Smores

Smores...one of the best parts of camping.. Hayden made one yummy burnt marshmellow!
Thomas made me the "perfect" smore. Perfectly golden brown, lightly toasted marshmallow.
The three of us roasting those ooey goooey yummy squishy marshmallows.
Definitely the best... super yummy smore ever. It was made with love!
Thomas knows the art of creating the perfectly toasted marshmallow.
My boys and their roasting........
Fun, fun activity to do on Saturday evening. It was one of the best impromptu moments of our trip. No matter what we were doing, the weather was gorgeous, I loved the sound and smell of rain on all those beautiful pine trees. I loved the relaxation and family bonding time.

Thanks, Julie! We love and appreciate you taking us on this fun family getaway. It was much needed and so much better than even my high expectations.

Grandma Time

Hayden is a lucky boy and has incredible grandmas. He sure loves his Grandma Julie. She will tickle him, battle him with guns, play video games and cook with him. He loves the chance at spending time with her. She does tickle him right back when he gets her.
He was so tired after running all day, he came over and laid against Grandma, cuddling in for bed.
Love this and that he has her in his life.
Hayden didn't want to miss out on any of the fun. He thought sleeping in the middle of the games and entertainment would mean he could wake up if we did anything too fun. Hmmm. That kid really is mine.
He ended up falling asleep on her lap within less than 5 minutes.... Fishing, Nerf wars, running and playing... yep this boy was exhausted with sheer joy.

Cleaning Fish

Hayden had to show me the fish heart... disgusting.
The boys were fascinated watching this guy clean the fish.
Hayden referred to it as dissecting the fish... Gross.
After Hayden watched them clean the fish and take out the heart (which was still beating), Hayden exclaimed, "I know what I want to do when I grow up, Mom! I want to be a fish gut cleaner. That job would be AWESOME!"

Fishing Time

We went fishing at a stock pond up in Christopher Creek. I loved the gorgeous surroundings and the old fashioned fishing poles. It felt as if we were transported back in time.
Hayden caught a fish as soon as he dropped in the line.
T.J. and Sean are helping Brody right after he caught his first fish.
I had gone over to show Hayden that the fish wouldn't do anything, he was just swimming around. That dang fish jumped up and bit my hand. It didn't hurt but scared me to death. So much for making him less apprehensive.
I'm telling Hayden to touch the fish, it won't bite.
Julie, Brody, T.J. and Sean
My fishermen
Thanking Grandma Julie for bringing us up here together.
And he is caught.
Hayden was ultra proud of himself fishing.
I laughed like crazy when T.J.'s fish jumped out of the bucket and it was flopping all over the ground while he was trying to get it back in the bucket.
I loved watching my boys go for a walk and talk.
Hayden gets so in to what he is doing. Sheer concentration from that boy.
Best buds!
It was a great day or couple of hours fishing!

Eatin' Time

One of the most incredible things about going anywhere with Julie and Thomas... we will eat amazing food wherever we are. There are no kitchens at these cabins. No problem for these two chefs. Nothing some griddles can't handle. We grilled steaks, hamburgers, egg burritos, french toast, eggs and bacon.
The griddle master making burgers...
Grill master on steaks.
Hayden loved his french toast, eggs and bacon breakfasts. Just what a boy needs in order to start off on an adventure....(I love that he is holding his gun while eating... one most always be prepared.)
Mmmm. I think I am craving french toast and bacon now. Great.

Nerf Wars

T.J. was brilliant and brought the huge Nerf guns for the boys to play with but left the ammo at home. The boys had so much fun playing Nerf wars with two cabins to hide in and around and the forest. They were in heaven as the played all weekend.
The boys quickly made friends with some kids staying in another cabin and between the six of them, they had a fantastic time running around playing all types of different Nerf battle games.
I love when Hayden makes this face. He bites his lower cheek when he is a man on a mission. The sound effects coming out of his mouth were so funny.
Ready...Aim... Fire
Brody is such a fun cousin...
Starting out on their mission....
Taking position to dominate....
Running for cover...
Taking cover to try and win and conquer.
Got to love boys and their wild imaginations. I loved watching the action played out in front of me.

Cabin

We were able to sneak away last weekend to the cabins in Christopher Creek with all of the Knapp family. Julie has made it a tradition of renting out a couple of cabins and getting us all together up in the mountains. We absolutely LOVE this tradition and look forward to our relaxing time in the mountains.

Hayden was soooo excited when we arrived. He loves the mountains and the opportunity it provides to run, yell, play, get dirty and know that he has our full attention with nothing pulling us other directions.

We had an incredible amounts of fun. It was exactly what I needed.

Hayden and Brody...doing what boys do best.... playing.
Hayden received his fair share of tickle time from his Dad, but even Grandma Julie got in on the action of teasing and tickling him.
Poor Hayden. Although, by his smile, he absolutely loved the non-stop attention from his dad.
Best part about the cabins, hands down, absolutely is sitting on the front porch of the log cabin in the rocking chair. Julie and I spent a majority of the weekend in those two rocking chairs talking, laughing and enjoying the wonderful weather with giggling boys in the background. Heaven.
Hayden off on another adventure.
My boy... I sure love my boy. I loved being able to completely focus on him all weekend and he soaked it all in.
He is growing up to be just like his dad.... a tease. He will tickle torture me any chance he gets.
Me and Julie. I absolutely adore her and am so thankful she is in our lives. I'm thankful the Knapp's have adopted us and include us as part of their family.
Our family. My heart is at peace and still when I see photos of the three of us together. I love my family and the love, friendship and bonds that we share.
I feel so safe and protected with Thomas around. I know he will make sure I am okay. I relax so much when I am with him. In moments away, when there is time to reflect, I am even more grateful for him.
I think Hayden was huge smiles all weekend.
We loved relaxing. Just talking, playing games, laughing, telling stories and being together. Life really is great!
T.J. and Sean are the greatest. They can keep me in constant laughter. I love spending time with them.
Of course, we had to get in several games. The boys learned quickly that if I didn't have to move from my rocking chair that I was in for whatever they wanted to do. We had a lot of fun on that balcony playing all kinds of games. Incredible weekend!