Sister Weekend 2014

I am so fortunate to have lots of sisters in my family. For those that don't know or may have forgotten, I am the oldest of eight kids. From that eight, there are five girls and three boys. Thankfully, one of my brothers has married and brought us another sister! When we get together for sister weekend, there are six of us. I have to say, it is loads of fun!

Last year was our first annual Sister Weekend and I hosted at my house. We went to the beach, swam in the pool, and shared the space with my husband, four kids and a dog. It was a little crowded.

For Christmas, Shane got me a reservation for the largest cabin at Bastrop State Park near Austin, for us to use for our weekend. We will definitely have to do this again! Bastrop State Park is in the Lost Pines region and the park used to be covered in towering pine trees and forests. With the ongoing drought that Texas has suffered, the forests and most of the park burned 3 summers ago. I was a little concerned as we were getting ready to go. I knew that it has been in a recovery phase. I'm sure that the park doesn't live up to it's former glory, but it is still a beautiful space and the burned trees added it's own kind of beauty. New trees have been planted all over the park and look like little bits of hope and promise.

This was the view from one of the many lookouts throughout the park. I got there early and of course had to explore so that I could be Tour Guide Barbie when the rest arrived. 

Our cabin was located on this beautiful lake. No swimming, only fishing. Other campers took advantage the whole time that we were there. It was beautiful. 

Time for selfies! The others arrived and it was time to get the party started. This is my sister, Mia. She is  the next sibling in the line of eight, and just so happens to be my best friend. 

We toodled around the the lake for awhile. The skies were so blue.

Our cabin was equipped with a full kitchen, so we brought our own food and lived it up at the cabin for the night. 

This was the porch to our cabin. We spent quite a lot of time out here sitting and visiting. The porch was screened and kept out the bugs. 

The next morning we got up bright and early and decided that we should go for a hike. At the top of this trail head, Judith (the youngest) asked if we should look at the map. We all said, "Nah...how bad could it be? Surely, it's going to loop around!"

And we were off! 

Esther and Naomi kept trying to push over dead trees. They looked brittle, and signs posted everywhere warned to watch for falling trees. Those trees were stronger than they looked! The girls never could knock one over!  

Judith was rocking a huge hat. She was the only one smart enough to watch her complexion. At this point, we were all still strolling. 

Lots of beautiful flowers. 

Here was where we started to realize that this trek may be a little longer than anticipated. Maybe we should have looked at that map... 

Still beautiful things to see. 

Bekah 

Esther, Bekah, and me. (They are the twins.)

Three hours later. At one point, we came across the part of the trail that the wardens had told us to stay off of when we checked in. What do they know?! We took it anyway. We probably should have listened. Bekah finally saved us. She pulled out that smart phone and looked up a map. We would probably still be out there if it weren't for her. None of us had put on any sun screen. We didn't bring any water. We were dumb. But we had fun! 

From L to R: Mia, Bekah, Naomi (Dan's wife), Esther, Judith

On our way back to the car (we were so far out that we actually had to walk on a park road for a while) the girls challenged each other to sprint the hill to the end. Of course we all did it (except for Judith and Naomi.) I have never been so glad to get back to the car!

After that hike, it was time for some lunch! We hit up a burger spot across from the park and listed as one of Texas Monthly's top 50 burgers in the state. If you are in the area, check out Roadhouse. It was good! 

I had the bleu cheese burger on an onion bun. I am a sucker for bleu cheese. Get's me every time! 

Bastrop has a fantastic downtown. After lunch we headed off to explore. There is a river walk through town complete with art galleries, tiny restaurants and delis, great shopping, and most importantly, a winery! A girls trip is not complete without a winery! I highly recommend the Colorado River Winery. I have become a fan of Texas wineries and have tried quite a few. I would say that this was one of my favorites. 

I did a terrible job with this group selfie. After this one, I got fired. :)

After all of that, it was time to head back and make some s'mores. Thank goodness that someone was there that can build a fire. Fires and pie crusts. My Achilles heel.  

While we were out here living life, a little girl across the lake fishing with her family hooked herself with her fish hook. You can only imagine the screaming. Sound carries over the water. There were some tense moments there for a little while. I was thanking my stars that my kids weren't there.  

Naomi was communing with nature and caught a frog! 

The next morning we had coffee together before we all went our separate ways back home. These girls are so special to me. Plans are already underway for next year! I think that we need t-shirts.