Last week was maybe the only week of the entire summer that we didn't have any extra "stuff" going on - no sports practices, no camps, no trips, no extra medical appointments, no nighttime obligations, no nothin'. Aside from Bella's three hours of therapies, our calendar was wide open, AND my hub was in Miami all week; so, I wanted the week to be a fun one for just my s{quad} and me, to keep us preoccupied until my hub returned home. On Monday morning, I proclaimed it *Adventure Week* and promised my kiddos I'd take them out for a special adventure each day. I have now decided I will do this one week out of every summer going forward. We just had so much fun together, exploring new places and making special memories along the way. Here's what our first ever *Adventure Week* looked like for my Lu Crew last week:
Monday - Big Rock Nature Preserve
Earlier this summer, a friend of mine shared some pics of her sweet boys at this awesome spot and I tucked it away as a place I wanted to take my kiddos when we had a spare morning - Big Rock Nature Preserve. This place was so neat! It is hidden away in the middle Ballantyne (a Charlotte suburb) and as we were pulling up I thought, 'This can't be right.' It is just tucked away in the middle of this neighborhood -- all of a sudden, there it is! My kids LOVED this place. We were greeted at the trail entrance by an educational sign describing the Archaic Indians who dwelled there over 10,000 years ago, explaining how they used the giant rocks to help them survive. We traipsed all over the trails and woods and climbed up and down the huge rocks. There was plenty of shade from the trees, which shielded us from the hot temps. We will definitely make this a regular spot to visit!
Tuesday - Reed's Gold Mine
Monday - Big Rock Nature Preserve
Earlier this summer, a friend of mine shared some pics of her sweet boys at this awesome spot and I tucked it away as a place I wanted to take my kiddos when we had a spare morning - Big Rock Nature Preserve. This place was so neat! It is hidden away in the middle Ballantyne (a Charlotte suburb) and as we were pulling up I thought, 'This can't be right.' It is just tucked away in the middle of this neighborhood -- all of a sudden, there it is! My kids LOVED this place. We were greeted at the trail entrance by an educational sign describing the Archaic Indians who dwelled there over 10,000 years ago, explaining how they used the giant rocks to help them survive. We traipsed all over the trails and woods and climbed up and down the huge rocks. There was plenty of shade from the trees, which shielded us from the hot temps. We will definitely make this a regular spot to visit!
Tuesday - Reed's Gold Mine
This was Banks' favorite adventure of the week (and the inspiration for his impending birthday party!). Reed's Gold Mine is in Midland, North Carolina, about a 50-minute drive from our house and absolutely worth the drive! Our visit started with viewing all kinds of old equipment used to harvest the gold as well as lots of information about the mine, with several gold relics on display. Next, we got to walk all over the land, including walking down into, and through, the earth, through the actual gold mine. It was seriously the coolest thing! We then hiked around the grounds, finally ending at an area where we can pan for real gold! Although our panning didn't turn up any gold, a little patron who was panning next to us did find a fleck! So neat! I could not recommend this place any more highly for any of my local friends who are looking for something fun to do, off the beaten path!
Wednesday - Cherub's Cafe and Cotton Candy Factory
This adventure was so special to me. We traveled to Belmont, North Carolina, which was about a 25-minute drive. Our first stop was the Cherub's Cafe for lunch. This amazing place, and the Cotton Candy Factory (right next door!), is owned and operated by Holy Angels. Holy Angels is a non-profit organization whose mission is to provide compassionate, dependable care and opportunities for high-quality living to those with intellectual developmental disabilities and delicate medical conditions. Any profits are used to solely fund the programs and services offered by the Holy Angels. Our lunch at Cherubs Cafe was delicious, and the service was fantastic! And the kiddos LOVED venturing next door to Cotton Candy Factory, where they got to spin and take home their own cotton candy. We had the best time!
Thursday - CLT Airport Overlook Park
Wednesday - Cherub's Cafe and Cotton Candy Factory
This adventure was so special to me. We traveled to Belmont, North Carolina, which was about a 25-minute drive. Our first stop was the Cherub's Cafe for lunch. This amazing place, and the Cotton Candy Factory (right next door!), is owned and operated by Holy Angels. Holy Angels is a non-profit organization whose mission is to provide compassionate, dependable care and opportunities for high-quality living to those with intellectual developmental disabilities and delicate medical conditions. Any profits are used to solely fund the programs and services offered by the Holy Angels. Our lunch at Cherubs Cafe was delicious, and the service was fantastic! And the kiddos LOVED venturing next door to Cotton Candy Factory, where they got to spin and take home their own cotton candy. We had the best time!
