Weekend at Lake of the Woods...

We had something pretty big to celebrate and what better way to celebrate than with a weekend on the lake surrounded by friends?? 

The kids ran around, did arts and crafts, swam, ran some more, and chased each other with water guns (which by the way also involves running). 

Due to our very entertained children, the parents were able to spend time chit chatting and relaxing with one another. Though there was one exception, Baby Drew. Oh my, sweet baby Drew! I happily gave up some of that chit chat and relax time to cuddle up with this cutie pie! That smile...those legs!! :) 

The dogs enjoyed themselves. Liddy was in the water almost the entire time and Roxie was kind enough to invite her along for our boat ride...

Ah yes, the boat! 

Or shall we call it, "The Love Boat?!"

Yep, we had something to celebrate and I'd say we did a great job of it...welcome home Greggers! 

Fireworks!

Adam was so excited about the idea that we were going to see fireworks, though I have to admit I was a little nervous that he was just putting up a brave front. Just a few months ago at the beach he was not real thrilled with the fireworks that folks were setting off on the beach but maybe he's like his mom and prefers when professionals are in charge! :) 

From the first loud bang to the amazing grand finale, Adam stared wide eyed into the sky taking in all the beautiful colors exploding above. I had a hard time deciding what I enjoyed watching more, his expressions and joy or the fireworks....I think mostly I watched him.  

A spectacular 4th of July and yet another reminder of what a great country we have the privilege of calling home. 

Chair Lift Ride!

What could be better than taking a ride on a chair lift, both up and down the mountain, and with a very very small line!? Adam was certain nothing could be better and we were happy to show him that he was right!

When it comes to Wintergreen memories, those spent on the slopes are the first thing that come to mind.  Whether it was sibling skiing, with just a few incidents (sorry for knocking your ski off on the lift Mark; and Kath & Mark I'm sure you're sorry for losing me on the slopes that one time), the memories of bringing friends up to the mountain for weekends spent skiing from dusk 'til dawn or of Andy and me having dates on the slopes, those ski slopes and chair lifts hold a lot of memories for me. So it was about time we added Adam to the mix! 

He loved every second of it and I'll be honest, the notion of riding down the slope on a chair lift was enough to make me smile! 

Looking forward to our next chair lift ride with white stuff on the ground and skis attached to our boots...

Celebrating our Freedom!

After a pretty rocky week of rain, fog, and croup we were definitely ready to see those clouds part so the sun could shine down on us and brighten our Independence Day! We spent the afternoon at the pool before heading home to prep for our 4th of July Jubilee picnic. Nobody does the 4th better than Wintergreen and we were looking forward to showing Adam what all the fuss was about. 

We scoped out a pretty great spot on the slopes to lay out our blankets and picnic and it wasn't long before Adam realized that with the live music this was basically one big dance party! 

So we danced, we sang, we ate, we laughed, and we waited because we knew the best part of the night was yet to come...

Wishing Well...

I've said it before but I'll say it again (and probably a few more times after this) that watching Adam spend time at Wintergreen is like reliving my childhood and I cherish every second of it. It's not just the big things (like his first Thanksgiving there) but all the small things like going to the pool where I used to wear floaties on my arms, or swinging on the same swings that my dad used to push me on. 

This last trip Adam got to make his very first (and 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th..it was a big hit) wish in the wishing well at The Mountain Inn. I think I made hundreds of wishes in that well and happily a lot of them have come true. Adam was so excited to make his first wish and while I encouraged him to wish for his croup to go away, he decided to wish for the rain to stop. Regardless, both wishes did come true. Not sure what else he wished for as he learned the art of keeping them a secret, but if the Polar Express rolls up in front of our house one night, I guess I'll know why...

Swinging!

There are lots of milestones in a child's life: crawling, walking, running, talking, learning the VA Tech fight song, and of course learning to swing!

I'm happy to say Adam has crossed another one of those off the list...

We've got a little more than a month to work on that VA Tech fight song...

A Week in the Mountains

Somewhat on a whim we decided to pack up and head to the mountains for an unspecified amount of time.  Maybe we'd stay the weekend, maybe we'd stay a few extra days, maybe we'd stay all week. The beauty, we didn't really have to decide. One of the highlights of working from home is being able to work from a mountain home and with Andy's vacation days piling up, a few days off could be spent home or away. So we packed our bags and hit the road ready to be back in the mountains (where we hadn't been since Thanksgiving!)

Our first stop, as always, was a picnic at Wintergreen Winery. We were greeted with lots of smiles from our favorite tasting room crew. They oohed and aahed over how big Adam is getting and promptly got us set up with a nice chilled bottle of Viognier to enjoy out by the creek. 

Unfortunately while we were picnicking we noticed Adam was starting to act a little "off." Instead of running around like he usually does we turned and noticed he was just sitting on a bench staring at the creek, we chalked it up to being a little car sick, but we found out two days later that in fact he was coming down with Croup! 

Good news, he was able to see a great doctor at the bottom of the mountain and the pharmacy right next door had just what he needed.  After two days of taking it easy he was "right as rain" as we like to say and just in time to enjoy the 4th of July! :)

More on that later...