Yesterday was BEEE-YOOOOOOOO-TIFUL!!!
We started the morning with a kayak trip. Originally, the girls wanted to do the bunny hunt with Shadow, but they just couldn't peel themselves away from the PBS show that was on TV so they didn't get there in time. That was fine because we saw the "hunters" following B'Lou and Shadow...about 50 people! We talked to B'Lou later and he said that the group started with about 15 and just kept growing
.
Back to the kayak trip...
DD5, who is usually glued to DH for everything, actually wanted to ride in the kayak with me this time. DD7 agreed to ride with DH without any fuss. (She is usually the "mommy's girl"
). Our guide showed a look of concern when we told him our plan. He said that DD5 probably wouldn't be able to paddle at all because the little paddle he gave her doesn't move much water and it is more of a novelty. He was concerned that I wouldn't be able to manage the double kayak on my own. He suggested that DD7 ride with me so that she could help, and then DH could paddle DD5 in the double kayak by himself. I told him that we would have a massive meltdown if we tried to switch the kids now. Even though I had never kayaked before, I was now determined to show our guide that I am stronger than I look
.
Our tour lasted just under 2 hours. We went out on Broad Creek and learned a lot about the area's economy and ecology. It was definitely a workout paddling against the wind and the tide, but I kept up without a problem
. As we unloaded from the kayaks and returned our life jackets, our guide came up to DH and said, "That is one strong wife you have there! She handled that kayak magnificently!" Then he told me, "I was shocked! I've never seen a first-timer paddle a double-kayak by themself the way you did. Nice work!" (He got a nice tip after that
)
After the kayak trip, we packed up the bikes and headed down to the beach house. It was sunny and felt like about 75 degrees, but there was only about a dozen people at the pool
.
We didn't mind....I had a couple "adult" beverages again and the girls went swimming. We stayed at the pool for about an hour and then we took the bikes down to the beach. The girls wanted to check every tide pool. They'd already found dead crabs, jellyfish and sand dollars. They were determined to find a starfish! We had to stop at every single puddle of water, big or small, to look for a starfish...
....Finally...
JACKPOT!! Not one, but TWO starfish...in the same tide pool!
We rode up and down the beach until about 6pm. Then it was time to head back for dinner. We still have a lot of groceries to eat up so the girls had hot dogs and DH and I had a homemade pizza. We've heard great things about a lot of restaurants here, but for some reason, we have had no inclination to eat out. That is very odd for us because that is usually all we do at home...eat out. Maybe that is why we are enjoying the meals in our room so much...it is different than our normal routine. The kids have not once asked to go to a restaurant so I think they are perfectly content with my "cooking" as well
.
After dinner, we went to our first HHI campfire. What a hoot! At first, the girls weren't too interested. When they divided us into teams for the dance competition, our team had to come up with a name. DD7 was elated when they chose her suggestion ("Team Hercules") for our team. After that, they went crazy! DH sat at the picnic table, chatting with his new friend about hunting and guns and whatever else guys talk about
. We ate our S'Mores (free, by the way....I didn't realize any food at Disney was free...nice surprise
) and headed back to the room. I was exhausted so I hit the hay while DH and the girls spent some time at the table coloring and reading. I have no idea when they went to bed because the next thing I knew, I woke up at 7:15 this morning!
On the agenda for today is the Longview Arts and Crafts at 10am. When DH found out they were making shark tooth necklaces, he was excited. He actually said, "I have to do that!". That's the first thing this trip that he has CHOSEN to participate in. The Un-Birthday party is at 2pm which is the other thing the girls have been wanting to do since we started planning this trip. At some point today, I have to begin the sad process of final laundry and packing the suitcases
. The original plan was to take our time tomorrow and try to be on the road by 11am. I'd planned on driving to a hotel in Pigeon Forge, TN (already have the reservation), but now, DH thinks we need to make it further down the road. I told him that the hotel I selected is about 6 hours of drive time (about 7.5 hours actual time) which would leave us with about 10 hours of drive time on Saturday to get home. He tells me now that he'd rather split the time more 50/50. So, I need to get online and try to find us another hotel closer to home. I don't want to have to get up too early tomorrow, but I also do not want to be driving through the mountains of TN at midnight! Guess who will be doing the driving tomorrow
....
That's all for now. It's 8am and I need to get our last day here underway.
Thanks for reading!
!?
) but in order to rent the tug-along, we had to rent an adult bike too. So, instead of $30, we had to pay the full $60. Oh well...
! We're not planning on eating out too much this trip. We still have pizza, spaghetti and hot dogs to use up. We are thoroughly enjoying eating our meals in the room, and we are saving a lot of money doing it too! We only bought 2 refillable mugs because they are the same ones we got last April at WDW. DH and I are using them and the kids are drinking Kool-Aid and water.
WDW) HHI really is an awesome place in so many ways. 
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