5 or 6 different varieties!  I am hoping we have the same kind of luck when we start our Botany block the first week of school.  The boys also loved seeing all the different types of weaponry used during that time.  In fact, it left such an impression that they played "war" for the next two days.  I think Kenna's highlight was playing cards with Aunt Kristen.  We were glad we could all have this visit before the busyness of school begins.

Rainy Day

It's been raining around here, a lot.  Which seems a bit off to me as ever since we have moved here, summers have been hot, humid and dry.  It is a nice change of pace and makes the summer almost seem tolerable, but still some sunshine would be nice every now and then.

The kids have been keeping themselves busy.  Right now card games are all the rage.  In fact, our card table is permanently set up in the garage and at any given moment, there are kids huddled around it playing card game after card game.  Blake has taught me a few and, well,  some I will just leave for the boys to play.  If they aren't playing cards then you can be sure we are all huddled on the couch reading story after story.  We have made Monday's our weekly library day and we always come home with no less than 20 books.  Kenna would tell you that her favorites are the Francis books and Each Peach Pear Plum (which I now know by heart).

While the rain may be tiring for us, our very, very, very small garden is flourishing.  The dwarf sunflowers have bloomed, my summer spinach is doing fantastic and Jacob harvested his 2nd cucumber of the season.  That may seem silly, but when you think about how they planted the seeds in February and they survived not 1 but 2 frosts PLUS their garden receives maybe, maybe, 3 hours of sun a day, that one cucumber is pretty impressive!  Parker sliced it up immediately and it was enjoyed by all.  We will see how many more are produced before the first frost.  My guess isn't many as the sunlight is already dwindling on that side of the house.

Oh, and today I made butternut squash muffins with the first butternut squash of the season (bought at the farmer's market)!  That can mean only one thing...fall is around the corner!  And this mama is so ready for fall!

Wishing everyone a lovely weekend!