The Cascades

We went to the Cascades on Memorial Day and these guys were ready to do some hiking!  We put on sunscreen, bug spray and hats.  We were ready.

We took the lower path on the way there, which turned out to be the true hiking trail.  Not an easy path to take and I would not do it again with a 2 year old.  Here is the bridge we crossed to get to the trail.

Isn't this gorgeous! There were places that we would walk along and there would be a cool breeze.  It was hot so we really enjoyed it whenever we got a little of that "outdoor air conditioning".

An example of part of the trail.  There were several parts that looked like this.

Funny boys!

I promise I did not make them do this!

Some of the path would go right along part of the river.  In other parts the path was up higher or a little farther away.

Some of the time we spent trying to avoid slipping in the mud.

Troy ended up carrying Simon some.  This is a trademark look of Simon's.

Beautiful.  The roaring of the water was so loud.  It reminded me of this verse, "and I saw the glory of the God of Israel coming from the east. His voice was like the roar of rushing waters, and the land was radiant with his glory."  Ezekiel 43:2

 A little fall, across the river from us.

We're almost there...we can see it!

And there it is!  It is so beautiful.  After that long hike we were more than willing to sit and relax a little.

The boys took their shoes off and maneuvered their way out to the water.

I stayed behind to take pictures.  Josh and Caleb both slipped and fell on their way back. 

Fortunately a hiker stopped to take our picture. 

The total hike was 4 miles and I think it wore all of us out.  I'm pretty sure that Troy and I picked up poison ivy, oak or sumac from somewhere out there.  Maybe it was when I squatted behind that big rock to pee.  Hahaha! 

When we got home and had our supper and our baths we lit up some sparklers.  At 8 o'clock, it wasn't quite dark enough yet but we were too tired to stay up any later. 

They liked having 2 in each hand!

Fairy Stones State Park

The weekend before Memorial day weekend, we traveled down to Fairy Stones State Park where there is a beautiful lake with a sandy beach area.  It turned out that the lake was actually not open but we were told we could go in "ankle-deep".  The lake was not due to open until Memorial Day weekend.

So we all kicked off our flip flops and stepped into the chilly water and splashed around.

Simon kept pushing his limits by walking further into the water. 

He was happy as long as he could splash!

Caleb kept trying to lose his trunks.  I'm glad he likes to wear undies under them!

This picture just makes me grin from ear to ear,
because that is a truly happy smile on my Josh's face.

There is a little playground right on the beach next to the lake.  

But there is also a playground not far from the beach and it's mostly shaded.  There are lots of picnic tables with grills set up near there also.  It was a perfect area for a cookout.  Apart from all the bugs.

 Troy and Caleb did the man thing and started the fire.

We roasted hotdogs.  They were hot on the outside and cold on the inside.
I had taken them straight from the freezer to the ice chest for our trip.

 We also made s'mores!  Yummy!

We also found more water...

to play in!

Josh would make a great fountain.

We did a little walking and checked out the water craft that they have for rent. 
Again, it did not open until the next weekend though. 

It's such a beautiful park.  One that Virginia can really be proud of.

I can't wait for us to go back!