Sunshine on my Shoulders

So...after I titled my last post "Rocky Mountain High" even though we were really in the Sierra Nevadas, my husband set me straight. (Apparently, people who grew up in the mountains are very particular about not getting them mixed up - who knew???) So, I figured I'd play it safe and use one of John Denver's other favorites for the rest of our Tahoe recap. :-) (And by the way, I've been meaning to get to this recap for over a week and a half now, but things have just been so busy, I haven't had a chance!)

The rest of our vacation was wonderful! We had a LOT of beach time...

park time... big time bonding with the grandparents time (this was HUGE for Bodie, by the way - and took us until the end of our vacation to get to this point)...

along with sibling bonding time (LOVE this pic)....

Our trip culminated with a trip out to the ranch where Dusk spent many of his formative years. It was so humbling to get to introduce Bodie to so many aunts, uncles and cousins who've been praying so hard for Bodie. It was fun to see their reactions when this stubborn little toehead came rumbling through, all piss and vinegar - hardly the demure little guy one might expect of child with such a major heart defect. The kids even got to go on a slip 'n' slide for the first time! Sierra had a GREAT time - and even Bodie got in the action (and gave everyone quite a scare with his little blueberry lips the second he got cold (other than mommy, and daddy, of course, who are used to it)!)

The kids had a blast at the ranch. We are rapidly discovering that, while Sierra likes animals, Bodie is a bonafied animal lover...

(he is actually feeding the horse here)

The kids also had a blast just playing around and goofing off with all the other young kids there!
Sweet cousin Abigail, just a few months younger than Bodie...

Sierra and Carabeth - such a WONDERFUL little girl! Sierra had so much fun playing with Carabeth - it was such a blessing for her to find such a great little girl to look up to. :-)

On the way home, we stopped off at the Bodie sign. This is the turnoff to the road that takes you to the town that Bodie was named after. We didn't actually make it to the town itself (maybe next trip!)but we did get a pic of the sign!

Our vacation, in a word, was awesome. It was far better than we could have imagined. We never expected Bodie to do as well as he did. He surprised everyone, even his cardiologist, when we got back and I called to let her know that we had not used the oxygen even once. She had to ask twice to make sure she heard me correctly. Go Bodie! :-)

So, even with the stomach flu, vomiting whiny kids, waaaaaaaaaaaay too many stops along the way and clinginess galore, it turned into the best vacation ever. Thank you so much for all of your prayers! Bodie says thank you...

...oh wait...maybe he's actually saying "whew...that was the best.vacation.ever. Now I need a vacation from my vacation" I can so relate...