FFR ~Fortner Family Reunion

We just got back from a terriffic week in Gatlinburg Tenn. When I say we, I mean the kids and me. Randy had to work, so I went it alone. I can't complain though because I had 34 other family members around to help out.
I'll be honest, I was a little nervous about how this endeavor would go. You know exactly what I mean....38 family members sharing cabins (which means bathrooms and in some cases beds) and supper for 7 days. There is bound to be some bloodshed. But, I must say, I think it went extremely well. Kudos to my cousin, Donnel, who planned it all.
My favorite day was white water rafting day. This is something I never thought I would ever do, but now am so glad I did and can't wait to go again! Seth won a free pass to raft through our resort (Mountain Loft Resort). I thought to myself, oh crap, now what. I could tell he was really excited about winning the pass and wanted to go. So that night at supper, I put it out there asking who would want to go, still thinking in the back of my mind that other family members would take Seth and I would stay behind. Well it turned out we had a group of 23 rafters. Once I saw that that group included my 68 year old aunt and uncle, I decided to go for it too. We all had a blast and have pics to prove it!
This trip turned out to be so good for our family. We bonded in ways I never expected. I am missing them all already and can't wait until next year!
For those of you who participated, with me, in late night bear hunting at the dumpsters... there is always next time! LOL!

The Swimming Pool

It's hard to believe that anyone could ever get tired of the swimming pool, but each summer, we go so much that my kids are ready for a break. When we can't go, we want to and when we can, we don't. Today we went and everyone was relatively happy. Jonah even ventured into the "big pool." He seemed really proud of himself and it was fun to watch trying something new.
We have a membership at Brookside Pool. I especially like it there because it is owned by a Christian family and they often play the Christian radio station over the speaker system. Jonah likes it because they have a dairy bar and he always asks for cho-lock-et ice cream in a bowl. Whenever he asks for anything edoble, it is a big deal!
Mallory went off the low dive many times today! Go Mal! Seth stayed, even after we left, to swim with friends. He is growing up!
Overall, I love the swimming pool!