The West Country

 Today we went for a drive out West with our crew. For the last couple of weeks I have been craving a day in the mountains. The forecast looked incredible this week, so we made a plan, but when I busted my toe I wasn't sure if we would still make it. Mr. Stannix finished up a few things at work this morning while I got everyone ready to go. We picked up a large pizza and ate as we drove. As we neared the mountains the children started getting excited. "Look at those beautiful Mountains!" Ollie kept saying over and over again. "Whoa!! Look at that one!" They were thrilled.

 We pulled off at the All Stones Creek parking lot and took a little walk down the trail. Sawyer was so excited to walk around and explore. He kept plopping down on his bum and trying to pick up the snow with his mittens. He got up close to the tree branches to check them out and chattered non-stop. 

 The kids slid down this tiny drop to throw rocks and check out the ice. The air smelled so good and the cool breeze was refreshing.

 While the kids played down by the lake, I hung out with Sawyer in the trees, watching him take it all in. I would have loved to have followed the big kids but my air cast only let me go so far and I needed to put my foot up.

 We couldn't have asked for a better day to explore! 

 After a while we walked back to the van to head to the other side of the lake. We wanted a better place to check out the bubbles in the ice and heard the other side was better. As we made our way back up the trail, Sawyer kept trying to turn and walk back the other way. He's become super independent and it was a struggle to get him to follow the rest of the children back to the parking lot. But it gave me a chance to take it slow and soak in the views!

 For the rest of the afternoon, this was our playground! Aside from the crazy strong wind, it was perfect.

 The big boys and Daddy made it down to the ice first and I watched as the boys screamed with excitement as the wind pushed them around. It took me a while to limp down there. Ice is hard enough to walk on without an aircast. 

 Everytime the wind picked up, Oliver would run towards me as fast as he could and often tripped over rocks on the way. After I showed him that the wind was "fun" and wouldn't hurt him, he began giggling and embracing it. 

 The cold air felt good on my poor toe as I tried to find the best path across the lake.

 I loved watching Mr. Stannix play with the kids. Sometimes it's nice to get away from work and responsibilities and just play!

 The bubbles were so cool! I wasn't sure what to expect, but as the sun created rainbows beneath the ice, we were all mesmerized. 

 It's always a treat being surrounded by this much beauty.

 We had a lot of fun checking it all out.

 Soon it was time to head back. A few of the boys stayed out on the ice as long as they could and then ran against the wind.

When we made it back to the van everyone pulled off their snow gear and got comfy for the long drive home. We can't wait to get back to the mountains again.