Blue Ridge Mountains Trip - Day 2

Posted by Gabrielle

Day 1

Day 2 of our mountains camping trip back in June had two main highlights - lots of driving and lots of hiking! I don't know about you, but I just can't get enough of the breathtaking mountain scenery.

This one reminds me a little of the part in the beginning of the Sound of Music where Maria is up on the mountains singing.

The Viaduct

Looking out at an overlook - a very, very elevated overlook!

Our first stop of the day was at Linn Falls. This was a waterfall we had wanted to hike to last time, but couldn't because of rain. We were blessed with a beautiful day for a lovely hike this time!

On the way, we passed a hollow stump and the boys could not resist!

The Falls

Timothy

And yes, we even got a family picture at the Falls!

After this, most of the family was ready to rest, but a few of us did some more hiking on nearby trails. As the photographer, I couldn't resist accompanying them. We hiked up to an overlook, and this picture is of the same Falls, viewed from many hundreds of feet above.

Enjoying the view

After hiking up to view the falls from above, we hiked back down to the actual base of the Falls where we could wade among the rocks.

My beautiful sister Christianna

Jedidiah and Benaiah having fun at the park again that evening

As we were leaving the park, we captured the way the rays of the setting sun lit up the clouds. The picture doesn't do it justice.

Day 3 coming soon!

Doctor, Doctor...

Posted by Gabrielle

The other day, while I was folding laundry in the living room, the boys were playing nearby. Elliot and Tobias were doctors and Benaiah was the patient. The following are some alarming snippets of conversation I overheard:

"...Alright, I put in a new eye and put on a bandage."
"Here is the bullet wound. Take out the bullet and clean it out with dishwashing soap."
"Oops, I broke his leg lifting him onto the table!"

I certainly wouldn't want these doctors to attend to me, would you? :)

Some catching up to do!

Posted by Gabrielle

Yes, I did the unthinkable. I lost track of a birthday! With many apologies to Elliot, I announce that at the end of April, he turned 12! As usual, the birthday celebration was filled with many sweets and goodies, and much laughter.

Happy Birthday, Elliot!

He is the family ham; can you tell? We're never tired of his entertainment!

Blue Ridge Mountains Trip - Day 1

Posted by Gabrielle

Early Monday morning, June 6th, we started out for a three-day camping trip in the Blue Ridge Mountains. This was our second trip to the area and we prepared with much anticipation.

Our happy little camper, complete with his lamb, Zadok, and a beloved animal cracker.

A new use for rest-stop picnic benches - pushups!

Our campsite by the lake

A view of the lake from our campsite

Christianna enjoying the quiet beauty of the lake

Timothy and Elliot, with Jedidiah standing by, setting up the tents

Mommy, Benaiah, and Elliot enjoying the lake

Ambushed by guerilla fighters!

Benaiah climbing trees and enjoying the view

After setting up camp, and it being late afternoon with not a lot to do there, we headed down to the beautiful little park in the nearby town of Blowing Rock. It's a quaint little town with it's streets lined with small shops where people walk to their shopping instead of driving, but they have the funnest park, as we discovered last time.

Blowing Rock, the quaint little mountain town we stayed at.

The little gazebo on the pond

Watching the ducks and fish in the pond

The fountain

First, there was just one duck

Then, we noticed three others on the opposite shore who soon took to the water like...

well...ducks! :)

Elliot, Christianna, Timothy, and Jedidiah playing horseshoes

And we all played tennis!

Jedidiah and

Tobias enjoyed the bars!

And I think Benaiah enjoyed having the sandbox to himself

Resting and Talking

Day 2 coming soon...

Baking day....

Posted by Arianne

Yesterday I got inspired to do some baking. I made a loaf of whole wheat oatmeal bread. I had tried it once before at a friend's house, but it didn't rise. So I was very pleased to see that it rose this time.

While I was waiting for my bread to rise I made cinnamon rolls. I had never tried them before so it was all new to me. But it was a lot of fun! I did a chocolate frosting on top instead of the usual sugar frosting. They turned out quite nicely considering it was my first try. Here is another picture of the scrumptious frosting dripping down the side...Yum!

A Sign of the Times

Posted by Gabrielle

We have a plump little bunny living around our house. We're not sure exactly where he lives, but he loves hiding out in the bushes and nibbling greens and dandelion stalks around our yard.

This evening, several family members were discussing around the dinner table whether this bunny is male or female, and some were rather opinionated.

Benaiah chimed in with his own vote. "I think it's 'email'!"

It is definitely a sign of the times when the word email is part of a three-year-old's vocabulary!