A Birthday Stew!

Last weekend, we traveled up to North Carolina for a wonderful weekend with family.  As native North Carolinians, there are few things as wonderful as being in North Carolina.  Sure, living at the SC coast is great...and one of God's most beautiful creations...it is hard to beat the beach, the marsh, the creeks and the image of a sunset over Shem Creek....all very beautiful things.  Perhaps it is just the feeling you get when you know you are "home" that makes you all warm and fuzzy inside!  In the late summer, we were fortunate enough to purchase a lake house with Chad's family.  The lake house happens to be in my home town.  The lake house certainly isn't "home"....we have only been there twice....but the fact that it happens to be in my home town sure does help!  

I did not grow up on the lake but grew up about 2 miles from the lake.  My grandparents lived on the lake until I was about 12 years old and many (probably most) of my friends lived on the lake growing up.  I spent many days playing at my friend Kelli's house just a few coves over from our current lake house.  I feel right at home in our new spot....and I love how it looked and felt for  our  first fall trip.  The changing leaves were beautiful and the air was brisk for the fall.  We missed my church BBQ by just one week....but, the Saturday we spent in NC seemed just like a BBQ....minus the fabulous food!  We were in store for a different fabulous feast - a chicken stew.  This was my first Chicken Stew with Chad's family and it was a great success.  Tasty and lots of family fun!

My Tarheel boys, dressed early for the late UNC vs Duke football game.  Football and fishing, seems like fun to me!

Lots of family enjoying the dock

Chef George....and the Birthday boy!

Boys will be boys!  Allen and Carson having a little fun with the new jet ski.  The water was so calm and the leaves were so beautiful as we rode around on the lake...the water was a little chilly but if you were lucky, only your feet got wet...we only had one unlucky person.

Uncle Allen helping Payton with his fish

My Mom and Dad came to join in on the food and fun

My fabulous father :)

 Ready to eat!

Owen is especially happy because he talked an unsuspecting adult into giving him a "diet"....and he loved it!

He loved the chicken stew too!  Thanks to Aunt Chandra for helping him eat.....and eat and eat!

We had a great day with our families.  It was nice to have so much of the Webb family, my family, Allen's parents, and a few friends of George and Cathy's gather at the lake.  The Chicken Stew was a lot of fun and I'm happy to say that I have finally been to a "chicken stew."  We had chicken stew and oyster stew.  I loved both and ate a little of both but if I had to pick, I guess the chicken was my favorite.  Of course, the desert selection was pretty tasty too!  It was a great way to celebrate George's birthday.  Maybe this can become a new tradition!  We definitely look forward to spending many weekends at the lake....and, when the day ends like this, it is easy to plan to come back soon!

What a wonderful sunset to end the day!