About a month ago, Chris and I decided we wanted to take a weekend getaway to somewhere that is fairly local, but also that we haven't really been to before. I started looking for a house to rent on a Grand Lake, and found a couple options that looked like they would be fun for not only us, but for the S family, as well. I sent the listings to Tia and proposed that we plan a short trip away together as a surprise for the kiddos. She agreed, and plans were underway for a grand adventure on Grand Lake!
The house we rented was a little over an hour from our house, so we headed that direction late Thursday afternoon. We arrived at the house first, and the kids immediately ran all around exploring every room. The sky put on quite a show for us that evening!
About an hour after we arrived, the S family knocked on the door. The kids went crazy when they all realized we were sharing the house for a couple nights! The volume was off the chain to the point that Tia and I decided to go to the grocery store to get supplies for the weekend, haha!
After everyone calmed down a bit, we made chili and hot dogs for dinner. The house had four bedrooms . . . two primary suites (one on each end of the house), a bedroom with two sets of bunk beds, and a bedroom with two twins beds. Of course, the little girls were ecstatic to be together in the room with two sets of bunk beds, and even talked Brianna into staying with them in that room the first night. We put them to bed at a decent time, but they didn't go to sleep until almost midnight!
Sadie and Brecklyn
Caroline and Brooke
Girl Crew!
The next morning (Friday), we let the kids sleep in, then served a big breakfast of eggs, pancakes, bacon, biscuits, and fruit. Once Tia and I had the kitchen cleaned up, she and Ross went back to bed for a while. Chris and I entertained the kids with some activities we had brought along.
Perler Beads for the win!
Bren brought a science kit, and everyone enjoyed watching his experiments.
The girls also brought some clay kits that they put together.
Brooke and Sadie
Brecks and Caroline
Brianna and Bren
The house was great because in addition to a large kitchen and eating area, there was a family room complete with couches, a TV, a foosball table, a ping-pong table, and some arcade games. The boys really enjoyed the foosball table!
After we served lunch, Ross and Chris took all the kids for a walk. We really didn't have any set plans except to relax and spend time together. It was nice for Tia and I to be able to visit uninterrupted while the guys had the kiddos occupied outside of the house.
Bren, Brecks, Caroline, Brooke, and Sadie
Brecklyn, Brooke, Sadie, and Caroline
While the house fit our needs well, it wasn't in the prettiest or nicest area. We really wanted to get a solid view of the Lake, so we all decided to take a drive that afternoon. We drove to Shangri La to see the golf course and then around different parts of the Lake. On the way back to the house, Ross & Tia stopped to get fuel. We drove on and stopped at Grand Lake State Park in Bernice, then got out of our van to take this photo.
As we were leaving the park, we saw a car and a person who looked like they had collapsed beside it. We saw another person who looked frantic, so Chris parked our van and went over to see if the people needed help. The person on the ground was severely injured from a gun shot wound, and the police were already on their way to the scene. Thankfully, I had stayed in our van with the kids who couldn't really see what was happening. Chris was sending me updates via text.
Ross & Tia were also planning to stop at the park, so I sent them a message and told them to just drive on past. They had to pull over twice for emergency vehicles (which is why they weren't already there with us), not knowing the emergency vehicles were on their way to where we were! While we were there, another car arrived with frantic people who were yelling and acting crazy. As soon as the police arrived, Chris talked to them for just a minute, and we got out of there. That was not a situation we wanted to be part of!
To say we were thankful and relieved to be back at the house that evening is an understatement, and it took us a while to settle down from all the excitement. Once we arrived back at the house, Tia and I got busy fixing baked potatoes and pulled pork for dinner. Busy hands helped settle my mind a bit.
The dining area was just right for our crew!
The house was nice in a many ways, but I don't know if I've ever stayed in a place quite as unlevel as this house was. The stove and oven were so tilted that when we made brownies for dessert one side of the pan had brownies that were an inch and a half thick, while on the other side the brownies were only a half inch thick. It was quite amusing!
Once dinner was cleaned up, the kiddos got in their pjs, and we had a devotional together.
Caroline, Chelley, and Brecklyn
Brooke and Sadie
Caroline and Brianna
We watched a bit of TV, then sent all the little girls to bed. The rest of us engaged in a mad game of Mexican Train dominoes. The little girls did not go to sleep in a timely manner, but Ross was being so loud about the game that it was no wonder why 😁.
I woke up on Saturday to find this scene in the family room:
It took everyone a while to get moving for the day, but the that was the beauty of this trip - we didn't have to!
The kids enjoying the foosball table and ping-pong table
Bren and Daddy at the foosball table
As the adults were cleaning, packing, and loading up to leave, the kids had an epic dance party. Ross decided to join in and almost jumped through to floor. Oooops!
Our plan for Saturday was to explore the area a little, then have lunch at Cosby's Catfish before heading home. We found a lovely spot on the lake that was perfect for some scouting and play.
Brecklyn, Sadie, Caroline, and Brooke
Daddy and Brecklyn
Brenson
Chris taught the girls how to skip rocks!
They were so proud when we let them climb up a cliff!
Chelle, Brianna, and Tia
The kiddos!
Family pic!
These girls always find interesting things . . .
Chris and Ross
After playing around a while, we still had time to kill before lunch. So, we drove over to Pensacola Dam to explore there. Pensacola Dam is unique because it's the largest multiple arch buttress dam in the world. Sadly, the visitor's center was closed this day.
Brooke, Bri, and Sadie
We were able to walk a little ways on the dam. So neat!
Finally, we made our way over to Cosby's Catfish for an all-you-can-eat catfish lunch. This is a restaurant that my family used to eat at when I was in high school, as it was owned by a preacher friend of my dad's. He and his wife are still involved with the restaurant (their daughter owns it now), and we actually got to see and visit with Wanda (the wife).
Even though it was only a short getaway, we had a really great time. It was the perfect mix of relaxing, exploring, and spending time together, even if we did have some unexpected drama! Life is GRAND with people like mine :-).
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