The weather.
It was only supposed to rain for a few minutes right at ten, when we arrived. (Hence, the reason that we went ahead with Plan A.) The rest of the day looked clear and the forecast promised for slightly warmer temps. It was raining and foggy when we arrived and it only rained the entire day. It never got above 61 degrees. As we had several days of 85+ degrees, nobody thought we'd need to try to stay WARM.
The park.
It is in the middle of nowhere, but it boasts a lake and pavilions. We were going to swim. As we drove into the park, the lake was nonexistent. As in, empty. Muddy. No water to swim in. AT ALL.
The gear.
My girls all wore flip-flops or crocs. Blossom3's faithful foot attire broke on the way. (We weren't even there yet! This has happened on more than one trip to the same child. I'm thinking of banning flip-flops away from home. They must be evil.) All were dressed in shorts and tees. Thankfully, those little fleece blankets I keep under the seats of the truck came in handy; they became fleece capes to keep girlies warm!
It was so nice to meet up with my sister. She was in from Houston, TX for a few days. My sister in law, Mom and I enjoyed the ride to the park immensely. Blossom4 didn't make a peep the entire ride. We're pretty sure she was simply fascinated with her little boy cousin who was just barely (and safely) out of her reach.
The girls had a little trouble with the no swimming thing. But thank God for Visitor Centers. Oh man. It was so great to have a comfy place to chill together.
And the little cousins could get on the ground and move around, without getting muddy and cold.
The thing was, all those mishaps paled in comparison with the good time we had, just being together. The girlies loved seeing their cousins and exploring new territory. (The rain only slowed them down a little.) I so enjoyed fellowship with my Mom, my sister in law and my sister.
So, yes, I didn't see the warning that the lake was empty (filed under the Advisories tab on the state park website), even though I did check the web site. BUT, the biggest treasure of the day was the chatting, smiling and laughing together. Rain and disappointment can't wash that away.
