It's been a very relaxing week.
This is a much needed week before we start school in about 10 days.
We spent our time in the Appalachian Mountains visiting family. It was the kind of vacation where you lose track of what day it is and only keep track of time by when you eat your meals.
I love that.
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As I write this post, my husband and brother-in-law have taken the kids tubing (Anna had to take her Waterproof Bible - too cute!) and I packed everyone up and now have quiet time to write this post. I'm thankful for this online space to record our days - it keeps me accountable and I treasure past Collage Friday posts.
Pisgah National Forest - Sliding Rock
The Pisgah National Forest is only about a three hour drive from Atlanta, so our drive time was short.
There are many fun activities to do - you couldn't get to all of them if you tried.
We spend the day of Anna's 12th birthday doing just a few:
I have such fond memories of going to Sliding Rock when I would come to camp in this area as a teenager.
We took the kids (Anna had brought a friend with her) to Sliding Rock.
The water was COLD. The rock slide is much larger than I had imagined.
I wasn't sure if the kids would do it, but they were all brave and did the slide several times. In fact, Grant LOVED it. He was BY FAR the youngest child attempting it, but he showed no fear and had a great time. He loves a challenge.
Anna is much more timid and cautious. She went twice, and then decided to watch everyone else. I was just proud she DID IT. Her friend went several times - she's a bit more adventuresome.
I have to say - I was a little nervous about the kids doing this, but my husband went up with them to the top and I waited at the bottom -- plus there are lifeguards for any emergencies -- so I felt ok about them going.
Here's a video I took of Grant and Anna's friend. { The hollering in the video would be me. }
Keeping Busy (or not)
While we were on the go a lot, we also wanted some time just to do nothing and relax at home.
A few years ago (yes, that is YEARS) I had purchased a great little cross stitch kit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art store in NYC.
I thought Anna would be interested in it, since it is a simple project designed for older children. She wasn't - so I decided it could be mine.
I started and finished the project this week. It's so cute - now to have it framed when we get home.
Have you heard of the app Heads Up? If you want a ton of fun you should download it (it's $.99). Charades meets iPod with a video record of everyone making a fool of themselves.
Well worth a buck, trust me.
My sister-in-law keeps a huge tub of LEGOS here for Grant. Yes, he was building LEGOS - on a hike yesterday he was discussing plans for a LEGO stop motion video of Sliding Rock. I love that kid.
Finally, the resident cat, Roscoe, won everyone's heart. He's such a sweet cat and loves to play. I think he'll miss the kids giving him all kinds of attention.
DuPont State Forest
If you are ever in Western North Carolina, hiking through DuPont State Forest is a fabulous thing to do.
Anna was very excited because this was the location for the filming of The Hunger Games. We hiked to Triple Falls, where we spent a lot of time.
Needless to say, it was just beautiful.
The trails are all well marked and of varying levels of difficulty.
We did a two hour hike to Triple and High Falls - which was perfect for everyone in our group.
Anna Turns Twelve
We took this trip to celebrate Anna's 12th birthday.
It sounds so cliche, but I'm wondering where the time has gone with her. It seems that she was just learning to walk and talk.
She is changing so quickly and I love being a witness to everything God has in store for her.
Fun Things We did On Anna's Birthday:
- Chocolate Chip Pancakes for breakfast - yum!
- A trip to Sliding Rock and Looking Glass Falls
- Dinner in downtown Brevard - then lots of picture taking and walking through this quaint town.
- Anna in jail! (her aunt and uncle have old jailhouse doors in their home here - she had fun with that)
- Reading on the porch
I think she had a great day!
We are headed home today and then off to a family reunion in Alabama this weekend.
Next week Grant will be at baseball day camp and Anna will be at tennis day camp.
This for me equals teacher pre-planning! I'm hoping to get things organized at home during that time so we are ready to start school the following week successfully.
Blog News
Did you read about why we are saying NO to social media for our kids? This post generated a lot of interest and comments. Most people agreed with me, but there were a few detractors. It was a great dialog.
I also guest posted at Homeschool Share and Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers this week. Both posts are about music in your homeschool, so I hope you can read them.
Great Homeschool Conventions is offering a free download of "How Am I Smart?" - you need to download this book. It's wonderful!
How was YOUR week? Have you started back to school yet?
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