Ready to go to my birthday dinner!
Yes, I was excited about seeing the Kardashian store haha!
Yummy buffet food - best ever (Treasure Island buffet)
Next stop - Helen, GA for the 2012 O'Connell Family Reunion (mom's side of family). Georgia is GORGEOUS, minus the humidity. We arrived on Saturday around 7pm and bbq'd and hung out with family. It's so nice to see everyone on my mom's side of the family. Even though it's rare (hopefully this changes!), it's so special to me and makes me realize how lucky we all are to have each other.
On Sunday, we all went to a beautiful park and hung out under a pavillion that we had for the day. This was a great way to get everyone together since we are all in different cabins, and some of us in different areas. The park was buried in the mountains and right next to a river. Camdyn loved it! That baby was made to be outside!
Monday we rented boats! We got a wakeboard boat and all the other families got pontoons. The lakes in GA are a lot different than out here in AZ. The water is super smooth, and of course you're surrounded by trees and greenery instead of dirt and desert.
Tuesday my family and Chris and Susan (cousins) went ziplining! This was SO fun and WAY better than I'd anticipated. Three hours of flying through trees at 40mph! Being terrified of heights, I was a little nervous (ok, a LOT nervous), but the guides were awesome and safety is a huge huge priority, as it should be, so my nerves settled after a few zip lines (we went on 9 total, plus walked across crazy bridges and repelled).
Wednesday we went to the small town of Helen, GA for some breakfast and shopping. This is a little Swiss town that the campground surrounds. Most of the restaurants are German, and the shops have mostly touristy stuff, but it's really awesome looking and also full of fudge and candy shops! Later that day, everyone went mini golfing...well, my mom and I went to the laundromat haha. We met them later at golf and had delicious icecream.
Thursday, John went golfing with my cousins Eric and Chris and my Uncle John. I went with everyone else to Brasstown Bald - which is an extremely steep hike that leads to the highest point in Georgia where you can see three states (Georgia, Tennessee, and N Carolina, I think). The hike is paved, and luckily my cousin Finley was there to push Camdyn up in her stroller. We would not have made it without him! We got to the top and it was super cold and windy, so Cami and I shuttled back down and went in the gift shop where it was nice and warm. We went back to the pavilion later that evening for dinner. This was the last night that everyone was there except us and the Shelton's. So sad to say goodbye!
Friday we hiked Anna Ruby Falls - a beautiful hike that leads to a huge waterfall. Camdyn loved this as well! She kept staring at the waterfall and smiling - I think she thought she had arrived at the source of where milk comes from, lol :) "A waterfall of milk! Yes! I've made it!" Next we went tubing for two hours. The river was pretty slow moving, and I got stuck quite a few times wedged between rocks, and my sister pushed my tube (and me) into a weird canal that took awhile to get out of (thanks sis), but it was fun! It was definitely very relaxing which was nice.
And Saturday we flew back home - 10 hours of travelling so we were pretty exhausted. It was such a fun time and I can't wait to see everyone again!
On plane ready to go!
Brasstown Bald
Creek near the pavilion we were at
Anna Ruby Falls
Mom and Dad
So now it's back to the regular routine of working and hanging out with my baby girl. As much fun as traveling is, it's nice to be back in the comfort of our own home.
