Weekend at HSP

We spent a really fun weekend camping with The Corleys at Huntsville State Park.  The men and boys went up early on Friday and set up camp, and the dads chose the perfect camping spots that were a bit removed from the madness of the main camping area so they were a bit more secluded. The best part was that they were on a little loop so the boys could do lots and lots of bike riding.

Kyle had to go in to work Friday afternoon. I bet he liked the ten minute commute!

Guess who learned to FINALLY ride a bike without his training wheels? 

Yep, Garrett!! He was the only kid with training wheels. After watching him go around the loop several times, the Amie, Patrick and I pointed out to him that he wasn't really using his training wheels--they hardly ever hit the ground. So, I made him get on Tyler's bike and try it. I ran alongside him for a few steps, and by the time we reached the end of the road--not very far--he declared, "well, this is easy!"  

I yelled back for Patrick to take the training wheels off, and by the time Garrett and I were back to his bike, his training wheels were long gone. 

So proud!! 

Amie has an awesome hammock, and we all relaxed in it. A nice thing about HSP is the abundance of pine trees, which means it is almost always shady.  Even though the thermostat hit the upper 90s, I never was hot. 

We, along with dozens of other campers, went down to the fishing pier as the sun was setting, and we saw two alligators. Both of our families are really big fans of Swamp People, so this was especially exciting for our boys (and, I'll admit, for me).  

On Saturday morning, I got up early to run 10 miles on the trails. The plan was to run 7 and then pick up Parker to run my last three.  Parker's eight, and LOVES running. My trip around the lake ended up being 7.5, so I did a total of 10.5.  It was a beautiful run. I might blog about it on my other blog.  I had a good time running with Parker--we held about an 11 minute per mile pace, talked the entire time, and only took two or three very quick breaks.  He's a born runner! 

After a big breakfast of bacon, eggs, and pancakes, we all got dressed and headed into Huntsville to visit the Sam Houston Memorial Museum.  This is located across the street from Kyle's office, but in five years of working at SHSU, he'd never been there. We didn't actually go to the museum part, but walked around the grounds looking at all of the historical buildings, like this blacksmith shop. 

I love this picture of Tyler! 

Is this a good-looking group of boys, or what??

After museum fun, we ate a very slow, but pretty good, late lunch at Zach's, then returned to the park to swim. 

This picture is not from Saturday. This picture is from last July when we were there. 

I didn't take a picture of the swimming area on Saturday or on Sunday.  That's a shame, too, because I'm not sure I can eloquently describe the mass of humanity that was gathered in the water, on the swim platform, on the beach, and under the trees. I'd guess at least a thousand people.  

Nevertheless, we all had a great time swimming.  Braden went off the swim platform over and over and over again. Last July, he cried hysterically when we tried to make him, so this weekend's bravery was quite an improvement. 

Garrett made me take this picture. I think he thinks he looks like a very cool surfer. 

We were sad to leave on Sunday afternoon. By the time we pulled out of the park, about 3:30, the camping area was pretty empty, just the Corleys and two or three other families. 

And now, it's back to reality tomorrow: teaching summer school for Kyle and me and summer day camp for the boys. Oh, and dentist appointments for the boys--wish me luck.