Another ‘Woods Summer Visit, Part One

The ‘Woods came down for a two-week visit at the end of last month. They certainly packed a lot into those 14 days; it was so great to do so much with them. Riley absolutely loves spending time with his older cousins.

After our fun Father’s Day celebration, Debbie ended up sleeping here on Sunday night. She and her kids visited the WWII Museum with Grandma and Grandpa on Monday and came back here late that afternoon. Almost as soon as Nicholas and James walked through the door, they went right upstairs with Riley and got into the Legos. I could feel Riley’s joy radiating from him. He was in heaven.

We didn’t see the ‘Woods on Tuesday since they stayed across the lake, but they picked Riley up on Wednesday morning. He went with them on an overnight stay at Steve and Jaimi’s house in Prairieville. But they went on a little detour first: to Zam’s Swamp Tours in Thibodaux.

There was so much for them to do at Zam’s. There were lots of animals for the kids to see, feel, and even hold, although Riley was more interested in hunting for sticks. The older boys held a snake, baby gators, and a rabbit.

 

 

Then they went for a boat ride in the swamp. They saw bald cypress trees, Spanish moss, birds, and of course alligators. They tried to feed marshmallows to the gators, but they apparently weren’t too hungry that day. What a great experience for these boys.

Everyone had a great time at Zam’s but I think they were all glad to get back in the a/c. They stopped to get lunch and then drove to Steve and Jaimi’s house for the night, where the Lego building commenced. Riley also found Zac’s Darth Vader mask and lightsaber. Too funny.

 

They played Legos again the next morning and then headed to LSU so Debbie could reminisce about her time there. The boys were good sports about walking around campus. They were rewarded with a great lunch at the original Chimes afterward, where my boy apparently ate lots of blackened alligator.

Debbie dropped Riley off at our house late on Thursday afternoon. We would see them again the next day up at the farm for a very special activity: horseback riding.

That adventure is coming up next!