This year Bill's mom's side of the family had a big reunion at his aunt and uncle's farm in Indiana. We've visited there a couple of times with the kids and we always have a great time. The day of the reunion started out cold. Yes, it was actually cold in July! What a rare treat for Texans! Thankfully, we happened to pack jackets, so we were okay. It had rained all morning and was still sprinkling when we arrived at the farm. But thankfully, God took away the rain and brought in sunshine. A couple of hours into the reunion and we were able to remove our jackets and the kids were eventually able to put on their bathing suits and use the large blowup pool that had been set up in anticipation of warmer weather. We had such a great time there. The kids played in the sandbox and in the pool and they played with hula hoops and went exploring. They even got to ride the four-wheelers with their daddy. And did I mention the huge amazing meal we got to enjoy? Uncle Harold fried chicken, as well as potatoes and biscuits. May not have made for the healthiest of meals, but boy was it delicious! And of course, there was fresh corn, fruit, salads of all sorts, chips, dips, etc., and a whole assortment of desserts. It was quite the grand feast! The kids were sad when it was time to go, but since it was after 10pm and we had an hour drive back to Bill's mom's house, we figured it was about time we were going. No surprise, all the kids were asleep by the time we got there.
The following day Bill's sister and her kids along with his step-brothers and their families came over and we had a wonderful reunion with them, too. Then the next day we had a quiet morning with Bill's mom and stepdad, followed by a Cincinnati chili lunch from Gold Star (one of two meals Bill insists upon when we go on this trip; the other is White Castle). Then it was time to head to Kentucky for our visit with Bill's dad and stepmom. On our way there, we stopped at a Graeter's Ice Cream shop for dessert. Mmmm... that was some delicious ice cream! Nathan and Amy were unable to finish their desserts, but Bill, Alex and I were able to polish ours off with no problem. :)
The kids were already excited about fishing, something they always get to do at Pa-Paw's. Since it was late afternoon by the time we got there, we made them wait until the following morning. They were disappointed, but they survived. When fishing day arrived, the kids were up bright and early and ready to start! After breakfast, we went out back to the lake and the kids fished. The fish seemed to be biting and Nathan and Amy each caught one almost right away. Alex later caught one and then Amy actually caught the biggest fish of all. Or at least, she almost caught the biggest fish of all. Bill helped her reel in a huge catfish - we estimated he was about 10 lbs. - but just as the fish was being pulled up out of the water, he gave a strong swish of his tail, broke the line, and took off with the hook still embedded in his mouth. What a catch that would have been! Bill says we would have cooked that one up and had it for dinner! The kids fished some later that day, but the following day it rained and we spent the time indoors just relaxing and visiting and looking out the window at the ducks. There was a mama duck and her two little ducklings that we especially enjoyed watching.
Our trip felt really short this year. Before we knew it, it was time to head back home. We left fairly early, hoping to get as much driving time in as possible on that first day. We had planned a picnic for lunch, as a break from all the fast food restaurants. We stopped at Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky and found a nice spot to grillout our hotdogs and have our picnic lunch. It was gloomy, but the weather seemed to be okay for the time being... At least, it was until we had our coals nice and hot and our hot dogs on the grill AND our plates, drinks and other food spread out on our picnic table. Then, in a matter of seconds, it started downpouring. I mean buckets of rain coming down. We got the kids into the van and started loading all our stuff back in as fast as we could. Bill got out the umbrella and finished cooking the hot dogs while I drove the van over to a covered pavilion nearby. There we ate our lunch with several other families. I was totally drenched; I don't think I had completely dried out even by the time we stopped for the night - over 8 hours later! We hit several really bad storms as the day went on and were glad when it was time to stop for the night. The following day we stuck to fast food restaurants and had a fairly uneventful drive home. We even made it home in time for dinner!
Below is a slideshow of selected pictures from our vacation.
2 comments:
Looks like you guys had a great time, but we're sure glad you're home. The house was really lonesome without 3 little grandkids coming to meet us. Shelby missed you too.
You look just a tad wet in that last picture Robin. That had to be soooo comfy driving home. All those pictures make me miss life even more up there. I wish you could have gotten a picture of Amy's catfish.
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