Lake Arrowhead State Park

I took my oldest out of school and we headed out Thursday evening to Lake Arrowhead. I hoped and prayed and begged that we would receive beautiful weather, as we were forcasted to get scattered showers. Considering what we got hit with, I think we got lucky.

We went to bed Thursday with beautiful weather and woke up sometime in the wee hours to a serious show of thunder and lightning. Normally, this doesn't bother me, but when all there is between me and the elements is a tent, I start having panic attacks. I've learned that sticking my head under the covers lets me ignore it and go back to sleep. Most of the time. At least I stayed dry and warm.

We awoke to mostly dry ground and a forest of mesquite trees. The northern portion of Texas is full of these things. And this:

I believe most people refer to this as ragweed. I grew up calling it broom weed, simply because once it dries you can bundle it up and use it as a broom. It's no surprise that so many people are having horrific allergies. This stuff was supposed to stop blooming over a month ago, but the rain we've received across the state has it still going.

No, it's not a giant grasshopper. That's an oil pump in the middle of the state park. They're everywhere in this part of the state. I distinctly remember one of you being deathly afraid of these. You're welcome. :)

Who needs a cup when you can drink straight from the table? My youngest has a strange thought process. This was after he tried to gnaw the lid off the picante sauce and drink that.

Tall prairie grasses will grow just about anywhere, as will the mesquites.  I'm not sure if this is a runoff area for excess rain or a portion of one of the many fault lines that run through the area.

You all know how deathly afraid I am of spiders. These were the main occupants of the area, and I felt I needed to get pictures to prove that I am facing my fears. I'm not sure of the exact species, but they are known as writing spiders. They're the same as the spider from Charlotte's Web, though it doesn't make me feel much better. At least I could see them before I walked into their webs. This lady had built her web on a sign. Several more made homes around the bathroom.

A walking stick invaded my grandmother's territory Friday night. These things were just as prevalent as the spiders, but less creepy.

This is what we woke up to Saturday morning. Not only did another storm system come through over night, it decided to stay. My tent leaked. I was not happy.

My grandparents, like everyone else, had a swamp in front of their door. At least they could step out on dry ground.



We toughed it out as best we knew how. The black hoodie seemed to be the fashion item of the weekend, as at least half of us wore them.

The sun finally came out and blessed us with a dry evening. The rain definately didn't dampen spirits, as the boys played around before we lost what little sun we got to see.

Sunday we packed it up and headed home. It got unseasonably warm, which wore everyone out. The two hour drive home afforded hubby and I some quiet time, as this is what we saw in the back seat:

Sometimes, I like civilization. :)