The Roberts Rough It

We just returned from a week long trip to the Mountains of Blue Ridge, GA. It was a nine hour car ride to get there and who would've thought a car DVD player would be such a godsend! A spacious minivan and movies to keep them entertained for hour after endless hour... these kids (and Chloe) have it so good!

It felt SO good to get away. We've never taken a road trip like this with the kids, and we haven't really taken a trip that wasn't to Colorado since I can remember. Blue Ridge was definitely quaint, although something about heat, humidity and holy heck the bugs, that just didn't quite feel like the mountains this Colorado girl knows. (Although my Wednesday morning run did more than teach me respect for the MOUNTAINS of Blue Ridge.)

We spent our first day recovering from the drive. We brunched at the cute little L&L Beanery that was profiled in Southern Living magazine, explored the shops on Main Street where we traded Todd for "Todd Boone,"
hiked to a waterfall,
relaxed in the hammock......and watched the kids play on the playground at our cabin.
On Tuesday, we rode the Blue Ridge Scenic Railway. The train begins in Blue Ridge and is a 26 mile, hour long ride to the town of McCaysville, GA which borders Tennessee. The kids enjoyed the ride, especially Todd who is enthralled with all forms of transportation.
The views along the way were gorgeous and made me think of the movie "A River Runs Through It." On the other hand, Brian was reminded of "Deliverance." I guess it's all about perspective.
The kids got to see a little of Tennessee...
... and Hayley got to meet an American Indian while Big Chicken Todd ran the opposite direction!
On Wednesday, we ventured to Helen, GA where we tubed the Chattahoochee. Never knew there were so many rocks in the ol Hooch!! Brian and I both wore ourselves out dragging our tethered bundle of three tubes over rocks for 6 miles. The river was packed with summer campers and even Hayley was happy to finally see our river exit point! We had a picnic lunch near the river...
...before a quick walk through the town of Helen.
On the way home, we did out best to avoid a stop at this place:
Because if the name wasn't bad enough, they include a picture?? Seriously, who in their right mind is going to stop in for a quick snack at this place!
Our days were filled with outdoor fun and adventures...


... and our evenings were filled with campfire building,
marshmallow roasting,
and smores eating.
An overall good time that made the kids go from this:
to this:
in seconds!

While the kids had a blast in Georgia, they were beyond thrilled to return to their own beds. Hayley is doing her best to wiggle smores out of me and has inventoried all the remaining marshmallows, chocolate bars, and graham crackers. And I've told her that while we have all the smores ingredients, we're missing that essential campfire. I can see the wheels turning in her head and fully expect her to present me with a campfire alternative in the next day or so.

Hayley played in a golf tournament Saturday morning with one of her good buddies. Nine holes of golf with 2 five year olds playing best ball made my early morning 10 mile run in heavy heat and humidity feel like a walk in the park! But, Hayley had a good time and Todd thinks he also played in a tournament, so it was totally worth my second sweatfest of the day. Coach Mike here has the patience of a saint!

Sunday afternoon we headed to the beach so Hayley could participate in the Eternal Summer Surf Camp! She had a GREAT time and did her best to hang ten, well, at least as much ten as you can hang on the little waves at Anna Maria Island. The surf camp was a great experience and Hayley surprised us and was actually able to get up on the board and ride a wave on her second attempt. We plan to attend throughout the summer, so will be sure to post some pictures from our forthcoming adventures.

Below is a video clip from one of our hikes in the Aska Adventure area.