Fall Break!

So I know it's been a while...again! Things are definitely busy for the hubs and I, but that's not to say that things aren't great...just busy! :-) Work is still going really well for both of us, and I am still loving the school and people I work with. I really feel like I have more time to do things for the students this year, and that's what this whole education thing is really all about...

Steven and I were very fortunate with the school system he ended up in because all of our breaks overlap, including spring break and fall break, which we just went on last weekend.

Steven and I made our first trip to the mountains in North Carolina (Blowing Rock, to be exact). We made our 9.5 hour drive Wednesday evening, including picking up dad downtown at work. It was a really beautiful drive and didn't seem to take too long.

This gas station sign was too funny NOT to take a picture of. :-)















The first day, we went for a 5 mile hike on one of the mountain trails. It was so much fun, and as you can see, the weather was gorgeous!! We saw some very interesting wildlife on the hike...














Apparently, the trail went through someone's farm, so we got to watch a calf feed a short distance away. Haha.
















There were lots of water "obstacles" on the trail, and not all of them had a bridge like the picture above. We had to get creative sometimes, but luckily Steven did an excellent job being the fearless leader. Let's just say, I felt like I was on an episode of MXC trying to cross some of those itty bitty, unstable logs. (If you're not familiar with MXC, just know that it was entertaining to watch!)




















At one point, we climbed down the rocky hillside to get a better glimpse of the flowing water, notice the sparkling waterfall behind us.




This was our rocky climb down the hillside.










I think my favorite part of the hike was taking a snack break on top of these huge flat rocks, overlooking the stream. It looks like we are sitting right at the water, but really, it is about twenty feet up, looking down on the water.















Enjoying our break! :-)















The second day was a very relaxed day, where we just went into town and had Pat show us some of the local shops. It rained pretty much all day, which made for a very wet third day after Harold, Brandon, and Angela arrived Friday night.

On Saturday, we went horseback riding!!! It was my first time out, and you might notice how I don't have any pictures...that is because I was too busy holding on for dear life! My poor horse seemed to struggle scaling those steep, muddy hills, and I'm sure she didn't enjoy stumbling down them much either. It was definitely an experience that I am glad I had...sort of. What doesn't kill us, right?

The trip came and went before we even knew it! Steven's finesse with a camera timer and a very accomodating fence post allowed us to capture a shot of the whole group outside Pat and Harold's beautiful and cozy mountain home. What a trip!