The Canal Campout

We don't take vacations.  We do not leave home.  Pretty much.... ever.

When Matt suggested we go on a vacation, I felt like I had won the lottery!

And THEN, a few months later, Matt's family suggested we all take a boat/camping trip together.

I couldn't believe my ears.  I didn't actually believe Matt would agree to it.  After all, we had already had an amazing vacation.  But he didn't even flinch.  (It happens they are some of his favorite people.)

So... the Newman Canal Campout was organized and planned.  We got to experience the locks on the canal.  Nathan and Gary both have pontoon boats.  Each of the daughters-in-law took care of one dinner.  Grandma and Grandpa took care of each breakfast.  And the rest of the time we snacked.  (And snacked.  And snacked.)

It is ridiculous how much we Newmans like to eat.

This would have been a relatively inexpensive vacation had it not been for the speeding ticket Matt got when we first arrived.  

While driving our van... following traffic... in the slow lane... sandwiched between the two pontoon-hauling trucks who did not get tickets?!?

You can tell which was the FUN boat... every kid wanted to be with Funcle Nathan and Aunt Leia.

From the looks of it, Moses knows full well he was stuck on the "boring boat".
But WE had the good snacks!

 While everyone else was helping everyone else set up camp... Andrew was helping ME.  He is always looking to meet a need, and he honored and loved me well that day by looking to my needs first before helping everyone else.  He does that often and I am pretty sure he has no idea how much that means to me.    Man, do I love this guy.

Leaky glowsticks can be even more fun that regular ones

I packed a few supplies for minute-to-win-it games...

Exhaustion sets in

Grandma and Grandpa treat us all to icecream sandwiches- and the Byrne Dairy didn't know what was coming!

There was a local military museum/barracks that we were able to check out too.

And somebody discovered a special photo feature on Papa's phone...

The weather was gorgeous for this family trip too- hot and sunny- right up until the morning we had to leave.  We packed up our things early because the forecast looked like there was rain coming and we got our things in the van just in the nick of time.  By the time we were getting the boats back onto trailers, there was torrential downpours and we all were wetter than otters when we drove home again.  

 We squeaked every ounce of sun out of that weekend.

Plymouth Rock and the Beach (BFV#5)

Within eyesight of the Mayflower 2 was Plymouth Rock.  

THE Plymouth Rock.

THE Plymouth Rock that was far less impressive in real life than in my mind.  

We couldn't even STAND on it for goodness sake.

And before we headed for home, I planned an afternoon cooling off in the ocean.  Shell collecting.  Shark teeth finding.  Picnicing on the beach.  

My children had never been to an ocean before.

But since it was positively FREEZING, there would be no swimming.  Only the bravest among us tore off our shoes so we could blue our toes with ocean frostbite.  

I think Matt stayed in the car for the beach experience.  Moses slept in the car with him, oblivious to the fact that this may be the only time he sees the ocean!  

Before we headed homeward, we picnicked on a grassy knoll.  

Ineke took this picture:

 I find it super funny to see that we were sure to bring some whipped cream with us on this trip.

One should never be without whipped cream.  ;-)

And that was our BIG FANCY VACATION!  It was three nights and four days of pure bliss.

But did you know...we took TWO?!?

You'll seeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee....................................

The Mayflower 2 (BFV#4)

It is a wonderful gift to be able to explore and experience things we have learned about through books in more real, tangible ways.  Exploring history with your senses along with the written word makes history come alive.

The Mayflower was TINY, tinier than you could imagine.  Plymouth Plantation was so cold and windy (even on a wet 50 degree spring day)... what must winter have been like?  

How much these people had to endure!

How could these pilgrims have endured it all?  

By God's grace.

Our lives have been so free and easy and painless.  It may not always be so.  But even in times of trouble and travail, it is by God's grace that people can endure.  It has been done before.  All throughout history.  Over and over again.

A vacation that leaves you feeling overwhelmingly blessed and grateful for your life as well as anchored and sustained for troubled times to come is an extraordinary vacation indeed.