Blessings, Bliss, and Bailey: Boats and Sniffles

I was so excited to bring Bailey on her first annual "Weiland Lake Watauga Lake Trip" This is a trip that my entire family has been taking each summer for 6-7 years. Lake Watauga is AMAZING! It is located just outside of western North Carolina in the Appalachian Mountains of Tennessee. It is surrounded by spectacular mountain views and sits at a pretty high elevation for a lake - which translates to cooler water early in the season. No matter the time of year, the water is always a gorgeous green hue which is accentuated by the bluest, clearest sky you will find. Oh, and the closest store is an hour away. No cell service, no internet, nothing. Just you and the water.
This trip is so fun for our family. My mom and dad started the tradition because growing up in Marietta together they used to spend their high school and college weekends taking my dad's boat out on Lake Hartwell. The only year we missed was the summer following my mother's passing, but never again! It is a RITUAL! We even hand out awards now throughout the trip... too funny. Anyone watching would think we were running a summer camp - We have 11 adults and 13 kids - and yes, all in one house... it's pretty big.
My parents always made being outdoors a priority. We werent allowed to sit inside! During the summer, we woke at 8, rode our bikes to the pool, did swim team practice, followed by dive team, and then swam all day! Sometimes I was so tired I would have to call my mom to come get me and throw my bike in the trunk because I was too tired to ride home! In the fall and spring it was up early for school and then we would run home, drop off our bookbags and head to whatever practice we had - for me it was soccer and softball. With all this time outdoors came all the outdoor things... and early on, my dad made it clear that "Weilands" were advanced. (LOL!) I was riding a bike with NO training wheels when I was 3, water skiing when I was 4, and snowskiing shortly after. Neighbors used to tell my mom that I looked ridiculous riding a bike that little at full speed down a hill!
Most of my nieces and nephews have followed that tradition of activity - One of my nieces is a pretty rowdy horseback rider competing in rodeos all over the place, my other niece is a pretty competitive cheerleader, my nephews are all rough and tumble, and the younger kids have a burning in their eyes to shine one day in their choice activity.
You could say that I have pretty high expectations for Bailey. I cannot WAIT to get her out on the lake on day and teach her to ski; or on the slopes, Christian showing her how to snowboard. So many good times ahead.
As a new mom, you are always learning. This was our first long trip away with Bailey in tow. Packing is ridiculous! Christian made a joke on the way there that we don't have any room in our car for another kid! I told him we would make it fit ;)
Anyhow, I pretty much remembered everything, but did forget one critical item - warm clothes. I mean, really? It is August! Turns out, at night in Watauga it gets pretty chilly, even for summer, and Bailey had only a onesie to sleep in... We tried everything - she would not keep a blanket on her to save her life! Well, when we returned, we had one sniffing baby.
This is her first cold, and it is bringing out a lot of my mom in me... I say that because my mom was seriously OCD. People joked that you could eat off our floors! She cleaned the baseboards with a toothbrush! Well, when it came to my brothers and sisters, she kept us equally as clean! We were not allowed to have a snotty nose... Now, Bailey has one and I am OBSESSED with the aspirator! I "perform surgery" about every hour as Bailey screams in frustration - I keep trying to convince her of how much better she will feel with all that stuff out - but, I think she knows I am only feeding my obsession with a clean nose. My mother kept Kleenex in every crevice. Even today, my friends trip out that every room of my house has tissue in it along with my car! I will NEVER have a runny nose!
Well, we learned our lesson - always travel for every possible condition, you never know.
Here are some pics of Bailey with her BFF Sydney and "healthy" at Lake Watauga :)