Our vacation in the mountains

We just spent a week in the mountains and it was so much fun. We left on Sunday and returned on Saturday afternoon. Here is one photo that will forever make me think of this particular vacation. It's not even that big of a deal, its just one of those things that will bring fond memories.
We also had some friends come up for a few days and then Will's mom and dad joined us for the end of the week. We swam, rode paddle boats, canoed, swam some more, played golf, went
boating twice and we also of course....ate a lot.

There are these cookies that I make these days and they are so fatty and yummy. I could've made them everyday we were there and I probably would've eaten every one of them. I do have to give some props to the recipe originator, Barb McDaniel. I'm not sure where she acquired the recipe but I have coined them as hers for sure. She's from our former church, Church at Chapel Hill.












The house where we stayed had this hammock on a porch and it got used a lot and sometimes by a lot of people...at the same time.

We also rented a pontoon boat and went just tooling around the lake, checking out the fish, feeding the ducks or just whatever we wanted.



We took lunch out on the boat one day and of course the kids wanted to eat first thing, before we even left the dock, almost. Good thing we took plenty of snacks and Capri Suns. Wonder what people did before things like Capri Suns were invented???

While on the boat, where you are forbidden to jump off and swim, we had a few "men overboard." They conveniently fell off the boat, back in a cove. I was a nervous wreck that the Lake Police were going to come and take us to lake jail.








One night also, we asked our good friend Amber to come up and babysit for us so we could go out to dinner without children (almost never happens). She graciously agreed. My children know and love her since she is their almost full-time nanny during the school year. So once she arrived, we were off.

We realized our friends, Eric and Missy had never done fondue before so we decided to get them "cultured" (what?) and show them the wonderful and exciting world of fondue.

We did manage to get Missy "out of her bubble" and try something new and different. It was a real treat. When we left, though, we were so full, almost on the verge of gluttony (one of the 7 deadly sins). The men in our sunday school class are studying those right now, so I thought I'd throw in...that it felt like true gluttony.









You start with this ridiculous cheese and then move on to the main course which is whatever you want and cooked in whatever type of


oil/broth you like. Then of course, dessert is the best part....chocolate and more chocolate. We chose a pot of pure dark chocolate and one called smores, that had chocolate, marshmallows and graham crackers. Can you say stupid good? Well, that's what it was. We think every small group in churches now needs to take an "outing" to a fondue restaurant and just have dessert. You better like to dip though, because that is what fondue is all about.


G&T just a boatin'.

I'm not sure if Brett is a bird here or if he is just enjoying the life jacket that he has just put on. Funny character.

This is hilarious, there was a buffet in the house and Graham and Tucker thought of this game. They would crawl in and out of the buffet and sometimes even shut the doors while they were in there. It was very enjoyable and did keep them occupied for at least 15 seconds. Ha!

Will's mom and dad got there on Thursday and we enjoyed having them with us too.












Tucker and his Mema and his "mine." His "mine" that he is currently calling for, is this hand made blanket that our friend Stephanie made for Brett that Tuck has adopted into his own personal snuggle item. He calls for it when he's tired. The "mine" is in the washer right now getting cleaned and he's just walking around calling and calling. Blake even tried to fake him out but he knows his "mine" and does not take the bait.













We did the pontoon boat thing again with them and also went to a fabulous Mexican restaurant to eat, it puts our little places in Cleveland to shame. Here's a few family photos, just in case you all were wondering if I was even there. Isn't that funny how the person who always has the camera is hardly ever in any pictures? I try to get Will to take them sometimes just so I have record that I exist or that I travel with my family on family excursions. Am I having a pity-party? Sounds like it.

Okay, I think that's about all I have for the week. It's back to life...back to reality...(who's singing?) next week. Will goes back to work Friday and then Blake starts 1st grade on Tuesday of the next week. Lee's students don't come back for several more weeks but we are already getting geared up to assist, serve, feed, and teach the students when they arrive!