Vacation to Lake Barkley

For the last 13 or so summers my family has gone to Lake Barkley in south-western KY for our family vacation.
I should wait for my sisters to get back since they have better pictures but I thought I would at least post a few.
Here are a few pictures and a list of things that make this vacation memorable every year:

1. 14-19 people jammed into a 4 bedroom house- we love it. Okay, those of us who were raised with little room and come naturally to laying on top of one another on the couch love it. Our husbands are getting use to it. :-)
2. Brothers/Brother in laws- mine make all vacations an adventure in unending humor and (don't tell them I said this part :-) they are all great servants so we girls haven't had to carry the giant raft down the steep hill to the dock once if they are around. I missed seeing my brother Donnie this year, he came the day we left. :-(
3. The just mentioned giant raft- we (primarily my dad- he's good to us) are always on the lookout for the best relaxation equipment on the planet. Thank you Sam's for providing end of the year sales, otherwise we would just be dreaming. When we were kids we found a great log each summer and tied it to our cove for hours of fun and floating, but we've matured into this huge (approx. 13 ft) round raft with room for multiple sunbathers, cup holders and netting in the middle for a dunk when you're hot without actually spending the valuable energy on getting out. This year we added a second flotation device so even more people can be floating vegetables. Thank goodness the little ones are natural swimmers and enjoy climbing in and out of the rafts too!

(Dora enjoying her first ever cob of corn. She loved it even though all her effort didn't end in much corn in the belly. (Sitting on Grammy's lap, she was attached to her most of the trip.)

4. The Kentucky Bison and Elk trail- Just wait for the pictures to come on this one. These creatures are huge and don't care if your car is in their way. They aren't dangerous, otherwise we wouldn't have left this year without serious damage to our car.

5.The large dining room table- that is never used to eat at because it is covered in food of every type. My parents have no clue how to do vacation without a meal plan and plenty of snacks. One night out and the rest of the meals are homemade. Yum!

(John Patrick with his Lightning McQueen fishing pole, thank you Aunt Kara.)

6.Game-time after dinner when the kiddo's are down- Sometimes my dad has to be forced into this but each night on the large screened in porch the evening will inevitably end with side splitting laughter and one liners that last until next year. (This is my mom's personal heaven.)

7. The special one for me this year was fishing with my little buddy- I have always loved fishing and this year John Patrick followed along in the early morning and we had a great time. I love his enthusiasm even when nothing is caught! Maybe next year he'll have the patience to leave the bobber in the water but we had a great time regardless.

(Dora with a worm she found and promptly kissed.)

8.Last but not least is my selfless mother- She gives so much of her hard earned vacation time with our kids on endless adventures, reading books, swinging them, sidewalk chalking, changing diapers, getting up with them at (brace yourself) 6:00am, and cooking a hot breakfast every morning and making sure there is something out for lunch every afternoon (although we all do have designated dinner nights). She loves every minute of it and vacation wouldn't be the same without her. I hope she is getting rest now that 2 of the 3 are gone. But when I called to say we made it safely home she answered the phone by saying, "Hey, who said you could take my babies away from me?"
Dora sitting on John's lap at the Bison trail. Can you see the bison in the distance. Better pictures to come!
Aunt Kelly's coaching paid off with a spoon sticking to Dora's nose for about 2 seconds! :-)