We just got back from a week long visit in North Carolina. We had so much fun, I'm quite certain we wore Granna and Daddy-o out. Also, I think we might have provided Gunkle Ben with all the birth control he'd ever want.
One of the really neat things about visiting North Carolina is that when we go there, we always stay at 'The Cabin', which is really a nice sized house tucked in the woods near a small lake/pond, just off the Blue Ridge Parkway. It's my mom and dad's retreat, but their home is too small for all of us to stay together. Sometimes, it feels like we're all on top of each other at the cabin too, but at least we have enough toilets and beds to go around. The real plus is that Bennett sleeps very well there! YAY!
At the cabin, Bennett gets to spend as much time outside as he wants. There is no worry of car traffic (especially in the winter), and even though we're surrounded by woods, we don't worry about wildlife. He is in hog heaven! This time, he and Daddy-o built two bird houses, re-planted a blueberry bush, secured the anti-deer fencing around said bushes and the fruit trees, hiked all the way up to the top of Bull Head Mountain, went sledding on the road (the only place there was enough snow), and fiddled in the "garage", which is what Bennett calls Daddy-o's shed.
Brian and I got to read, watch movies, chat with family and I kicked his and Ben's butts at Dominoes. That's right. Call it beginner's luck if you wish, but I dominated. I wasn't so great at Mexican Train, but it was still fun. I also taught Bennett how to play Connect Four. He liked making the checkers drop and "blocking" me more than actually playing, but I think he'll get the hang of it soon.
For New Year's Eve, we went to the local bowling alley and played one game before taking a break for dinner. We had to eat on the "porch" of this restaurant because they were busier than anticipated. My burger wasn't cooked all the way and Brian was surprised that his "meal" didn't come with anything other than a burger. Not the greatest food experience, but we had fun with the family. After dinner, we went back to the bowling alley and played some arcade games. Bennett went to turn in his tickets (I think he had thirty total) and the sweet girl behind the counter let him have his pick of the prizes. He chose something worth 200 tickets and she handed it over without any fuss. So generous!
It is always sad to leave The Cabin, but leave we did. We had excellent driving conditions on the way home and made it from Sparta, NC to London, ON in 14.5 hours. Bennett was a most excellent passenger - we are so very fortunate! Before we left London at the beginning of our journey, I threw together a travel pillow for Bennett to use in his car seat in case he took a nap (and also because we had planned to drive through the night on our way down there - that's another story!) because I didn't want his head bobbing around as it usually does. That pillow worked wonders! His head didn't flop once, despite the fact that he pulled a lot of the stuffing out after he picked one of the seams.
We came home to several inches of snow - Bennett has already been skating, sledding and snow hiking. This kid is a lover of the outdoors!
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