Cottage Time 2014 ~ Family is Precious

Friday morning at the cottage the children’s ministry teams shared what they’d been learning in their groups with parents and families in chapel.  Hannah and Makenna dressed in their princess finery and were both excited to be on stage.  

For dinner that night we treated ourselves to turkey dinner in the dining hall.  Mmm!  What a sweet family time together and once again we were joined by royalty.

As the girls waited for dinner they played one of Hannah’s favourite restaurant games.

Mom and Dad

Dave, Trish and Kallen

Mommy and Hannah

After supper we took time for an impromptu photo shoot.  Grandma and some of her girls

Dave, Trish, Makenna and Kallen

I love my SIL!

The 4 girls ended the evening by going to the drive-in in the golf cart to see Frozen.  Just us and 10,000 mosquitos!!!

Saturday was our last full day together. 

The girls were inseparable all week long as I’m sure these posts have shown!

The weather finally cooperated on Saturday to head back to the beach so that’s exactly what we did!

There is a modesty policy at the camp but I don’t think anyone told Kallen!  LOL!!  What do you do when 0-3 month shorts are falling off your sweet 21 month old nephew?  They don’t make clothes any smaller than these.  He sure is adorable running around the beach and causes many to smile as he zooms by!

Saturday evening BBQ with Grandma and Grandpa

We celebrated our final cottage evening together with Campfire Cones before the girls settled in on the couch and the adults sat down to one final game of Life.

Hannah and I had an amazing week at the cottage with our family!  Although we were sorry to miss our regular trip to CA, it was a special treat to spend this week with our family at the cottage!

Mom and Dad are at the cottage for 2 more weeks and Dave and his family at the trailer for 1 more.  Hannah and I will head back shortly to visit Nana and Papa at their trailer for a few days.  We love our family!!

Hannah’s First Sleepover!! Err….Half Sleepover!

Last week Hannah was invited to spend a night with her cousin Makenna at their trailer!  This was a big step for both of us as it would be the very first night we’ve ever been apart from one another since Nov 2, 2009!!  I’ve known for a while that it was time for her to spend a night somewhere just in case something ever happened that I couldn’t be with her for a night but I just couldn’t bring myself to arrange it.  When she was invited by her cousin and was super excited, I knew the night had come!

In the afternoon when we got back to the cottage she quickly disappeared upstairs.  I went up to see what she was doing and had to giggle (and celebrate) that she was packing for a night of fun with her cousin!  Mommy was starting to get used to the idea of her going but Hannah, she was already all in!  From what she packed there were games and fun but no nightgown or toothbrush.  Heh!  I helped pack a second bag so that she had all that she needed.

After supper we headed up to Makenna’s trailer.  Do you think she was excited??

We were there only minutes when Hannah was unpacking and settling in for the night.  The girls enjoyed playing with their LeapPads during snack time.  (On a side note, the LeapPad is one of the best toys I ever bought for Hannah!  More than 3 years later she still plays in on a regular basis and each times she does not only is she having fun but she’s learning!  If you have a 3-7yo I’d highly recommend a LeapPad!)

The girls settled into their beds and each Mommy did her bedtime routine with her girl.  After we finished Hannah’s prayers and gave her a bunch of kisses, I told her I’d be back in in a few minutes to check on her and when I went back in 5 mins later, this is how I found my girl:  Sleeping peacefully.  Awe!

The girls were settled so now it was time for the fun to start for the adults.  I’d never played ‘Life’ before but quickly became hooked.  Board games are something I really enjoy and it was great to have my brother and SIL to play with!

About 12:30 we finished the game and after one final check on the girls and leaving my girl with a kiss, David drove me down to mom and dad’s cottage in the golf cart.

I was happy that Hannah was enjoying this special time with her cousin but I was missing my girl for sure! 

I fell asleep to be woken by my dad shortly after that to hear that Mom wasn’t feeling well and he was taking her to the hospital.  My mom has had a rough spring and has been tested for numerous things but they just cannot pinpoint the problem.  This night she had a pounding headache that she just couldn’t battle any longer.  Dad went to get the van while I walked mom up the hill and then they headed off to the hospital. 

I was able to sleep a little bit after praying for mom and dad but it was fitfully and I was woken at 3:05 when my phone rang.  I quickly answered it (Dave said in less than 1 ring!) to hear Dave say, ‘Hi’ and hear my sweet girl gasping for breath in the background which is common after a ‘big cry.’  I reassured her I was coming, threw a hoodie on top of my nightgown for the second time in less than an hour, and headed up the hill to my car and then drove up to the trailer.  When I arrived she was awake and happy – as were Kallen, Makenna, Dave and Trish!  oops! 

I updated Dave on what was happening with mom and we tried to figure out if he should head to the hospital.  A quick text to dad reassured us that she was being cared for and that we wouldn’t be able to get in to them anyway.  So….we prayed!

Hannah and I thanked them for her first (half) sleepover and made our way back to Grandma and Grandpa’s cottage.   We were both wide awake by this time and it took quite a while for us to fall asleep.  Hannah because she was thankful to be home and mommy because I was concerned about Mom and Dad.

