Wedding Weekend in Charlotte

We took a very short family trip to Charlotte to go to the wedding of Daniel and Rachel. Most of my family were there and it was wonderful to see everyone and reconnect. There were two camps, the Sims who stayed with Jake and Patricia’s, and the Barkers who stayed at the Hyatt in downtown Charlotte. Friday evening everyone descended on Jake’s house for a cookout and backyard fun for the kids.  There was a large open-pit barbecue over which the kids toasted marshmallows for s’mores! 

We played various sports and had to chase some homeruns over the fence into other people’s yards!  There were some strong hitters.  Mona and Tet were there and seemed to have a good time.

Back at the hotel there were some pool activities and much eating and drinking! The wedding was in a lovely setting in Charlotte and it all went off without a hitch (no pun intended!). Here are two videos from the weekend.

Snow and Sledding in Central Park

We had an excellent time playing in the snow and sledding last Saturday. Here's the evidence to prove it.

Hawk Watching in Central Park

It was a lovely late autumn day the Saturday after Thanksgiving and we were out in the Rambles of Central Park just hiking around when we saw Pale Male, the New York City Red Tail Hawk sitting in a high branch checking things out.  We rented a row boat and went out on the lake and got another good view of the hawk.

It is amazing that all this hiking and woodsy adventure is right in the middle of New York City. 

Swing

Max scared the life out of us showing off his new trick at the playground.  The bars are about 5 feet apart but he was so sure of himself we had to let him do it.

Max's 7th Birthday Party

Max had his 7^th birthday party on Columbus Day last week. It had an Angry Birds Theme and the main event was the water balloon slingshot-launcher that would send water balloons 40-50 yards through the air, perfect for 7-9 year old boys.  Miranda made a fantastic Angry Birds cake and the weather was fantastic, 80 and sunny. We had to “break into” the field as the Park Conservancy had not officially opened the field. Charles was worried we might get kicked out but there was no problem.

After various games we got to the slingshot. The target was a large piece of cardboard on which Riley had drawn the King Pig and various other Pigs from the Angry Birds Game and Max, Riley, Miranda and any passing friend took turns coloring in. It wasn’t easy to hit as it was so far away but Max hit it twice and was the winner of the day. It’s wonderful to see his self-confidence grow. The party went overtime by over an hour so the boys must have been having a good time. It’s going to be hard to top that next year.

Bear Mountain Climb and Apple Picking

Apple picking has become somewhat of a tradition with us each autumn. Usually we go at the end of the season but this year we went early. We combined the fruit hunt with a planned hike. We got to Bear Mountain about 10am but the road to the top was closed. So we parked at the base by the lodge and set out to walk to the summit. Vertical elevation is only about a 1,100 ft. but the route is tortuous and rather long. After we got off the path from the base it became very steep and rocky. The trail was well marked but often there was no obvious path to follow; only a collection of moss and lichen covered granite, marble and schist to walk over or climb up. 

Riley and Max were always in the lead and yelling back encouraging comments to us old folk. Max especially was a very good trail blazer and mountain goat. There had been quite a bit of rain recently so the creeks were running fast. We got to the top about noon and sat down enjoying the sun and a picnic. Riley spotted a large hawk perched close to where we were sitting and tried to get a better view. The raptor flew away before he could get a photo.

For the way down Charles tried in vain to find the Appalachian Trail (he was WAY off) so we followed the same trail back down. It wasn’t any easier! Our next stop was Outhouse Orchards, about 45 minutes away. It was still too early in the season for the leaves to be turning so there wasn’t much color in view. The orchard sells fresh hot donuts and cider. This afternoon there was a line waiting for them to cook! We waited for about 20 minutes for a dozen cinnamon donuts then stuffed ourselves. We walked up into the orchards and admired the fruit trees laden with a very good crop.

Miranda made a fabulous apple pie when we got home.

That and the bottle of Aleve were very welcome.