Places to go, people to see

We had a whirlwind of a trip last week, all well worth it! We set off for Knoxville Friday afternoon to see my family--my parents and all my siblings and their fams. And then Saturday our very dear friends from Orlando (now living in Georgia) came up with their kids (such a special treat)! So for 24 hours there were 11 adults and 12 children running around my parents house. It was a blast :) We had a cookout Saturday night and Isaac decided to pick blackberries on his own and slipped down the hill into the bush, which sent us in to pick out the stickers and get him a bath, so we missed out on the campfire we had planned.
Monday we went to the mountains and played in a little school house, then let the kids play in the river, had a picnic and took a short hike up to a look out tower. I was too concerned with keeping Isaac's feet on the ground to enjoy the view at the top :) And we ran into our dear friends, the Coopers, while we were there! They were our care group leaders before we moved to FL, Craig was the first person Keith met when he went to UT, and Craig also told us about this job. Where would we be with the Coopers :)
Keith and I left the kids with my parents on Tuesday and took a two night "personal retreat" at a bed and breakfast nearby called Whitestone. They have hundreds of acres of property right on a lake. We got to enjoy lots of uninterrupted conversation as we strolled the beautiful grounds, went canoeing and paddle boating, had a picnic, got some planning done, lots of reading in the hammock, and some wonderful time praying together!
We picked the kids up Thursday and headed for Lake Lure, NC for our own little family vacation. The kids had a blast playing in the pool that allows floats (ours doesn't) and in the lake. We checked-out Saturday morning and headed for Chimney Rock park before making the long drive back home.
We certainly made lots of memories!