Oh Hume. [part 1]

There are few places in the world that I love more than Hume Lake.  My family has gone up there for a week just about every summer for the last 6 years.  I went up as a high school camper, and then as a counselor.  There is no cell service, no internet (well technically there is, but I didn't bring my computer), no large grocery store or Target.  It is quiet. It is inspiring. It is beautiful.  God's presence is palpable.  You can see Him, feel Him, hear His voice.  There is just nothing like being amongst His beautiful, majestic creation. Being apart of it, and knowing the One who created all of it, created me. Loves me. Knows me.  

It is overwhelming, and I never get tired of it.

It is a sanctuary away from the busy, hurried existence that seems to encompass each day. It is also where we have made precious memories with my family. We stay in a large cabin/house all together. We wake up and have coffee together, we eat pancakes and bacon together, we laugh together, we play at the lake together, and we just enjoy being together.  This year was especially fun since Jack really loved every minute of it.

Morning cuddles! So cute!

After breakfast we all get ready and head down to the lake to set up "camp."

This was Claire's first time traveling and being away from home, and with little ones, you can never be sure how they are going to do, but she was perfect.  She did great on the ride up [9 hours], slept great in the pack-n-play and just hung out the rest of the time. She really is such a good baby. It's crazy to think a year ago when we were up at Hume, I was just barely pregnant with her.  Now she is this little person who we know and love so deeply!

She, of course, spent a lot of time relaxing :-)

And so did we.

(Left) My sis and me and our napping babies.    

During the day there were lots of fun lake activities that we did as a family. We took our boat out, which Jack loved...but he literally fell asleep out in the boat everytime! So we started just taking him out around nap time and them we'd bring him back in and he'd nap on a towel on the shore. It was so cute and just reminded me that he is still such a little boy.

At night in the cabin the kids organized events for us. We had a major ping-pong tournament, complete with trophies and awards. My nephew Jonathan and my niece Olivia spent a long time making the trophies out of water bottles :-) It was really cute, and we all had a blast doing the tournament. [I got second place...it was intense. Jonathan took 1st place!]

 Another night we had a song writing contest- which was awesome! My favorites were Mum's "At Hume Lake" to the tune of 3 Blind Mice, and Michael's rap/song "Hume Lake, Hume Lake, Hume Lake is so much fun..." or as Jack says it..."so much, so much fun!" He still goes around singing both of them!