Spruce Lake

Sorry about the short and somewhat unintentional hiatus. It was only about 3 weeks, but I think it was good to step away from the blog for a bit. Anyway, as promised, here is the post about Spruce Lake along with some photos I took on past visits. (no photos from this year, because I forgot my camera. It's practically a tradition for me to forget something every year, and this year that's what it happened to be).

Spruce Lake is one of my favorite places ever. It's a small campground in the middle of the woods. We visit with my church family on Father's Day weekend every year. I love everything about it. There's the smell of trees and ground and woodsmoke, the sounds of birds singing and quiet footfalls, and a soft breeze blowing across my skin. It's so peaceful and calm there. The woods are my favorite kind of nature. Even better, I get to spend time with my friends from youth group, playing round after round of Scum (arguably the best card game ever) and walking aimlessly among the trees. Honestly, I don't even really have the words to describe it. It's more of an experience really. I'll let some of these old pictures do the talking:

♥♥Kristin

Why Fall Is Better

Than summer:
a. It's not so HOT
b. It's so much more colorful. There are so many shades of red, orange, yellow, dark green, and even brown in Fall. Summer is just an overabundance of green.

Than winter:
a. It's cool, but not so cold that I don't want to be outside for long periods of time. It still gets warm in the afternoon and I don't need a bulky winter jacket.
b. In winter, everything is brown and the sky is always hazy.

Than spring:
I'll admit, spring is my second favorite season, but fall is still slightly better, if only because I think the colors are richer and everything looks more defined. Plus, it doesn't rain as often (with this fall being the exception, I suppose).

So, yes. In my mind, fall is just absolutely the best. If only it would last longer.
♥♥Kristin

The Beach // Part 2

Here it is: the second half of my photos from the beach. I am really proud of the way a few of these turned out, and I'd have to say that these are my favorites (as compared to the ones in Part 1). This post is a bit more photo-heavy so it might take a bit longer to load.

These photos are a few more beach photos that I took since the last upload:

Driving.....

 The following photos were all taken at Jockey's Ridge State Park, which is made up of sand dunes. I went a little shutter-happy, so please excuse the volume of photos:

 The following were taken from the top of the dunes. It was amazing how far you could see.

The Sound (between the island and the mainland)

Nag's Head in the distance

All in all, I had a great time in the Outer Banks. I'm sort of sad that it's over now. I've been anticipating it for over a year, and now after one whirlwind week, it's over. At least I'll have my memories♥

Just a heads up on the direction the blog will be taking within the next two weeks: after a few summer-wrap-up posts, Fall will be in full swing, at least in my little corner of the blogosphere. Fall is my very-most-favorite season, so prepare for many autumn-themed posts, most likely well into December because I have a hard time letting go of fall when it leaves every year. (hah. leaves. no pun intended. That's your corny joke of the day.)
♥♥Kristin

The Beach // Part One

I've still got two days of my vacation to go, but I had some down time so I figured I'd post about the first half of the week so you aren't assaulted by photos when I get back. I'll try to post these in chronological order:

The first thing we did, naturally, was go for a walk on the beach.

We even saw some wildlife.

I know it's hard to tell from the picture, but these beach houses were the cutest things. I fell in love with all of them. They're painted various pastel colors that would look strange anywhere else but somehow they just fit in perfectly here. It gives the place an almost fairy-tale affect.

We took a mini-daytrip to visit a lighthouse. The weather was gorgeous but hot and because of occasional thunder we couldn't go up to the top, which was disappointing. Still, at least we got to see it.
And that's it for now. I realize I didn't have as many picture uploaded as I thought and I was too lazy to get my memory card from the camera, so this will be all for now. More to come when I get home.
♥♥Kristin

At the Cabin.

((or, the post in which I overwhelm you with photos and words))

The cabin is probably one of my favorite places in the world. Every year, we go for a week in the summer and a weekend in the fall. Every year, we do pretty much the same things, but I always enjoy it. I'm going to try to break up all the pictures with some words...

The Pennsylvania Grand Canyon: It's quite different from the actual Grand Canyon. For one thing, it's not nearly as deep, and for another, it's completely covered in trees. We go to the same overlook every year, and the view never ceases to amaze me.

As well as going to the overlook, we also hike on a trail that goes along the bottom of the canyon, called Darling Run:

Of course, we had to stop and wade in the stream.

(more photos like this on my photography blog)

We also go on other hikes, and the woods are so beautiful:

At least one night, we have sparklers and fireworks:

And we tour this old caboose next to a gift shop:

So, that's the cabin. Do you have any family vacation traditions like this, that no matter how often you do them they never get old?
♥♥Kristin