Family Memories

Our escape to North Carolina was amazing.

I’ve always been more of a mountain girl than beach girl. It probably has something to do with growing up in Nebraska rather than Florida. Either way, while the beach is nice, give me a mountain. I can’t be near them without being literally surrounded by evidence of God.

We have spent days hiking to waterfalls, playing in swimming holes, sliding down rocks into pools, going horseback riding, etc. Building memories. The kind that our kids will pull out for years to come.


Some of my favorites are watching Jonathan overcome his fear of that huge horse and let me put him on its back – alone. He was so excited about being the lead horse, that before long he was holding on with a nonchalance that made me think he was going to fall asleep. His little legs barely stretched across the back of the horse’s back – too cute. Abigail really enjoyed the ride, too. And it was great to be back on a horse again. It’s been a long time.

Then there’s the two hours that we spent at Little Sliding Rock. It was a blast, but I am so GLAD that Amy Green had warned me the day before to wear shorts over my swimsuit. I literally wore a hole in the seat of those shorts. We all had so much fun sliding up and down, over and over, in the freezing water. We literally had to pull the kids away.

That’s what this vacation was for. After the insane pace of our summer, we needed the chance to reconnect. To play card games as a family. To hike together and see amazing vistas. To window shop because we couldn’t quite get to town in time before the stores closed – there were way too many thing to see.

And I think we will make vacations like this a regular part of our rotation. Even if the cicadas are so loud at night I can hardly think.

So what does your family do to reconnect after a hectic season?