The Perfect Sister Week

“We can’t be this far south and not see each other,” Claire told me a few weeks ago. I agreed. Greg and Claire travel a lot as Greg is an Evangelist, and since they were 12 hours away, we figured we could meet half way for a few days. Come to find out, the halfway point was a city that they knew some people, and long story short we ended up in a free house for 5 days.  The plans were made rather quickly and before we knew it, the kids and I (besides Nathan who stayed with Grandma )headed out to Hot Springs, Arkansas for a girls/kids week. We discovered some absolutely gorgeous lakes, and our kids (um, us) adore the beach, so that’s where we spent most of our time. The kids played in the sand and occasionally ventured into the water and we sat on the beach and talked. And ate snacks every 5 minutes.

The first beach we visited was breathtaking, with hardly anyone around. It was like our own private little paradise.

Shopping in small town America and supporting local businesses makes me happy. In Hot Springs, everyone seemed to know each other and even though they didn't know us they were just as friendly. We happened upon the Historical District which was our best accidental find. An adorable vintage shop, frozen yogurt, bakeries and quaint little gift shops welcomed us--and our money--with sweet smiles and southern charm.

The rest of our long, hot days were spent at beach #2 at a beautiful State Park. The view was just as gorgeous and it was a lot roomier--and had nice bath houses which is a must with a newly-potty trained 2 year old. Sitting with my sister, watching our babies play, digging our toes in the warm sand and talking for hours at a time seemed like a dream. We kept saying, "I can't believe we are really here!" 

Possibly the cutest picture ever of my naked nephew eating cereal

So, if you are ever in Hot Springs, please,  please go to The Pancake Shop. We are lifetime lovers of breakfasts in little diners and we hit the jackpot with this place. The pancakes were the best we have ever eaten, and they were the size of plates. After a few kiddie meltdowns in the restaurant that had the whole town talking about the uproar, the kids happily enjoyed their meals--Michael eating butter and dipping his sausage in his egg. Priceless.

4th of July was another day at the beach, home to bathe little sand filled bodies, dress them Patriotically and head to a beautiful park for a picnic at dinner time. The American thing to eat just needed to be hot dogs, so thankfully Sonic was close and we devoured them like the true Americans we are. We all ate, the kids ran and played and the weather was absolutely perfect. 

At the very end of the trip we came upon...here it goes...a Hot Spring! And it was hot, like boiling hot. Our trip never felt so complete as the moment we scalded our hands and knew why the place was named Hot Springs.

Favorite I-Phone moments of the week:

To look back on these pictures now seems like it was too good to be true and almost like it didn't really happen. It couldn't have happened. But it did, and we will never forget every moment. We had no wi-fi while we were there, and we would pull out a movie each night but then get talking and never watch it. We lived each moment to the fullest, spending it together without many modern distractions (besides our kids who are most definitely modern distractions!). It was relaxing and fun and, dare I say, perfect.