Vacation recap (part 1, I'm sure)

I'm trying to type with Mary on my lap, so I'm not sure how this is going to work out. :) This for everyone really interested in the Gollner's life, really bored, or just wanting to vacation vicariously through our family.

This wasn't a typical vacation for us because we didn't go very far this year, but as you will see, we still managed to do a lot of things, and the kids all had a really good time. We had planned to go to Colorado, but when the gas prices were so high in April / May, we just decided to stay close to home.

Sunday: We finally pulled out of town on Sunday afternoon around 3 and drove to McCormick's Creek State Park. We got a very nice campsite next to the playground and the restroom - two very important things for us! The kids spent a lot of time riding scooters and playing at the playground. We had a campfire with s'mores at night. :)

Monday: We took a hike down to a waterfall. The hike was labeled as moderate on one paper and hard on another paper. Hmmmm . . . it was only moderate until the last part when we had to go up 146 steps to the top. After Steve recovered, we went swimming at the pool in the park. The oldest four kids were very excited to see diving boards.

Tuesday: The kids used some of their vacation savings for horse and pony rides in the park. We went swimming at the pool again in the afternoon. Hannah finally got me to dive off the diving board at around 5:30, then she could do it too. Unfortunately, the pool closed at 6, so she didn't get too much diving practice.

Wednesday: We packed up and went to the George Rogers Clark memorial then to Lincoln State Park. They had a nice beach, so we went swimming at the beach in the evening.

4-H (a little delayed)

I really can't believe that it has been almost a month since 4-H season, and I'm just now posting about it. I have tried a few times, but the computer wasn't cooperating. As an introduction I'll just say that I love 4-H because it forces me to teach the kids things that I probably wouldn't otherwise teach them, but it does make for a chaotic week when things get turned in! This year I told Steve we were just going for completion, not champion, but I guess I have a hard time with that because we pushed forward and most things turned out pretty well.

Hannah:
1. shooting sports (archery) - safety poster = blue ribbon
2. make with a mix - totally minty chocolate pound cake *this is a project I made Hannah take because she doesn't enjoy most anything domestic = grand champion and trophy

Sarah:
1. shooting sports (archery) - safety poster = grand champion and is currently at the state fair
2. foods - yeast rolls = blue (although Nathan claims they deserve a champion)

Nathan:
1. shooting sports (rifle) - safety poster = honor
2. woodworking - napkin holder = blue
3. garden - we only had a head of broccoli for him to exhibit = grand champion