Warming, the next picture contains a snake, so close your eyes if you don't want to see!
I was getting my shoes on to pick up some friends, when Drake came and told me there was a snake outside. Sure enough, a stinking copperhead was right by the van. Dave was out of town, so I thankfully our neighbor came to my rescue! I praised Drake for doing exactly as he should (come tell me, and not touch it). He told me he remembered our Family Home Evening that we had on snake safety and knew that was a poisonous snake.
A brand new splash pad opened by close to us. It was even more fun when we went with lots of friends!
Dave really wanted to get somewhere as a family, since he missed most of the summer. We decided to go "camping" at Old Fort, NC. We stayed in a tiny cabin, with bunk beds, a little bathroom, and a small kitchenette. We weren't allowed to cook inside, so we had foil dinners and roasted marshmallows.
At night, we played board games inside.
There was a great creek to play in. We found a slippery rock, the kids used as a slide.
The next morning, we took a hike to Catawba Falls. I'd be lying if I said everyone enjoyed it. There was lots of complaining from the boys, but it was something I really wanted to do!
Next we drove to Marion, to tube down the Catawba river.
Then is ride was even fun!
We were all strapped together, so we stayed together. We got to see tons of turtles, a crane and other fun wildlife.
The next day, we were headed to church when we noticed we had a river in our front yard. It took a while to figure out, but the city's 8 inch water main broke. The boys thought it was pretty cool to see a fire truck and a tractor in our front yard! Those poor guys dug from 10:30-6:30, but they got it fixed!
Lincoln had some minor surgery done, so Cleve watched the younger kids. Link was bummed he didn't get to spend time with cousins, so we went up to Hickory the next day. The kids had a great time, and Cleve and I were able to just sit and have a nice conversation. I love that they live in NC!
I took the kids to a pool birthday party. They came home with tons of fun toys in their goody bags. Drake has been having fun with his straw glasses and Dorothy felt grown up putting on lip gloss with a brush.
We had one last slumber party with the cousins. The girls had a tea party and watched Beauty and the Beast, while the boys went to the movie theater and built a sleeping fort.
Nobody got a ton of sleep that night, so the next morning, kids were tired and cranky. Cleve was considering taking his kids back home, to rest and be separated, but we decided to try going to the park. It was the perfect thing for everyone! The kids had a blast playing in the creek. We left it better than when we came by packing out trash when we left. Lincoln considers it a great crime to litter, and always gets disgusted when he sees people litter. It is kinda cute, my little earth lover!
This is our "don't look at the sun" face, because it was eclipse day, and we had to repeat that often!
Our cereal projectors didn't work, but mom's neighbors were so sweet to share their glasses with us. Drake ended up using the projectors as sandals later that day.
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