Nothing like some clean mountain air to relieve a little stress. Last
weekend, we went on a mini-vacation with my Hubs’ family. They rented a
gorgeous house on a lake up in the mountains about three hours away. Quinn had a great time with
his cousins, and it was really nice to have some family time.
This is the view off of the deck.
The beach was just a short walk away. Q loved floating in
the water with Daddy and our three year old niece.
Said three year old niece also took on the role of “Little
Mommy” to Q and helped us take excellent care of him during the trip. She
followed him everywhere – all the cousins did, really. It was nice to see all
four them playing together. So cute!
Said three year old niece also informed me that she hates
monsters and she punches them in the balls. (Can you tell she has two older
brothers?) Yep, she is my hero. I’m either the best or worst aunt ever because
I laughed out loud. That shit was funny!
Not far away was a little place called Rainbow Pool, a small
swimming hole with a waterfall. The water was fresh and clean, and the view was
gorgeous. The water was a little too cold for Q, so he enjoyed it from his
perch on Daddy’s shoulders.
Smaller waterfalls cascade into a river that feeds the
waterfall into the swimming hole. Q’s Uncle and cousins had a great time
collecting rocks and splashing in the shallow water.
Poor Q was exhausted after all that activity, so he dozed in
the car while Hubs and I drove around and took in the scenery. This viewpoint
is called Rim of the World. Our little point-and-shoot camera (all we had with
us that day) cannot do this view justice.
The lake we stayed on had a water taxi that took us to a
larger beach near the marina. I’d like to say that Q loved his first boat ride,
but he was too displeased with the giant life vest he was forced to wear. He
calmed down after the boat started moving, but he was definitely not happy.
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That's our niece lookin' all gangsta in her awesome pink hat. |
He had a great time once we got to the beach though. He and
Daddy played in the sand for quite a while. His new favorite thing is to dump
dirt on his head. Miraculously, no sand got into his eyes. These little safari
hats are now a beach time necessity.
This is one happy, filthy toddler.
We also experienced quite a bit of wildlife up in the
mountains. A family of deer came by every day, and they didn’t seem to be wary
of us at all. They walked very close to the deck, and as long as none of the
kids made any sudden movements, the deer were content to take their lunch
there.
Not all the wildlife was welcome though. One night, my Hubs,
his brother and I were hanging out on the deck after all the kids went to
sleep, when we saw two eyes peering at us through the dark. A raccoon had stealthily
scrambled up the steps and was prepared to see if we had left any dinner
behind. Luckily, our sudden AHHHH!!
scared it away.
I’m not a fan of mean and ugly creatures.