Thursday - CLT Airport Overlook Park
I planned this adventure with Harrison in mind, knowing he'd love it, and he did! As did the other kiddos (by the time we left - more on that in a sec). We grabbed milkshakes, well, McFlurries to be exact, on our way to this cool spot. It's been at least a year since we've been, and it just never gets old: it's this public area located directly next to the Charlotte airport that was created so that people can come and watch the many planes take off and land. Harrison was in HEAVEN! And Banks and Raleigh really enjoyed it, too! Bella was a little scared at first - some of the planes are pretty loud given how close you are to the runway! - but with a little comforting by her big brother and a hug from her momma, she was good as new and enjoyed watching the planes for the hour or so we were there. The coolest part - my hub's plane landed while we were there so we waved like crazy, knowing he was inside and would join us back at home soon!
Friday - Jolly Rolls
Friday - Jolly Rolls
This was a low-key, but still fun, adventure for our Friday. Originally, the adventure was going to be an out-of-town trip for the weekend to visit one of my sisters. But, plans changed and we ended up staying in town, which meant two more local adventures for my crew before our week ended. This one entailed visiting the coolest local ice cream shop, only it's not like any other ice cream shop we've ever visited. It's called Jolly Rolls because they make, and then roll up, the ice cream right in front of you! There are TONS of really cool flavor combinations to choose from (e.g., "Camp Fire" with graham crackers, chocolate fudge, marshmallow cream, and a toasted marshmallow on top!), and it was so, sooooo good! We'll be back to this spot within the month, I guarantee you!
Saturday - Carowind's Carolina Harbor
We closed out *Adventure Week* by surprising the kids (this time, with Daddy in tow since it was a Saturday!) and taking them to Carolina Harbor. This is the water park section of Carowinds. Because the kids were given season passes to Carowinds for Christmas, it was free entry for them (and me, seeing as I have a season pass, too!). We had never been to the water park and were excited to try it out, especially since Carowinds is only 10 minutes from our house. We arrived about 2:15 pm, thinking that the crowd would have thinned out by then. Nope. Nope, nope, nope. It was absolutely packed. It had to be one of the busiest days of the summer. There were people EVERYWHERE - so much so that it really took some of the fun out of it. Next time we go back, I'll wait to go mid-week and at the very, very end of summer. Lesson learned. BUT the kids still had a good time (mostly. We actually had a heart-breaking moment happen with Bels that I'll share more about in a post later this week), and we definitely closed out *Adventure Week* with a bang!
I was so glad to have so much time with just my s{quad} last week, and it will undoubtedly contain what will be some of my favorite memories of our summer. We have just a few days left of our summer break, and while we'll just see where these unplanned days take us, I have no doubt a little adventure will still sneak in every now and again as our summer comes to a close. <3
We closed out *Adventure Week* by surprising the kids (this time, with Daddy in tow since it was a Saturday!) and taking them to Carolina Harbor. This is the water park section of Carowinds. Because the kids were given season passes to Carowinds for Christmas, it was free entry for them (and me, seeing as I have a season pass, too!). We had never been to the water park and were excited to try it out, especially since Carowinds is only 10 minutes from our house. We arrived about 2:15 pm, thinking that the crowd would have thinned out by then. Nope. Nope, nope, nope. It was absolutely packed. It had to be one of the busiest days of the summer. There were people EVERYWHERE - so much so that it really took some of the fun out of it. Next time we go back, I'll wait to go mid-week and at the very, very end of summer. Lesson learned. BUT the kids still had a good time (mostly. We actually had a heart-breaking moment happen with Bels that I'll share more about in a post later this week), and we definitely closed out *Adventure Week* with a bang!
I was so glad to have so much time with just my s{quad} last week, and it will undoubtedly contain what will be some of my favorite memories of our summer. We have just a few days left of our summer break, and while we'll just see where these unplanned days take us, I have no doubt a little adventure will still sneak in every now and again as our summer comes to a close. <3
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