I need a vacation...

A trip down memory lane...in NC....here we are at our favorite creek, Big Creek. I always thought it was in TN cuz you actually do cross the border into TN to get to it, but I do believe you cross back over again into NC so I guess I was always wrong? Anyway...we love this creek and it's always an annual picnic trip and the kids love to look for bugs and butterflies and some of the "crazy ones" (my hubby...and sometimes me :)) even swim in the freakin' frigid water! But, it's so fun to hop on the big rocks and just enjoy the scenery :)
The kiddos in their red, white and blue garb last 4th of July on our favorite porch swing on our cabin porch :)
Oh my, how this little guy has changed in 1 year! What a sweet lil' firecracker!
Me and my honey at the big ol' waterfall (Mingo Falls) in Cherokee :)
This is our annual carving spot at the bridge by Mingo falls...good ol' Pops (my dad) always does a carving for each new child and this last year we added Dylan and also added a memorial for my grandpa who passed away (thus the RIP Dad)...we always look forward to seeing it every year :)
This is a pic from 2003 of us all by the "old cabin"...look how young we all look! :) And us with only Hailey :)
This is a new annual fun event "girls day out"....last year my aunt took Hailey and my cousin Celyn out and they got all matching stuff from outfits and hair to matching grown-up purses and face painting. This year Shelby gets to join in the fun!
Above is the cabin we rent with my parents and my brother and his wife-to-be :) It's an awesome place and overlooks the creek...we love it!
Shelby learned to walk for the first time at my grandparents cabin (as you can see)....this was 2 years ago...sigh...times fly!
This was 2005...we try to take a family portrait at my grandparent's cabin each year...I don't have last year's for some reason, but this one has my grandpa in it anyway (and Dylan in utero)....it's a beautiful cabin and the flowers are amazing too....such great memories!
Had to show Kev sporting his "manly side" HA! He's actually a "good shot"...I'm not so good, but it's still fun (FYI...we don't shoot at anyone or any animal...intentionally :))
Us overlooking the mountains...Maggie Valley is right by the Blue Ridge Parkway and it's an amazing drive...look at those Smoky Mountains! Breath-taking!
An old pic of Nina and the girls (Celyn and Hailey) playing in the creek by our cabin...they love it!
I love this old pic from 2005...of some of the boys in my family...this is at the Big Creek...the bridge over it....
And we usually let the kids get horse/pony rides...it's usually this same OLD horse too! And below is my bro getting ready to go horseback riding...we went like 3 years ago with my bro and Candy....good times :)

Ok, so that's a common saying around our house, but I'm excited to say "my need" will actually be coming true in just 3 more days! Whohoo! In honor and celebration of our upcoming annual 4th of July trip to the good ol' fashioned town of Maggie Valley I thought I'd post a few pics of our past trips. That way for those of you who will miss me (which will be everybody, I'm sure! :)) and shed some tears that I'm not blogging for a whole week...you can look at these pics of me and smile as you imagine me in the midst of this beautiful peaceful mountain scene. We have had so many good times over the years in good ol' Maggie Valley, NC. I don't even know when we honestly started going there (I was very young), but I just remember my grandparents first cabin there (or at least I think it was their first)...it was a small little thing tucked neatly about halfway up the mountain and I still remember all the good times we had there....on the gazebo across the road overlooking the amazing stream...all the cookouts...all the family times...all the peacefulness. And we still get to do some of those things at that same little cabin (part of my family rents it out every year). But then my grandparents built an even bigger and better cabin farther up the mountain with the most amazing view...it really is breathtaking. I wish I had better pictures cuz it really is amazing. It's the most relaxing place...so enjoyable to just sit and breathe the fresh mountain air, watch the hummingbirds eat from the feeders and just relax. I can't wait...can't wait for the fun times we're gonna have there in a few days with my extended FL family cooking out, shooting off fireworks (we always have a lavish display put on by all the boys)...it's quite a show....and then all the fun times playing/swimming in creeks, horseback-riding, picnicing, climbing a million stairs to get to a beautiful waterfall, shooting guns (yes, even I do this...what a woman!) :)...among many other fun things. The times are always good...and they always go by too fast...and now there is sadness mixed in as we remember the love my grandpa had for his mountain home and the pride he felt seeing all his family gathered there. Those are the times I will remember and miss. My grandpa was in his element in NC...and that is where I will remember him being happiest. Those times I hold close to my heart. Today I just ask for a prayer... prayer for my grandma. She and my aunt are already at the cabin (they just drove up there from FL)...and my grandma is having a really, really hard time. She has had a rough couple months just reliving my grandpa's death and she just simply needs prayer....prayer for her mood to lift, prayer for her strength and will to live...prayer for her health (she has chronic lung issues). I wish I could just reach out and hug her and make this pain go away for her. She is the deares,t sweetest lady and I love her so much. It breaks my heart to hear how sad she is. She is just on my mind constantly today....and in my own prayers.....

So, with that I just wanted to leave you with some pictures. Hopefully I'll have time to blog once more before we leave, but I make no promises...this week has been crazy and I still have yet to pack. It's been another one of "those days" which is turning into "one of those weeks". I'm not gonna complain cuz I'm trying to do better with that. It's just been an up and down day. Started out with return trip to Walmart. Have you ever been charged for something that wasn't yours and actually wasn't even in one of your bags??? Well, let's just say stuff like this has been happening to me a lot lately...maybe it's cuz people see me pulling my hair out with 3 kids and they think "what a sucker...let's overcharge her...she'll never notice"...Who knows...but I never realize the mistake til I get all the way home...this happened last night at Walmart and this morning bright and early I made a return trip there to tell them I never bought a $3 pepper....thank goodness, Walmart never puts up a fight (unlike some store that starts with a T and ends with a T :))....anyway....so that was how my night ended last night and my morning started (and I do believe the weirdo in me even dreamed about the Walmart fiasco...I'm so strange aren't I?!). Just a hassle and I don't like hassles. I know it was JUST 3 bucks, but it's the whole principle, right?! Ugh! Kev thought I was nuts for driving back in there for a few dollars, but he amused me and said it was ok...oh well...I got my money back and I can sleep well tonight! So, there....

In other news I made the "big chop" last night...and got a new "do". I love it...it's very choppy/layered and not so short that I look like a big ol' melon head with frizz :) Anyway...it suits me and a it's a load off my mind (literally) to have a lighter/easier "do"! I love my hair shorter, but Kev always looks at me funny for days after...he even said last night "it's like I have a new wife" :) LOL! But, I think he meant that as a compliment (not that he wants a new wife :)). Anyway...so that's a done deal and it was a long time coming (4 inches off at least!)...been needing it for months...I only get my hair cut like twice a year, so this will be my big cut before my brother's wedding. Yahoo! :)

Anyway...in other news Shelby has started being a little more mannerly...not only is she saying "please" and "thank you", but she also says them in spanish (i.e....she'll say "please, por favor" all at once when asking for something") It kinda shocked me yesterday, but I'll take the "double please" over nothing, which is what I usually get! Thank you, Dora the Explorer!

Well, this post is very choppy, but that's my mood today...so oh well! Hope everyone is hanging in there! Counting down the days til the NC vacation...whohoo!