The Great Outdoors: Perfect Place for Family Fun

When you live in the south you have your choice of outdoor activities year around. Being born and raised in Michigan, we also had the option but it was very cold for skiing, snowmobiling and ice fishing. I much prefer the warmer activities.

I think my favorite outdoor activity would have to be swimming. I absolutely love the water. I like the way it looks and feels and even the way it smells. Maybe I was a fish in my previous life.

Almost every day you will find me in the pool. I am seldom alone due to the fact that I have raised four little fishies just like me. All of my children learned to swim by the time they were three years old and they haven't stopped since.

Sometimes we make a day of going to the lake to swim. We pack everything we could possibly need and leave early in the morning and don't come home until late at night.

Usually when we first get there we have a light snack. Then we take a little nature hike to see what kind of flowers are blooming and try to see some wildlife. My favorite in Texas is the javelina. They are kind of like a pig except that their tusks are short and straight instead of curved. They kind of look like they have a mohawk hairdo. My kids think they are cute, but how cute can a pig-like animal be?

After our hike we change into our swimsuits and spend most of the daylight hours swimming, sunbathing and playing watersports. A favorite of my family is inner-tubing behind the boat. We have a large tube that almost everyone can fit on. My husband and I take turns, while one of us is driving the boat the other rides the tube with the kids to be sure they are safe.

We see alot of other families enjoying the lake in other ways. We tried water skiing but that takes some coordintation. My husband bought a boogie board for him and our oldest son, it's kind of like water skiing but you don't have to try to stand up.

When the sun starts to go down we head for the beach showers and get changed into our fishing clothes. But before we go fishing we always have a cookout. Usually just burgers or hotdogs so it doesn't take too long.

After we have made sure to clean up all of our trash to keep the park beautiful we pull out the fishing gear. Poles, bait, bucket, chairs and we take along some snacks and drinks for later.

I am not quite sure why we bring the bucket because there is never any fish in it. We usually just catch them, brag about whose is bigger and then throw them back in the water. That way they can reproduce and keep the lake populated.

We always have a great time at the lake, but you can have so much fun outside without even leaving your yard. You can play croquet, badminton, volleyball or just have a water balloon fight to cool off. There's horse shoes, lawn darts, baseball, basketball, football and soccer. With so many choices for outdoors activity, I don't know why anyone would just want to sit inside in the air conditioning all day.