Around 4:45 Dad texted to say that they hadn’t found anything wrong with mom, had given her meds for her headache and they were on their way home.  A short while later I headed up the hill one more time to wait for them to arrive and help mom down the hill while dad parked the van.  LOL – 5am and my third trip up the hill since midnight!  The was one night I was sorry the cottage is located at the bottom of this beautiful hill!  (The house at the top is located about half way up.)

I did get to see a beautiful sunrise though!

So…once Mom and Dad were home safe and Hannah was sleeping peacefully, so did I.  It was an unusual night but most of all I am thankful that Mom was feeling better.  Please pray with me that they will figure this thing out so that we can go back to life as we know it!

We all slept in until shortly before 10 and then Hannah wanted to go to her group.  As we were walking there she reassured me how much she’d enjoyed her half-sleepover and wondered if she could have another ‘half-sleepover’ soon!  Ummm…let’s work on a full sleepover sweetie!  I don’t think this Mamma can take too many of these crazy nights!

Cottage 2014 ~ Family Scavenger Hunt

There are a lot of family activities offered at the camp and when the sun didn’t cooperate for a beach day we decided to try out the GPS version of a scavenger hunt.  We were given a clue sheet plus a GPS unit, boarded the golf cart Dave and Trish were renting and set off on our hunt.  It was a lot of fun and something Hannah and I might introduce Nana and Papa to in a couple of weeks.

The first clue was quite close to where we started so we found our coordinates and then started looking for our clue. 

We took a couple of wrong turns looking for our 2nd clue but eventually figured it out and found it.  You know it’s a cool afternoon when I’m wrapped up in a blanket, right M3?  It was hot the day we left and I hadn’t anticipated it getting as cool/cold as it did later in the week so didn’t have any long pants or long sleeved clothing with me.  Thankfully at this same time Mom was in town doing some shopping and picked up a hoodie for me at Walmart.  Thanks Mom!

Clue #3 was in a beautiful location on the other side of the park.  (So thankful for the golf cart as it allowed us to move around easily.)

Isn’t this gorgeous??

Our final clue was located near the canoe racks. 

At this point Trish and I looked up and wrote down each of the Bible verses that were identified on the clues.  We didn’t end up winning the prize but we sure did have fun!!  Check out these 3 adorable faces!

So glad the rain stopped long enough for us to share this family time together!

Cottage Time 2014 ~ More Beach Time, First (Short!) Boat Ride and S’mores!

There was a young guy at the beach who had a neat contraption that he was allowing the children to try with parent’s permission.  It was a tight rope kind of thing and really neat.  Hannah enjoyed giving it a try and after the first time wanted to see how she did holding only one of Mommy’s hands. 

After supper we talked Dad into taking us for our first boat ride of the season.  It was pretty wavy and he warned us that we’d get wet but we assured him that was okay and we were ready!

LOL!  We should have listened to Dad!

Hannah and Makenna are thoroughly enjoying the kids clubs that are offered morning and evenings.  Their clubs are filled with music, stories, crafts, wagon rides and more!

On this evening we went up to Uncle Dave and Aunt Trish’s trailer for a campfire and s’mores.  Yum!

After a long, busy day of playing, swimming, running and more Hannah was pretty tuckered but still managed to get in one more s’more.   One thing Mommy is enjoying is that with all this fun and fresh air, Hannah has slid easily into vacation mode and is now sleeping in until 8:30 or 8:45 each morning.  Nice!!

Cottage Time ~ Canada Day 2014 and Beach Fest

For the first time in 7 years sadly we will not be headed to CA to celebrate July 4th with the Salsa family.  It’s a tradition we thoroughly enjoy and plans are already being made to return next year but this year I just couldn’t quite swing it.  The last 2 years we were blessed to travel on points and credits earned by volunteering to step down from an overfilled flight.   We are well on our way to having enough points for next year so all going well, July 2015 will see us spending time with our awesome friends!  Miss you like crazy M3!!!

Because of the change, Hannah and I headed up to visit Mom and Dad at the cottage they rent in Muskoka 1 week earlier than normal.   As I sit here on the deck blogging, these are the views I am currently enjoying.  Ahhhh….beautiful!!!

Hannah and her cousin Makenna are currently at a children’s program that is offered each morning and Mommy is enjoying a couple of hours to herself.    Hannah has also moved into vacation mode and allowed us to sleep until 8:30 this morning.  A special treat for sure!

It is so nice this year to not only spend time with my parents and niece, but my brother, SIL and their 2 youngest are here too so the girls have lots of time to play together and we have lots of time to visit.  A rare treat when they’re normally shuttling their 6 kids here and there and Hannah and I keep our schedule full too.

Yesterday afternoon (Canada Day for us!)

we spent time together at the beach.  A great way to spend an afternoon for sure!  Tuesday afternoons are ‘Beach Fest’ with face painting, cotton candy and a sand castle building contest.  The girls worked long and hard…

to create their masterpiece!!!

The judges came by and carefully inspected their hours minutes of hard work, cheered for them and even took picture of their submission.

The excitement was too much for the girls and caught in a moment of shyness, they hid behind a couple of trees!

So you can see how tight this competition is going to be, here is another submission.  It’s a tight race for sure don’t you think?!!

Although Kallen napped through the official contest, he and daddy enjoyed some sand castle building fun of their own once he woke up.

The girls love spending time together and we never seem to finA d enough time.  I’m so thankful for these few days they have to share together.  Ahhh…family time.  A special summer treat!