Right after her birthday last year, Tootie started talking about her next one, which is not unusual. What was unusual was her request:
“Next year, can we spend the night in a cabin?” she asked.
And thus, last weekend, we found ourselves up in the Ozarks near the Buffalo National River.
Our weekend at Mountain Springs Cabins was incredible — fun yet relaxing, busy yet laid back.
OK, this one is actually from the Mountain Springs website. But it best shows what the cabin looks like.
Living room.
Children sharing a bag of popcorn in comfy living room chair.
LOVED this kitchen. The view from the kitchen-sink window was amazing!
As you can imagine, the kids loved these stairs.
Master bedroom downstairs.
Heaven. I spent one evening here with wine and cheese.
Children's sleeping quarters in the loft.
Sitting area in the loft. Yes, the children are merely tolerating this picture-taking.
Rocker in the loft. There also was a little bistro-style table up there.
I swear, they must have spent hours just going up and down the stairs due to the novelty.
Hanging out on the porch.
We had a firepit for marshmallow-roasting.
Tooties likes hers charred. The E-man prefers lightly toasted.
During our weekend getaway, we hiked the Lost Vally trail and hung out at the river. We also went to the Elk Center, which the kids really loved.
Swinging on a grapevine on the Lost Valley trail.
Hubs and I tried it. We did not do so well. Apparently there comes a time when your hands cannot support your body weight. Ahem.
Eden Falls.
I remain stunned that no one fell in. (Eden Falls)
Hanging out at the river, where we met a furry friend. His name is Ben.
Again, I cannot believe that no one toppled in. The kids did leave with wet shoes, however.
Then back to the cabin, where we just sat and took in the view.
Taken from the wrap-around porch.
At Eagle's Rest, it is customary to decorate a rock and leave it inside or outside the cabin. The children really loved collecting and decorating their rocks.
And this, my friends, was my view each night as I reclined on the couch:
I named him Harold.
Like a renegade... 
The pictures say it all – I want to go there!
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Wow, this looks wonderful! Amanda is looking more and more like Claire!
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Great photos, thanks for sharing!
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What a great family trip! I can’t wait for our kids to get older so we can do things like this.
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