Spring '13 Cabin trip

 The first weekend of April was our 4th annual spring trip to the cabin with Mimi and Bop Bop! Aunt Boo and Uncle Wayne, now locals up there, were gracious to let us move back our trip, which was originally scheduled on moving weekend two weeks prior. This turned out for the best, though, because moving weekend was miserably cold and rainy, but this weekend was sunny and beautiful!!

Somebody walked out the door to go to the cabin in a tutu and nobody noticed til we got out of the car in Blue Ridge! Who brings a tutu to the mountains?? That would be Blythe.

 Mimi and Bop Bop arrived in style, as always, bringing the Gator with them!

"Marshing marshmallows" a.k.a. roasting s'mores is a vital tradition for the girls at the cabin!

 The ability to run free and play so independently is one of our favorite things up there.

We found our friends Peter and Polly again. Polly let us feed her all the grass and weeds we could get our hands on.

 Not pictured is where Polly got tired of grass and did a little nibbling on Mimi's hair and shirt sleeve! It was pretty hilarious.

 Jake took Abby Jane out to the pasture to work on riding a bike minus training wheels. It was so sweet to watch this momentous first lesson unfold in such a special place. Look at the focus on that face, looking straight ahead at the fence like her daddy told her.

She had several good runs down the pasture and did a really great job, but for the sake of honesty, she hasn't wanted to try again to really get it down since then. A Daddy/ Janie bike lesson is on the docket to happen soon.

Three lucky ladies with two precious grandparents!

 Shenanigans on Grandaddy Elliott's chair!

 Bop Bop had a birthday while we were up there and many willing candle-blowing helpers!

Creek-playing is of course one of the most important things to do when you're at the cabin, and that freezing cold water didn't slow them down!

I would like to say she was contemplating the majesty of God's creation, the importance of making family time a priority, how thankful she is for her family, the gift of salvation... but I'm pretty confident she's admiring her pink and purple toes. I'm thankful for those precious baby toes, that messy curly head, and the silly little girl who wears a tutu to play in a creek!

 Unpictured is some lovely visiting time we had with Uncle Wayne and Aunt Boo. We had lunch with them one day and got to swing by their home on our way out. They are such precious family to us, and we always leave their presence feeling refreshed, thankful, loved, and so glad that such special people are related to us. A side note to anyone vising Blue Ridge anytime soon: there's a olive oil and vinegar tasting room downtown now that was absolutely fascinating. It's like wine tasting for olive oils- I ha ndo idea how much flavor could be packed in a bottle. This is a must-see, must- experience spot.

Going out of town right after moving was a little nuts, but it was really the first time we had slowed down in months, between school, birthdays, the flu, packing for the move, moving, etc., it was really great to be physically separated from the to-do list and given the opportunity to rest our bodies and souls and soak in family and the Lord for a weekend!