Prepare yourself, because the travel content is coming in HOT! I have some super exciting trips coming up that I literally can not wait for. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves here. I went on an absolutely incredible trip with my family this past week and had an absolute blast. It was me, my parents, my brother, my sister, my cousins, aunts, uncles and my Pepe. It is rare that the whole group of us all get together, so I look forward to trips like this one all year. We have been doing this trip for a few years now and stay at a different house in a different place every time, which I think makes it even more exciting. This year, we stayed in an absolutely beautiful house in White Lake, New York.
The house was plenty big enough for the group of us. What I loved about this location was that everything was right in our backyard and we didn’t really need to leave the house much because everything was right there. I think houses like this are really convenient with big groups of people because it can be really tricky to get a house of 15 people out the door.
There was a huge pool in the backyard with a beautiful deck that looked very similar to a hotel pool. There was also a dock that led down to the lake right in the yard. This was my favorite part! My dad brought his boat so we all took turns fishing and riding around the lake. We also spent a lot of time kayaking and fishing off the dock. If you saw my Instagram story (and if you didn’t you should follow me @signedashlyn) you saw that I paddleboarded for the first time and it quickly became a new favorite activity of mine. It was a lot easier than I thought it would be, even though my arms did get tired at times.
The yard was huge, so there was plenty of room for yard games, competitions and gathering around the campfire at night. It felt like a party all day long! I loved playing cornhole with my family and watching them race around the yard in an obstacle course. One of the most fun nights had to be dancing around the yard with my family, doing line dances, dancing to high school musical and following my sister’s dance routine to Boom Boom Pow. Moments like these are ones that I will never forget.
The weather was hot, obviously but honestly so perfect. We spent lots of time in the pool, but I also enjoyed sitting on the deck, reading and writing. There was always something to do and it was absolutely never boring.
Another highlight of the trip was the food. We made Italian one night, Mexican the next, then had all country food which included my brother’s famous mac and cheese and ended the trip with an amazing steak dinner. I’m getting hungry just thinking about it! It’s so great being able to sit around the table with family and just hang out.
As we all get older, everyone’s schedules get more packed, and everyone’s lives are changing. That is why I cherish trips like these so much. I love getting to spend time with family that we don’t see super often and it definitely makes me wish we all lived closer! That being said, the distance between us all just makes it even more special when we all get together. I can’t wait for the next one!
Signed,
Ashlyn
Here are just a few pictures from the trip!
A view of the house from the lake My brother driving the boat 
On the paddle board 
Me and my sister 
Fishing 
Picture of my cousin at the lake 
Me by the lake My sister by the lake 
Backyard pool
p.s.
Since I loved the house we stayed in so much, I wanted to link it for you all in case you ever find yourself in White Lake and want to check it out. Like I said, it is a huge house. It had a master bedroom, three other bedrooms and a basement that had a bed with a ton of pull out couches. There were 15 of us total and we all fit with more than enough room. The yard was huge and had backyard access to the lake. They also had two paddleboards and two kayaks that we could use. The lake was so quiet and very relaxing. The owner of the house was extremely kind and accommodating. She truly cares about her guests and makes sure that they have the best stay possible. I had to contact the owner at the end of our trip, and she got back to me right away and was very easy to talk to. If you find yourself in the area, I would highly recommend this house! I put the Vrbo link below.
https://www.vrbo.com/1822851?adultsCount=2&arrival=2021-07-07&departure=2021-07-11&unitId=2384360