One of our favorite adventures this year was our getaway to Smith Mountain Lake last month. We discovered a lovely, newly renovated pet-friendly lake house through word of mouth (that's owned by the sister of one of our friends), and booked it for a 3 day vacation. SML is only about an hour and a half from us (and near our old stomping grounds in Roanoke!), and is a beautiful, huge lake in southwest VA. This should have been an easy trip to pack for: groceries for our stay, a few outfits, and towels/sheets. Even with Millie's crate taking up most of the second/third row of our SUV, we were fine... until we realized that we needed to fit Luke's giant tuba and its case! The kids were going to be doing remote learning on Monday and Tuesday morning of our lake stay, and despite our careful planning to pack laptops, notebooks, school supplies, etc., we neglected to remember that Luke would need his instrument for "band class!". So, we improvised and stuffed lots of luggage into Millie's crate, put the dog in the kids' laps for the entire trip, and made room for the tuba (I can't believe I didn't think to take a picture- it was pretty comical!).
Here was our view from the back porch of the lake house:
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| There were several outdoor sitting areas, a porch swing, and covered dock. |
This was our view from our dock. It was serene and peaceful and the perfect idyllic setting:
On Sunday, we rented a boat for the day, and the kids and Mark pulled right up to the lake house to pick me up. I could really get used to lake life:
Here are our happy boaters/captains:
We also rented a giant tube that we towed behind the boat, and boat tubing is now the kids' favorite activity ever. They spent hours riding on the tube, and Daddy made their adventure even more wild by intentionally driving over the wake of passing boats and making lots of turns/donuts. Of course, L&L loved the bouncing, crazy rides (more than riding calmly in a straight line) and falling off the tubes was half the fun!
Just when we thought the day couldn't possibly get any better, this magical ice cream boat appeared, complete with music announcing its arrival. The kids' minds were blown that they could actually get ice cream from a floating boat in the middle of the lake:
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| Best. Day. Ever. |
In the evenings, we roasted s'mores and relaxed around the firepit:
Always a sucker for an educational field trip, Mommy suggested that we visit Booker T. Washington National Monument, which was just a few miles away. This monument stands on the site of the 207 acre farm which was the birthplace Booker T. Washington. We explored historic buildings, walked on park trails, and read about the incredible life of this amazing man. Washington was America's most prominent African American educator and orator of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and we were inspired learning about all that he overcame and his legacy:
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| Millie had a contest with the sheep on the farm: "Who is the fluffiest?" |
Another fun first while at the lake house was kayaking. The kids had their own kayaks and loved this activity:
Leah also found a raft at the lake house and loved lounging on it while the boys were kayaking:
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| Living her best life. |
Cutest little kayaker ever:
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Even Millie was in relaxed, vacation mode. This family of deer came to the yard every day and our fluffy girl just gazed at them. Meanwhile, the kids played match after match of ping pong and announced that the lake house had the best game room ever!
We had so much fun at Smith Mountain Lake and loved all of these new experiences! I know we'll be back soon!
