The Vacation Continues!

We continued our vacation in East TN with a day at the lake in Pigeon Forge.  We went to a beautiful lake, had a picnic, went fishing, & did some tubing.  The girls had fun being outside & had lots of good Papa time!  Of course I was there too, but Momma isn't always as fun :).

The girls were having fun singing while out on the tube

Beautiful scenery

Fishing with Papa

Isabella liked to go a little faster by herself :)

I got out there & had some fun too :)

 

They caught a fish

Love!

So, that wraps up this vacation.  It was good family time for which we are thankful.  

East TN Family Vacation

Yea!  We have our computer back & all repaired (that is why my blog entries have been M.I.A).  And then, we had a power outage all day Saturday due to wind storm, residual from Hurricane Issac.  A tree fell from our neighbors yard to our backyard, knocked phone and power lines to the ground, and pulled our service box from the house.  It was a mess.  Thankfully & to my surprise, we got power back in just 9 hours.  Today our internet was restored.

Now I will share about our 2012 family vacation.  So much of our travel is going to see friends & family, which we love, but it is also nice to have a few days away with just the 4 of us.  We had that opportunity a few weeks ago.  We stayed in Pigeon Forge & had a great time.  It is a fun place with lots to do, but yes, a very tourist town as well.  The scenery of the Smoky Mountains is beautiful though!

We began our time there with our first family white water rafting trip!  We have waited a while now to take the girls on this adventure. This is something Avery & I really enjoy doing together & we were looking forward to taking the girls.  We chose a simple river with class I & II rapids.  Next time we'll go II & III rapids!  The girls had fun & did great.

The following day, we spent the day at Dollywood.  It was a lot of fun too.  We all enjoyed Dolly's music in the background as we rode rides & looked at all the local artisan crafts.

It is a beautiful, clean park.

Avery & Isabella getting on their first ride of the day

Brook creating her own ornament by blowing glass

Brook facing her fears on the ferris wheel

Avery & Isabella

The Eagle

Av & I rode this one.  It is crazy.  You start by laying back up the hill, facing the sky.  Then your seat is off the edge of the track.  It is suppose to be like wings of an eagle.  Can't believe I did this.

Future drivers

Full with friendships

We have been traveling again, & therefore, took a break from blogging. But I am back with full of friendships & pictures too!

The long awaited mystery of Megabus is now behind me. The girls & I took it to Atlanta & had a great experience. We rented a car there & drove to Greenville, SC...to spend the weekend with the Greens! It was great to be with them again. We went downtown to the falls & the kids loved seeing the stone soldier. I am so thankful for this family's friendship & influence on us.

The girls & I then drove to Charlotte to spend a few nights with my in-laws. It was a great visit. Papaw gave the girls a lesson of driving the golf cart. While there, I also was able to spend 5 hours with another of one of my dearest friends. Thanks to my mother-in-law for giving me a break to do this. My heart tank was full with seeing 2 of my closest friends in a matter of days.

We continued our vacation in the Smoky Mountains, but more about that in the next blog. ( On a side note, I can't write captions under pictures until I get my keyboard fixed)

Summer Camp

Our family went to camp for the first time with our church.  They have been going to this camp for 45 years! We had heard such great things about it, so we were excited about going, even if they didn't have air conditioning!  The weather was actually really nice.  It was in northern Alabama, and the temperatures were cooler than Memphis.  We still got hot during the day because we were outside doing activities, but our cabins stayed cool at night, thankfully.  I was in a cabin with Brook, and 6 other 1st & 2nd graders. Avery was in a cabin with other men & he helped lead some activities & in lots of other ways too during the week.  Isabella was in a cabin with other 6th graders & her counselor. The week was busy, yet good.  It was fun to get to know people, which along with watching my girls have their first camp experience, were my favorite things.

We rode on chartered buses to camp, about a 5 hour drive from Memphis

Brook didn't feel well the first night & was the first one asleep.  Thankfully, she is such a good sleeper :)

Ready for worship the next morning

Isabella in her cabin

My campers

Brook on her horse, who later bucked her off...but she got back on, a different horse, that is

fishing on the dock

luau night

Climbing...not her favorite thing, but she tried

Isabella with Jr. High friends

Father daughter at snack time

and visiting at the Falls

Brook with one of her favorite people at camp

Brook tried tennis for the first time

and archery

A new friend from Palmer Home

Sweet Palmer Home girl

Isabella with Avery on the playfield

Friends

Isabella with her counselor & Jr. High intern

Celebrating Christmas in July at camp