Whew. We got home late last night from our trip to Indiana. In case you weren't aware, traveling with four little people for a brief trip is hard. Worth it, but hard and lots of planning is involved. It's two p.m. and I just recently got out of my pajamas (the piano teacher will be here any moment so there was my motivation). Luke is still in his. I've spent the morning playing queen of the laundry mountain and I am d.o.n.e. Last night when we got home the temperature in the house was 42 degrees because our fickle little furnace sometimes thinks it's running even when it's not. I was worried that would happen but at least the pipes didn't freeze and by the time we went to bed it was a balmy 56.
We stayed in a sweet little cabin and were able to go a few days early to make the long trip a bit more worth it. It was so quiet and so good to get some uninterrupted family time. Cider. Puzzles. Games of pool. A hot tub. Lazy mornings. Bacon. And I only wanted to crawl out of my skin once or twice at the lack of wi-fi and the thought of the email that was piling up in my inbox. I know. I'm ridiculous.
Anyway, I shall treat the blog to most all of the mediocre and clumsy photography from the trip. Not one of which was from the wedding. The camera was put down in favor of wrangling boys in a crowd of 300+ people.
Our cabin. Much prettier in person. If you ever need to take your family to the middle of God's country, Indiana, I know just the place for you.
Getting ready to explore outside our first morning there.
No fish caught. I think it was way too cold for them by this time of year. But the trying was fun.
Exploring the woods with Papa
The owner put up the Christmas tree (and a giant festive moose) for our stay. Obviously, not a reader of the blog ;)
This scene appears much more tranquil than it actually was. And look at me all shower-head!
I finally kicked out the older brothers and let him have his turn to play. I think he was happy.
After watching the older boys, he knew right what to do, grabbing the white ball, racking the others and aiming to shoot. Brian and I got a few games in, too, and I gave him a run for his money. I think we tied in number of games won.
The morning sunrises and stars at night were beautiful.
On our way home we stopped for Sunday Mass in Steubenville which was right on the way! We got to go to Christ the King Chapel for the Solemnity of Christ the King. Bam. There's got to be some extra grace for that, right? It was frigid cold so these stunning shots are our only proof that we were there.
The place is so different from when we went there. It's happy and bittersweet to see how much it has changed. We ate dinner in the J.C. Williams and I did my best to watch the students without appearing too creepy. And while the place has changed the people haven't. I mean, we don't know anyone there anymore but I just love the people there. The students are just so full of life and joy and zeal. It's a pretty awesome place. I'd be thrilled if our boys chose to go there. And if they did decide to go there I might actually think about helping them pay for it. (Take note, boys.)
A long long late car ride home and we're home. Onto Thanksgiving and that Advent thing that is creeping up quickly behind...
Hope you all had a lovely week!
Oh Mary, I'm dying about the Christmas tree. She put it up for you! Of all people! :) (should I admit to giggling a little, or would that be poor form?)
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I know, right? Don't worry, we laughed, too! God likes to play with me sometimes ;)
DeleteWhat a darling, cozy cabin you found! It sounds so heavenly to have had some quiet special family time there. (I was laughing at the tree and the festive moose too-God does have a sense of humor!) How cool you got to take the boys to Steubenville, even if it wasn't a very long stay. Such a beautiful place- I'd love it if one day we could be visiting our grandsons there! Glad you're home safely!
ReplyDeleteI want to show my kids good old Steubie so bad! Actually, we were supposed to travel out to Indiana this past summer, and were planning on making a stop at FUS but then I got pregnant and we cancelled the trip because morning sickness in a car for 4 days roundtrip didn't sound like the best idea ever! I hope all our kids end up at FUS together :) My Andrew already desperately wants to go because he found out they get St. Francis's feast day off, and that's his birthday!
ReplyDeleteLooks like you had a great trip! Love the Christmas tree : )
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