back from vacation...4 days ago

We had a super wonderful vacation in WV last week.

We set out late Sunday morning, taking our time getting up to Lewisburg. We got there in the early afternoon, just in time for lunch. We spent most of Sunday just relaxing and visiting.

We spent the first three days with Pappy Lucian and Mammaw. Day two, Monday, we got up and Bob helped Pappy unclog the gutter, which resulted in a very cold shower of leftover rainwater. Then Bob went to wash Mammaw's car and get it all nice and shiny while Oliver followed Pappy around looking at the flowers and trees and cows in the field out back. Later in the afternoon we went downtown to Honalee...a very cool toy store. We spent quite a bit of time there before Oliver finally picked out a toy (a red mini cooper with doors that open). Wyatt was asleep so I picked out a little grocery bag with jingly, crunchy veggies and fruits and milk inside.

Tuesday we got up and had our (by then) usual breakfast of eggs, biscuits, sausage and homemade applesauce. Then we went to Beartown and spent a hour or so wandering through the trees and rocks and caves. It was so peaceful and the weather was just perfect. It was cool, but not too cool...just right for short sleeves. After Beartown we were going to find somewhere to dip our feet in a stream but we somehow missed the public stream access and ended up in Monongahela State Forest which, while pretty, doesn't have a definable exit. We wandered up the mountain and then back down, driving past old campgrounds and even through a stream! It took us an hour but we finally got back to a real road. Luckily Bob knew where we were so we rushed back to Pappy's house for supper...we were half an hour late!! Wednesday we got up and went to Sherwood Lake to swim for a while since we had missed out on it the day before. We rubbed the boys down with SPF 75, got them in their swimmy clothes and dipped them in the water. The water was soooo cold!! Oliver wouldn't get out, though. He just wanted to play and play and play. We finally convinced him to come closer to the shore where the water was warmer so he could build a sand castle. We had some cups so Bob showed him how and he did pretty well. After a while it was really too colod so we went over to the boat dock and rented a paddle boat. Boy, those things are hard to move!! We spent about 45 minutes paddling around (well, I paddled,...Bob hung out) then we headed back to shore and shared some cold sodas and sweet treats. After that Angie had invited us to where her new house would be built for a hot dog roast! It was lots of fun. There was a play area set up for the kids (there were so many kids there!) and a fire where we cooked hot dogs and, later, s'mores. We had a good time hanging out with everyone and Oliver loved seeing his cousins. After we were done there we headed back to Mammaw and Pappys where we spent one more relaxing night and in the morning we packed up and headed for Cass and Green Bank.

It was a pretty good drive and we went to Cass first. When we got there we played on a little wooden train for a few minutes before heading into the Company Store. We bought a few things (a patch, of course, and a train for Oliver) and then headed out to find where the trains were. Well, as it turns out, you can't SEE the trains unless you get there for one of the two trips per day. It was well after the last trip so we didn't see a single train...what a disappointment!! Well we decided to head out to Green Bank and get some lunch on the way. They're only 3 miles apart so we figured for sure there'd be some kind of restaurant between. Boy were we wrong! There was nothing around Cass and nothing around Green Bank...it was deserted! There were a few houses but NO stores or restaurants or even a gas station. We ended up eating at the observatory which cost us a lot more than we wanted to spend. Anyway, after lunch we took the tour and saw the GBT up close...as close as you can get anyway. There were also some smaller telescopes as well and the tour guide told us when they were built and what they were used for. We got a patch in the gift shop here and a few post cards (that we didn't send...). When we were done we headed up to Clarksburg to see Chris. We got there later than expected so we had some dinner and then got a hotel room for the night. (Bob got us a nice discount because he knows how hotels work!!) When we walked into the room Oliver said "Wow!!" and called it his new bedroom the whole time we were there. It had an indoor pool so we took the boys to their first ever hotel pool. We were the only ones down there so we spent about half an hour swimming and playing around. Oliver didn't want to get out of the water but it was getting late and the boys were both so tired, not to mention me and Bob. There were two beds so Bob and Oliver slept in one and Wyatt and I slept in the other. That wasn't the original plan but I think we all slept pretty well that night.

