Down on the Farm...

Spring break was pretty awesome for our barnyard bunch since we not only visited Mimi and Doc, but we also had the chance to enjoy a little country living for a couple of days at a close family friends' farmhouse.

First off, I knew Kason was going to be in heaven, but had no clue how much Zoe would also catch the "hay" fever :).

To be honest, Daniel and I felt like we walked into a dream...

Everything about this house, land, experience was absolutely perfect...we all had an amazing time. Of course the weather was a little wet here and there, but we didn't let it slow us down one bit. We just threw on play clothes and rubber boots, then set out for a farm style adventure...

Max spent most of his time crawling all over the place, or enjoying a personal favorite...

rocking on the front porch! Mimi was super sweet to stay back and hang with Max while the rest of us enjoyed some farm fun.

The kids were absolutely mesmerized by their massive tractors...

 they loved sitting in them and pretending to drive :). Especially little lady, I could hardly get her out!

I believe one of the highlights for the kids was their Kubota...

and ATV's. We could hardly keep the kids off of them!

Kason rode a couple of times with Daniel and I, but eventually braved driving himself. Once he got the hang of it, he did great! Every time we turned around, Zoe was either sitting on an ATV yelling "let's go!" at us...

or buckling herself into the Kubota begging someone to take her for a spin :)...

She was quite humorous and a little spunky when she would get a very determined face like it was serious business...

and would yell at us to "go faster"! We did make a detour one afternoon at their fishing pond...

 Daniel and Kason have fished several times together, but it was mine and Zoe's first time to join. Daniel, Kason, and I all caught our own catfish...

 while little lady just "thought" she was fishing :)...of course hers had no hook, but that didn't stop her in the least bit. I will say I think the kids had more fun playing in the water...

while Daniel and I did more fishing. If we weren't exploring the land or fishing, then we were soaking up the gorgeous view from the front porch...

 playing around outside, chatting...

swinging...

brushing up on our casting and reeling skills... 

 basically, just enjoying the great outdoors.

 One of my favorites about the farm was how we spent the majority of time outside, together, making memories, getting dirty...

 because sometimes in life we can't resist the rain puddles! One of Kason's favorite memories were the animals. He was tickled that Ariel and Tinkerbell (horses pictured below) would come up to the fence and let him pet them...

 and even feed them!

 There was also a special cow named Tongue that would come up begging that Kason just fell in love with :).

 At one point a lot of the cows came closer to the farm house and were even licking our cars...

 Kason thought it was hilarious and still talks about it.

I'm just so proud of him because this shy guy isn't holding back as much and is really learning to try new experiences. As for Max, well he didn't know what to think when that cow leaned forward and licked him!

 Once he returned to the safety of his front porch, he was back to his smiling self...

 A huge thank you to Rodney and Brenda Ballard for sharing their piece of paradise with the crazy Clayton crew! All the kids can talk about is going back because they just fell in love with life down on the farm.

Another big thank you to Mimi and Doc for inviting us, cooking for us, and helping take care of Max so the rest of us could play. I know this may sound strange to most since the farm isn't a glamorous type vacation, but this may have been one of our family's favorite trips ever. Daniel and I have always found living in the country peaceful, looking out into the open sky without a building or concrete in sight, relaxing on the front porch rocking and visiting at night while the kids were in bed...absolute bliss for us. Plus, your momma heart melts watching your kids' eyes light up with joy as they play in the great outdoors and then share stories reminiscing about their favorite highlights from the trip. At one point Kason even told Mimi, "I sure don't think any of my friends from school got to go on such cool vacations on their spring break"...day made my friends, day made.