Canyon Lake

A few weeks ago, Todd and I were feeling restless and in need of a vacation so we booked a weekend at the lake for just us and the kids.  Knowing a mini vacation was coming was enough to push through the final weeks of summer and through a random busy time for Todd's business (busy is awesome, but tiring!).  I found a little two bedroom rental through VRBO with lake views and direct lake access - diamond in the rough - it was amazing.

This was the view from the upper balcony, right off the house.

The upper balcony looks down over this lower balcony which also has a fabulous view of the lake.  We enjoyed breakfast out on this balcony both mornings.

The first day we arrived around noon and set up shop before taking the girls down to the lake to swim.  Erin and Halle kept referring to the lake as the "big big pool" to which Lia would correct them yelling "NO ERIN HALLE IT IS A ...  what is it again mommy?  oh yeah.  A YAKE!!!"  Todd and I were really happy we thought to bring floats for us adults because the entrance to the lake was not very beach-y and just dropped off several feet right at once.  We had a great time paddling around in the lake with the kids and spent a couple hours out there in and out of the water.  The only troublesome part was getting the kids in and out.  Erin and Halle were completely freaked out about the slippery rocks and would just shut down and start wailing, frozen in place, waiting for help.  We had to basically shuttle them in and out on our floats until they got to where they could swim freely.  Annoying at the time, but pretty hilarious thinking back.

We went out to dinner that evening at a local mexican restaurant and got there so early we beat the (super sweet) 90 year old couple coming to dinner  When we arrived back at the house, there was a deer standing in the yard (much to the children's delight) and we went in to get some of the corn provided by the owners to feed the deer.  The kids were overjoyed watching the deer eat and were throwing handful after handful of food out.

Before long, the deer (smelled the corn? sent telepathic messages to each other?) started arriving one after the other.  The kids could not contain themselves.  Giggles followed by shhhing followed by more giggles.  Pretty dang adorable.

The deer easily became the evening attraction for the kids.

That night, the kids crashed out for bed early - and Erin and Halle miraculously did very well sleeping in the same room (and chose the same bed!).  Todd and I had some time to sit back and enjoy the gorgeous sunset.

The next morning, Todd was determined to find a canoe to rent (which as it turns out, isn't that easy to come by...) and worked for most of the morning researching.  The kids and I played, hung out around the house and did some fun art.

Erin was brushing Halle's hair - so cute.

This is a little travel fan I bring along on trips because I'm really weird about having a fan on when I sleep.  Well, it was just small enough for the kids to stand over and get their dresses blown up.  This game easily went on for a half hour.

Todd was successful in his research and found a spot that rented canoes on the river nearby (no luck on the lake - so strange...). So we packed a lunch and headed out.

We were disappointed to see the location was closed when we arrived, but were able to talk the owner into letting us canoe around nearby.  He had closed that weekend because the water levels were too low for canoeing in some places, so with a promise we weren't going far (and I think by looking at the age of our children he knew we were telling the truth) he let us rent from him.  He was super sweet with the girls and found them little plastic paddles to take on the river and some great hats (I think he was a little appalled they were not already wearing hats... oops).  Regardless, we got some great pictures out of it.

Canoeing was the best part of the whole trip for us all.  It was just so fun to be out swimming and paddling around on a little boat.  The girls did great and seemed to really enjoy themselves.  We had to mourn the loss of Erin's jelly sandal, but other than that, came out unscathed.

 We were out on the river for a few hours and headed back to the house around 3:30.  I knew the 20 minute drive would be tough to keep the kids awake (we were skipping naps on purpose to aid with bedtime...) so we stopped and picked up some special treats (lollipops) to try and keep them engaged and awake.  This is how it all turned out....

Halle's pictures totally crack me up - she was literally eating that lollipop in her sleep - did NOT want to give it up, but then finally couldn't last any longer.  A day in the sun full of fun activities... sleep was destined to win no matter what.

When we got back to the house, we hung out, watched some OU football and grilled burgers for dinner.  The kids played and fed the deer - very happy after their little cat naps in the car.  Bedtime was, well, ridiculously difficult - as expected.  But, we made it and I would do it all again in a heartbeat.  It was such a fun trip.