July 4th, 2011

Happy 4th of July from.....

the North Carolina mountains!

What a great weekend we had celebrating this holiday in the NC mountains with my parents. On our drive in, we were greeted by the famous Elk population that has become very popular in these parts.

We are so lucky to have G-Mom and G-Dad who afford us the luxury of vacationing at their beach home at our beloved Seabrook throughout the year.

On the flipside of this lucky coin is my parent's mountain cabin in North Carolina. Though we do love our times at Seabrook, we also love our time in the mountains with my parents.

Upon arrival, we felt the crisp, cool air and the relaxing began for all of us, except for my parents, who did their share of playing with our children. I was able to read THREE whole magazines, take a nap, play with a new tech purchase, ride the ATVs, went shopping, all while the children were occupied - oh, it was soooo nice!

The boys were all about two things - riding the ATVs and riding the ATVs :) Though we did scoot away to go tubing, watch fireworks and explore a local town, the boys had ATV riding on their minds the entire time! At the ages of 9 and 11, they are all about a good ride. As I rode with Colin, the future popped in front of me - I couldn't help but tell him to "make sure you do this" or "now, think before you do this - what is the safest option?" I am quite positive he was ready for me to get off!

The guys before their first ride of the weekend.....

and this was the view I saw of them for the majority of our mountain time....

And then there was this.....thankfully, no one was hurt!

Meanwhile, in MK land, she was all about riding the ATVs this year as well. She made sure to get her turn.

And, Maddox, she took to Pop and they spent most of her awake hours together.

One afternoon, we went tubing with the three older kiddos. The three of them had a blast going down again and again and again.....

Nightfall came and we ventured down the mountain into the valley for our annual shopping and fireworks display event. Every year we go down early, get a great place to view the fireworks, shop, eat ice cream and then play games while we wait patiently for the fireworks to begin. This year, for the first time in our July 4th fireworks viewing history, we were able to all join together to view the show. In years past, we have always had at least one kiddo who took shelter in the car from the noise. This year, not so. This year, everyone, including Maddox, sat and cheered together as the beautiful display of lights was presented.

We awoke early on departure day and took one last ATV ride before packing up. Following our ride, I was holding Maddox just taking in the scenery on top of the mountain. I looked down and a foot away from me was a Copperhead snake all coiled up! EEEEK! I do not do snakes and as I squealed and ran, Maddox looked at me as if I had lost my mind completely. Ryan, my dad, and a fellow mountain neighbor came to the rescue, each armed with some sort of weapon. After a few shots were fired, Colin came in with his own ammunition, a BB gun, to finish the 3 foot long snake off. EWWWW! I shiver typing of him! That was our cue to leave.....the Elk greeted us and the snake made us welcome our goodbye!

**On a Maddox note, I could not help but think of where we were this time last year. As we drove out of town to begin our journey to NC last year for the 4th, we stopped by the post office to mail in our I800A application. Maddox was a dream for us last year and, this year, as I looked at her taking in the mountain house, playing with my parents, laughing and just enjoying life, I thanked God for the reality that she is in our lives today.