So, towards the end of July our school district announced they would be pushing back the first day of school by 3 weeks. 3 WEEKS! I was not up for another 5 weeks of summer sitting around on screens. (Florida in the summer gets to be unbearable outside unless you are in water so . . . ) So, what was our other option? ROAD TRIP! I decided to take a northerly route, heading up to Tennessee, Ohio, swing back through Kentucky and back home. Luckily my awesome sister-in-law and friend were up for some visitors. And the kids love roadtrips, so away we went!
First of all, it just felt nice to getaway. We didn't need to do anything special - just get out!! It was really nice for me to just take some time to sit, destress, and feel normal.
The girls entertained themselves by recreating the connect 4 box . . .
. . . playing with the Polly Pockets . .
. . . and Kylie even started learning how to ripstik and skateboard a little bit.
My Sister-in-law really knows how to show us a good time. We had a fire with s'mores . . .
. . . spent a day canoeing. . .
. . . had a couple of outdoor movies (it was so NOT humid. I could be outside without being drenched. I loved it!! And I even saw a couple of fireflies 😀)
. . . went bowling . . .
. . . and of course did a fun craft!
Next stop was Ohio to visit the Frandsens. I absolutely loved the beautiful forests and trees everywhere, and even better was getting to spend time with good friends!
First they took us to some fun swinging vines in a nature preserve. A way fun way to start things out.
The next day we hit it hard by going to King's Island Amusement park. This place had a ton of rollercoasters and it wasn't very crowded so we did it all!!! We had to do a little bit of splitting up because Beckham and Kylie weren't tall enough to go on all the rides, but it worked out well and everyone had a great time - even with the masks.
This park had every kind of ride you could possibly imagine: swings, rides to make you dizzy, water rides to keep you cool, roller coasters that go forwards and backwards and upside down and the longest roller coaster ride ever (over 5 minutes long!) By the end of the day we were exhausted but happy. I got my Christmas ornament, representing the last roller coaster ride we went on (that everyone said was their favorite). It was super fast and crazy but a ton of fun. We also decided we couldn't leave the park without funnel cakes, of course.
The next couple of days we were able to spend some more time hiking around in the beautiful forests. We saw this 500+ year old tree that was planted around the time Columbus arrived in the new world. Can you see Kylie standing at the bottom?
There was also this tree tunnel that looked really neat when you walked through it and then we got to hike partway up the river. There were tons of crawdads and even a couple river snakes. 😲
Another day we hiked to a swimming hole and had to cross a bridge. Can you find Kate the sasquatch in the background? 🤣
The swimming hole was much deeper in the spring, but it was still fun to play in the water and cool off.
We were also hiking around a beautiful lake to get there. Did I mention I love hiking?
Another fun thing we did was go to a park. I love that my kids will still play at a park!
They had these cool slides that were cut into the side of the hill, but the real fun was that people would bring cardboard boxes and slide down the hill themselves. Super unique and fun. Lise was a pro at mastering surfing down the hill - lots of great balance and coordination. I even tried it once or twice!
On top of all these fun adventures there was also icecream, night games, jumping on the tramp, playing games, watching movies, and just relaxing, chatting. It was just what we needed. Thanks Frandsens for showing us what Ohio has to offer. We would definitely do it again!
On the way back from Ohio we would be driving right past our old stomping grounds of Elizabethtown, Kentucky, so of course we had to stop and say hello (and take a pic in front of our old house)! We had a great lunch at Panera catching up. It is always so good to see people and the girls had fun hanging with their old friends too. Times like this are a little bitter sweet for me. They make me grateful for all the wonderful people I've been able to meet and the friends I have all over the world, but sad that I can't be closer and get to see them more often.
Our final stop was one more night at the Paine's before heading home the next morning. We played a fun game of ticket to ride and Jeff blew us out of the water. What a great trip with so many fun people and fun memories. Thank you everyone!
It was a beautiful morning when we headed for home. I loved the clouds and the mists on the rolling hills. I felt rested and rejuvinated and ready to go back to fight my battles. I cannot tell you how grateful I am for wonderful friends who were willing to host us, save our summer, and get ready to go back to school or online learning or whatever lay in store for us. Take that COVID19. You're not going to beat us!! (I am also grateful for another teenage driver who gave me a break by driving a portion of the trip. Woot, woot.)
 |
| This knitted "Coronavirus" was at my sister-in-law's house and it cracked me up. She told me I could keep it. I'm sure I'll be able to find some use for it . . . |
No comments:
Post a Comment