In the morning it was raining...what a bummer because most of what we had planned to do was at parks. We ended up going to Valley Worlds of Fun and spent lots of time and lots of money! It was really fun and Oliver rode the rides and played lots of games! After that we headed over to Chris's house to meet up with him and have dinner. He had his (wonderfully well behaved) kids with him. Michael and Abby kept Oliver entertained and out of trouble through the whole meal. After that we went and played at Chris's house (which is pretty nice!) until it was bedtime. Chris and the kids had work and school and activities all day so we decided to head on back to Lewisburg that morning (Thursday) right after breakfast.

We stopped at Tamarack on the way back, which is a fun arts/crafts shopping place. They have all kinds of cool things that are made in WV...wood, glass, pottery, even stuff made out of coal!! We didn't buy anything but it was fun to look. We ate a quick lunch then drove a bit more and ended up at Angie's house where we hung out and played until lunchtime. The kids played really well together while we were there! We had lunch the Cheryl called and said they were home so we went on over there. Oliver had a great time playing with his cousins and Wyatt had a good time getting into things in the living room. Bob and I got to relax a little because the boys were occupied. We went ot bed kind of early because the boys were just exhausted and restless but when we got up there was plenty more fun to be had. Oliver probably played with every toy in the girls' room and Wyatt ended up in there eventually, too. Wyatt and I took a nice nap while Bob and Oliver went outside to play in the yard with the playground and in the woods. Uncle Shannon gave Oliver a fishing pole and he was so excited. I think he wanted to go fishing right then and there but of course we didn't get around to going this trip. We stayed until about lunchtime then went to Wendy's too wait for Birch to call. He finally did and we met up with him in downtown Lewisburg at a little fountain playarea. I got Oliver all suited up in his swim gear and sent him off to run through the fountain. He had a great time and didn't even seem to mind the water in his face (even though in the shower or bath he HATES getting his face wet). I didn't want Wyatt to get too wet but after a little while I took him over and stuck his hands in the water and he thought it was hilarious!! I kept sticking his feet and hands in for about 10 minutes and he just laughed and laughed the whole time. We had a little picnic of grapes, cheese, apple, orange, and animal crackers. It was refreshing and nice to eat in the little park under the sun. After a while Gretchen called and said she would meet us up at their new farm. We all packed up and headed out. When we got there Oliver was asleep so we put out a mat and let him sleep under a tree in the shade. Wyatt played with Indigo and Orion in the yard. Bob and Birch went to get the pizza shortly after Gretchen got there and once Bob left Oliver melted down. He cried and screamed and cried and cried. Nothing I did could get him to calm down so he cried until Bob got back. Once Bob got back he was ok, I have no idea what Bob did but he got him into cute boy mode again. We ate and then the kids played in the yard some more. Birch helped Indigo and Oliver hang from a tree branch, Gretchen showed us pickle clover, we had a tour of the new house which is such a pretty old farmhouse. When it started to get dark we decided to head home. We were going to spend the night but the boys were so tired and I thought it would be better to drive while they slept instead of trying to drive the next morning when they'd be awake and cranky. It worked out ok. Bob drove to Roanoke and then I drove the rest of the way back home. Boy was I tired when we got here!

Luckily Sunday Bob let me rest while he set up the new table and entertainment center. The boys were a bit grouchy from being so tired but we napped and took it easy the whole day and they seemed to do a bit better. So that was our vacation...not very much detail but we sure had fun!!

Since then Oliver has slept in his bed all night every night. Wyatt has gotten his 6th tooth (the bottom left second over tooth). We've finally finished our paperwork for the new car...grr! Bob got sick (poor baby). We've been busy doing nothing again...which is, I guess, what we do.