Mohican Adventures

We got back from our family reunion at about midnight last night and I'm on my fourth load of laundry. Bet you didn't even know we were gone, did you? I'm so sneaky because I pre-wrote some blog entries and dated them to appear while we were gone so all those pesky house thieves who follow the blog (snicker!) wouldn't know we were gone. Yep. That's how I roll.

We went to Mohican Adventures and stayed in a great log cabin and had a wonderful time. Between all the Brewers hanging around the place we occupied five SuperLog cabins and had our run of the lake, playgrounds, poolhouse, and beach. The fish were scared, let me tell you. Here are a few things we did during the week:

The boys learned how to ride Go Karts. Seven rode on the Kiddie Track by himself and on the Family Track as a passenger with his dad. Ten got to ride on the Family Track all by himself, much to the horror of the other drivers who tried to pass him. No one bothered to tell Ten that he was supposed to at least attempt to stay between the dotted lines. It's terrifying to think that child could be eligible for a driver's license in less than six years. Seven was a very cautious, if extremely SLOW driver, just like his Daddy.

They watched their cousins fish but weren't too keen on trying it themselves. They didn't have the heart to spear the live worms only to catch and release a fish. They preferred to just watch the fish swim from our private deck overlooking the water. Or feed the gigantic gaggle of geese wandering around between our cabins.

We swam in the indoor pool or at the beach (or both) every day. There were three playgrounds (including a pirate ship) so the boys had fun with their cousins Mitchell, Kyle, Christopher, Nathan, Johnny, and Becca. Not to mention all the new friends Ten made while we were there. He was such a little social director. They also caught tadpoles, had swordfights, played video games, watched cartoons, and ate ice cream each day--a boys' dream vacation.

The boys and I (and their Aunt Cathy and her friend, Jean) miniature golfed 18 holes. The water hazard on hole 10 snared all of us, but overall we did pretty well. I won't tell you who won, but she's the author of this blog. We hit a pizza buffet afterwards where Ten could have won a Guiness Book record for the number of bread sticks consumed by a human in fifteen minutes.

Dan golfed 18 holes also, but he golfed on a real course because he's a big chicken and didn't want to brave the sandstone cave or the windmill. No, really, he did a nine hole course two days in a row with his brothers. Dan and Ted hit from the men's tees because, well, they are men. Their brother, Jack, is the only person we know who can talk smack while hitting from the ladies' tees.

I went on a twelve-mile bike ride with Ted, Cathy, and Jean while Dan watched the kids--not because I had a burning desire to cycle but because it was the only way I could think of to get away from my children for a few hours. We rode at least three of those twelve miles in a pouring rain but none of us minded because that was the only time it rained during the day for the whole trip. We stopped at a nice little antiques store and ice cream shop to wait out the rain with a lovely hot cup of coffee. Oh yeah. True confession time. My seven weeks of being coffee-free came to a screeching halt on this trip. What can I say? Ted brought a giant bag of Starbucks and I woke to the sound of him grinding the coffee beans fresh each morning. No way was I going to pass that up.

We rented paddle boats to cruise our little lake. These things are harder than they look! Ten and I tried to race for a while but then we realized it was easier just to link up with Daddy and Seven's boat and float around. Here's a hint: if you ever decided to paddle boat, don't do it at the hottest part of the day on a boat with no shade in a very thick life jacket. I'm just saying...

The next day we canoed down the river for seven miles. Except for the fact that a certain ten-year-old sat right behind me and hummed the theme song from Johnny Test in my ear for the entire two hour trip, we had a good time. Dan and I proved to be a formidable paddling team, despite the dead weight splashing us from the center of our canoe. Seven was a great little rower (paddler? paddle operator?) from his spot in the back of the boat with Dan. I don't have any pictures of this, but I'm sure my wonderful sister-in-law Cathy will be quick to email me the pictures she and our nephew Christopher took. Because she's so organized and efficient. Ha!

We grilled out on our deck every night for dinner and played a music concert with the whole family in the pavilion each night. People from all over the campground came to listen, sing, or play along. Lots of fun! Our band: Dan on guitar, (we had to leave the mandolin at home to make room for golf clubs), Jack on guitar and banjo, Cathy on guitar and banjo, Ted on violin, everyone singing along. We had guest guitarists and banjo players from other campsites too.

We also soaked in our own little private hot tub before bed every night. A girl could get used to that.

More trip info later, but here are a few of the pictures I took: