The Lake House

We just returned from a wonderful mini-vacation at the Lake of the Ozarks. For three days, we relaxed with friends and enjoyed a beautiful lake house & local attractions.

Liliana had a ball playing in the sand, riding jet skis, tubing, swimming in the hot/cold tub, roasting marshmallows, eating ice cream (before streaking everyone in the parlor) and inventing fun with Stuart, Cole and Carter. She also spent hours playing with cards and an automatic card shuffler. Leave it to a toddler to find extraordinary enjoyment in such an ordinary thing.

Wade and I shared Liliana's enthusiasm about the beach and water activities. We also delighted in double-decker pizza, Oreo dentistry, little Frankensteins, red-light/green light, the outlet mall, great naps and spending time with four amazing kiddos.

One of our fondest memories was staying up into the wee hours of the night with Kate and Dave. As parents, it's rare to have the opportunity to talk and watch movies with friends (especially three nights in a row). We felt like teengers! The four of us shared life stories, testimonies and very tender moments. We laughed; we cried. It was much better than Cats. (Hopefully someone will get that reference.)

I honestly can't imagine a better two-family vacation. The kids were fabulous together, and the adults behaved themselves, too. How often does that happen?! Our only unexpected and uninvited situation was creepy and crawly. I didn't mind the plastic critters placed in my bed by a sneaky young boy (starts with a "C" and ends with an "arter"), but I was not fond of the scorpions.

Being a Scorpio girl, I tried to make peace with the stinging sand insects...but when they began creeping into the family room, the bedroom and my swimsuit, I started taking issue. Last night, Wade and I had scorpion-instilled insomnia (after finding two of them just before bed). He proposed keeping the light on and sleeping in one-hour shifts, and I proposed that he keep watch while I slept. We eventually settled for dozing in the light of the video, Witness (in hopes that the light would keep them off of our bed). Instead of falling asleep, I ended up watching the movie!

All critters aside, we thoroughly enjoyed our stay at the lake, and our laughter far outweighed our tears and fears. In fact, we had so much fun that we all decided to stay an extra day. Who says Type A's can't be spontaneous?!

Thanks to the Snodgrass family for magical memories. And hats off to the Loewes for a lovely home away from home. We will treasure our lake experience forever.