Anniversary Adventure Part 2

Saturday we had a fun filled outdoor day! First, we went rappelling. I made Mark stop and pose for a picture. He did not take his time rappelling down. He went down the cliff in 2 big jumps like an army ranger on a special mission.

We rappelled in such a pretty area of the Lower Ocoee River. The river was right at the base of the cliff. Just beautiful and in the shade.

Next we went rock climbing. I was hoping we would climb on natural rock but they had a rock wall instead. It was fun and challenging....

For the sake of embarassing myself  being real : After climbing on of the easier side I thought I would try to climb the more advance side. Let me tell you it was hilarious - I'm totally fine with laughing at myself. Long story short, I could not get past one section of the wall. I fell off over and over again. Our guide was so nice to even let me dangle there for a few seconds a try to get back on where I fell off. I still could not do it. Mark was my cheerleader- he would say silly stuff like.. come on babe you got this, you're the best mom out here. All the cheering didn't help. After about 4 or 5 tries my arms were shaking and  I decided  to move over to the easier side. I loved that he took these pictures of me as I was being silly when I fell off.

And now for my favorite part... whitewater rafting! If you have never been rafting you should go. Add it to you list. In college, I was a camp counselor and we rafted the Ocoee every other Tuesday for the entire summer. Tuesdays were always my favorite days. I love rafting! Mark loves rafting too. He went down the Gauley River which is a more intense river. He has also kayaked a few rivers so this wasn't his first go around. There is just something so neat about driving around town and seeing nothing but old school buses with a bunch rafts tied to the top.

We had the BEST guide! His name is Jerry and he works with OAR. He made the trip so much fun! He has been a guide for 12 years now and doesn't do anything the traditional way. We went down the rapids backwards, doing 360's, riding the front like a bull, surfing, etc... He would jump out of the raft run across a rock and do a flip back into our boat. I'm telling you- he was fantastic!

Do you see the people on the front of our raft? (They are laying on their stomach holding on). That is what Mark and I did for the last two rapids.  Jerry said, "The last two rapid are Class 4 and some of the most dangerous on the river. I would like for Mark and Lindsey to hand me their paddles and lay down on the front." I looked at Mark with excitement and said, "I'm not sure this is the smartest thing we have ever done, we have 2 adorable kids at home but.. it will be fun". I gave him a kiss and held on for dear life.  It was a blast. A little unnerving, but I would do it again!

Mark was the sweetest thing out on the river. Every time I lost balance or wobbled around - he would grab me and pull me back, making sure I didn't fall in. When we would surf the waves or sit down on the bottom of the boat letting the rapid take us for a ride - he put his arm around me to make sure I felt secure and wouldn't fall out. Love him! Love our he takes care of me!

On our way home I was on pins and needles just SO excited to see the boys! When we pulled on to our road I was so excited to see that they were playing outside. I couldn't get out of the car fast enough to give them hugs! We loved getting away for a few days but we were so happy to return! We collected rocks for the boys as we were tubing, climbing, and rafting. When we got home we showed them the rocks and they were excited to have them. It's nice having little ones that think rocks are the coolest gift ever.