Date Day

This past Saturday was an awesome day for both the kids and us.  It was Feather and Fin day at Mousey and Poppy’s house, so that meant all five cousins were invited to spend the better part of the day having fun with Mousey and Poppy.  Mark and I were more than happy to take advantage of a free Saturday, so we planned a little date day of our own.

After stopping off at the Sperryville Country Store for sandwiches and sides, we made our way to Thorton’s Gap to hike to the summit of Mary’s Rock.  The hike was great!  We basically hiked straight uphill for a little over 1.5 miles.  We had Cayenne with us, and she loved being along for the hike!

At the summit, we were at an elevation of 3,514 feet, so we had a great view of the Shenandoah Valley.  We ate our lunch at the summit and enjoyed the scenery before it was time to hike back down the mountain.

Many years ago, Mark made acquaintances with the jeweler he had make my engagement ring.  He was a soccer fan, and Mark was still playing for DC United, so they struck up a bit of a friendship.  We later returned there to get our wedding rings, then followed an anniversary present, and other visits for basically any jewelry needs we had.  Just recently, we were back again to get an heirloom ring from my grandmother re-worked, and while we were there, they told us that they had got into the winery business several years ago.  We talked about the winery life and promised that we would stop in the next time we were in the area.  It just happened that the hike we did wasn’t far from the winery, Molon Lave, so we stopped in to see the vineyard and enjoy some wine.  It was a wonderful way to round out the date day.

After the winery, we met my parents at Carousel – a super cute and fun ice cream shop in Warrenton.  Everyone got huge ice cream treats, and Cayenne even got a “pup cup” of a little ice cream with a dog biscuit!  We came home and had three exhausted girls (fur baby included), but it was a great day for everyone!

The following lovely pictures are all credited to Susan Lewis, a friend of my parents.  As part of Feather and Fin day, my parents took all the girls to the Lewis’s home to fish their pond and swim in their pool.  From what we heard and saw, the fishing was quite a success!

Nina happened to catch the pond record – a 4 lb. large mouth bass!!!  She cast it, set the hook, and reeled it in on her own.  She said Poppy helped her get it up on the shore since they didn’t have a net, but she was so proud of herself!  Mark was awfully proud of her too!

  

All the girls caught fish – many of them very nice sized.  Mousey and Poppy said that all the girls really enjoyed fishing, and it was a great success!

After fishing they got a ride in Mr. Lewis’s Gator back up to the house where they enjoyed some time swimming.  All the girls had such a fun day!  I’m so thankful that our girls have such wonderful opportunities to make memories with their grandparents and cousins.  We are very blessed that they love each other so much!