It’s time again for our annual adventure at AuSable View Lodge.
Justin couldn’t join us (don’t feel too sorry for him, he was on a “Guys Only” trip to Costa Rica at the time), but he FaceTimed us every night.
It was early spring, and just warm enough for us to sit outside around the fire pit and roast marshmallows for s’mores.
Graham crackers + chocolate + melted marshmallows = Perfection!
So long from AuSable View Lodge!
My family adjusted the timing of our annual trip to AuSable View Lodge this year so that we could spend Thanksgiving weekend at “the cabin”. On the agenda for the weekend was eating lots of homemade food, watching endless sports and movies, and playing tons of games.
After spending an entire day eating, Justin and I were eager to get outside and burn some calories. Though the skies threatened to open up a deluge at any moment, we wandered through the woods of the Huron-Manistee National Forests.
Later that night, we taught Kaden how to play Boggle. Between rounds, he grabbed a piece of chocolate walnut fudge, gobbled it down, and then announced that his tongue felt itchy.
“Are you having an allergic reaction?” I kidded him.
It turned out, he was.
His tongue swelled up and he broke out in hives. When he said it hurt to breathe, my sister decided it was time to call 911. The nearest hospital was nearly an hour away, so she arranged a place to meet up with local paramedics in the small town of Mio.
Justin and I tagged along to provide moral support, and text updates to the rest of the family waiting for news back at the cabin.
The effects of the reaction were already wearing off by the time the EMS techs took over. After a thorough inspection, they declared him out of immediate danger, and suggested that he get some allergy testing at his pediatrician’s office back home.
So we went back to the cabin, thinking the excitement was over for the night. Just when everyone had relaxed, Kaden projectile vomited, twice.
He seemed to have gotten everything out, but my sister wasn’t going to take any chances. When he passed out on the couch, she placed a huge barf bucket right in front of him.
By morning, Kaden was back to his wild little self, just in time for our family pajama portrait session.
Remember, as far as anyone knows, we’re a nice, normal family…
Ah yes, this is a little more like what “normal” looks like…
Sarah had a simple request – one nice shot with her two children – but Kaden wasn’t willing to play along.
Nothing says Thanksgiving quite like a mother shouting, “Be normal! BE NORMAL!!!”
“Normal” just isn’t in Kaden’s playbook… Justin’s either.
No, there’s not a lot of “normal” in my family, but there is a lot of fun, and I’m very thankful for that!
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