Goodbye Summer

{Thursday's By Tara} - A Thursday ritual. A featured post written by Tara; simple, special, extraordinary moments in soaping and life.

We tried our hardest to embrace summer to the fullest

and we sent out our summer vacation this year

with a short trip to the beach.

Our destination: Marco Island, FL

 Our mission: To soak up every last ray of sun and to feel the salt on our skin one last time before we got back to the routine and schedule that is the school year.

The results: Well, you’ll just have to take a look and see!

Summertime Fun

{Thursday's By Tara} - A Thursday ritual. A featured post written by Tara; simple, special, extraordinary moments in soaping and life.

I wanted to share with you a sampling of some of the fun we had this summer.

My hubby spent a whole week at Cub Scout camp with 3 of our boys.

They learned pocket knife and bb gun safety, practiced archery,

and even got to watch a real jousting tournament!

We started out our summer by going to our local Memorial Day parade.

We started this family tradition a few years ago and it's a very special

and meaningful day for our whole family.

My two oldest boys attempted to climb the Alpine ropes tower at our local YMCA.

It was a little scary, though!

We had a blast celebrating my oldest son's 9th birthday with a fishing party!

Off to the mountains

{Thursday's By Tara} - A Thursday ritual. A featured post written by Tara; simple, special, extraordinary moments in soaping and life.

Heading to the mountains!

Every year we take a family road trip to the mountains of North Carolina.  We spend our days hiking, playing games, visiting waterfalls, picking fruit at local orchards, and finding any kind of junk or antique shop we can!

Last year we added North Georgia to our trip and spent 10 days in a cabin that sits right on the Ocoee River.  My boys spent the days tubing and playing in the very chilly water, but they had the time of their lives.  We are headed up again next week and can’t wait!  I’ll be taking lots of pictures so I can share a little of our adventures with you when I get back.

Where are you headed this summer?