Farewell to Summer

To say that our summer was busy would be a major understatement.  It wasn't supposed to be, but it was.  Somehow, my visions of lounging by the pool didn't materialize.  But, that's okay.  We had a great summer leading a variety of projects at church and using any spare time to invest in our own kiddos.  

We had thought that we might try to make a trip to KY to visit Ryan's family, but it didn't happen.  So, Labor Day weekend we met Ryan's parents for a couple of days.  We stayed at Ridgecrest Conference Center near Asheville and it was beautiful.  For Ryan and I, it was like a walk down memory lane.  We had spent 4 summers serving on summer staff at the conference center, so we had a great time walking the familiar sidewalks and seeing all of the wonderful renovations they've made over the last 10 years.  We truly have a piece of our hearts there.

On Labor Day, we decided to go hiking at Chimney Rock.  We realized that even though we had been there many times, our children had not.  It was a great use of our day.  The weather was terrific, the views were phenomenal, and we all had fun.  

We did a lot of hiking and by the time we were done, we were famished.  So, we headed back to Black Mountain for some yummy My Father's Pizza followed by Kilwin's ice cream.  All in all, it was a great weekend with Nana and Pap!

Pap and the boys

Most of the crew on Pulpit Rock

Abe loved the backpack!

The whole family at the top of Chimney Rock

Nana and Pap enjoyed the views.

Our last hiking destination was the trail leading to the bottom of Hickory Nut Falls.  Abe loved the water and had no fear!