August Camping Trip

What a fun weekend we just had!  Some friends invited us to go camping, so at the last minute we packed up and headed out for a long weekend.  We thought we were meeting them at a campground on a lake.  But, the campground was full and our friends set up camp - in the wilderness - on the river.

I'm not gonna lie...I was a bit nervous about not having a bathroom.  But, I put on my big-girl panties and got over it.  And it was so much fun!


Biniam had to work so he stayed home, but the rest of the kids were excited.

The nice drive up the mountain.

We got stopped for some road construction so I got a nice picture of the river.

The kids quickly made themselves at home in our little oasis.

Our home away from home.

Setting up the fly-fishing gear.

The beautiful scenery.

Intently watching the fishing from shore.

My fly-fishing lesson:  learning how to cast.

I started getting the hang of it!

It's a rough life.

Working on his survival skills.

My little book-worm.

Heading out on an exploration.

There were huckleberries galore!

The water moved just enough to not be stagnant, but was slow enough for the kids to safely play.

Sweet Braxton even had a great time!

We apparently intruded on some deer, and they let us know by constantly circling our camp.  That bright spot in the bushes in the center of this photo is "Rosie" the deer.

Noah was content to just sit on this rock and ponder life.

Up a few miles from our camp was a beautiful meadow that the kids got to explore.

Such great family memories, and good times with friends!

Redneck Family Reunion

A few weeks ago we took a road trip to Seattle to get down with our redneck selves.  I mean, to enjoy a family reunion.

Our kids are great road-trippers.  Yes, that's a term.  They get practice starting from the womb.  It's an 8-hour drive (when you don't have a nursing baby) and we usually only make one stop to eat/gas/potty.  We made two stops this time.  I drove almost the whole way.

Me:  Those are such pretty tree groves.
Me:  Wait, don't I usually only see those tree groves when we are driving to Portland?
Me:  Brian!  Wake up!  I think I missed our turnoff.

It was a lovely conversation.  At least it only added about 30 minutes to our trip.  The missed turnoff, that is, not the conversation.  Moving on...

The reunion was held at my parent's / brother's property.  Most people set up tents and roughed it, but I only agreed to go on the condition that I could stay in a house.  There are three houses on the property, so I figured my chances were good.  Thankfully the whole my-car-barely-fits-all-my-kids-let-alone-camping-gear plea worked.  Or maybe it was I-have-a-teeny-tiny-baby-who-poops-in-a-bag-and-couldn't-possibly-be-exposed-to-inclimate-seattle-weather that worked.  Either way, we slept in a house.

I was terrible about taking pictures on this trip.  I was too busy nursing and sitting and playing pickle ball.  And running and leading people in boot camp.  And playing more pickle ball.  I am ready to dig up my entire yard and replace it with a sport court.  I heart pickle ball.

I did get pictures, however, of the ultimate redneck event.  Ultimate Slip 'N' Slide.

This was not your mama's slip n slide.  This was about 200 feet of visqueen rolled down a huge hill.  Two hoses.  And a giant bottle of baby shampoo.

This also doubled as bath time for all the kids.

Another highlight for the kids was the golf cart that one of my uncles brought.  Who would have thought that a golf cart could entertain for hours on end?  It was amazing.  There were usually no less than 9 people on it at a time.  Any time an adult tried to drive off with it, a swarm of kids would come running and jump on.

Emma will forever remember this summer as the summer she learned how to drive.  I remember being her age and being allowed to drive a golf cart on vacation at a resort.  I couldn't believe my parents were actually allowing me to drive it, and it was such a thrill.

This is behind the scenes at the family photo shoot.  Believe it or not, we were actually missing quite a few people.  But we did the best we could and got some family shots.

This is great-grandpa and grandma with maybe 3/4 of their great-grand kids.

It was a great weekend of hanging with extended family.  We can't wait for next year!

Mid-Vacation News

We are greatly enjoying our holiday vacation in Western Washington.  We were lucky enough to get here just before a snow storm came in, and now we are reaping the benefits.  Sledding, hot chocolate, comfort foods...it's the best.  The only bummer is that the cold weather has caused the internet to got out where we are staying, so Brian has had to go into town and work from Starbucks.  To me, that just adds to the fun and charm of everything.

The memorial service for my grandfather last weekend was very nice.  The gun salute, and Taps on the trumpet were my favorite parts.  That, and hearing about the details of my grandfather's amazing life.  Like the fact that he was a pioneer in the aviation industry.  And that he flew gliders into war zones in WW2.  GLIDERS.  Those are a one-way ticket, folks.  Talk about guts.

We are looking forward to spending Thanksgiving with family.  And also looking forward to my best friend's wedding on Friday.  And meeting my cousin's new son on Saturday.

Stay tuned for a big announcement here later this week!

You know it's a good vacation when....

...you completely forget you have a blog.

...you never wear any of the shirts you packed because you were in your swimsuit the entire time.

...you gained five pounds.

...24 hours later you can still feel the gentle roll of the waves and sway of the boat.

...you can't wait to do it again next year.

Chelan recap

I am finally getting back into my usual routine around home.  Actually, I'm not really sure what "usual" is right now.  I guess what I mean is I am caught up on laundry. 

We had such a great, great time in Chelan last week.  I've mentioned briefly that it was a bit different than our usual visits there, as the house was quiet in the week, and we ventured out and did activities we don't normally do.  Our normal visits involve lots of activities behind the boat, swimming in the lake, sitting in the hot tub, and playing silly games around the house and yard.  Plenty of fun, but not much venturing outside of the house.

Since my dad was trying to do some work (from home) during the week, the kids and I planned different activities for each day.  Things like going to the state park and playing at the sandy beach.  Going to a park and riding bikes.  Heading to a local blueberry farm and picking our fill of blueberries.  It was great fun, and usually by the time we got back from our outings, the boys were ready for naps and my dad was ready to relax.  So we had wonderful afternoons of working out and floating on a raft with a drink. 

One huge milestone is that Emma learned to kneeboard.  At only 6 1/2 years old!  My kids have all started tubing behind the boat at a young age (like, infants) but that doesn't exactly require a lot of skill.  It was Emma's idea to try the kneeboard, and to be honest I was shocked she went through with it.  She almost didn't, but at the last second she put on her goggles and gained confidence.  She got up on the first try and had a nice long run.  You won't be able to tell from the pictures below, but she was SCREAMING bloody murder the whole time.  Ha!  Yet a few seconds after finishing she said she would do it again next time we are there. 

Okay, enough of a prelude.  I will include a few captions on the photos below.  Aren't you glad I warned you of that ahead of time?  

Noah talks ENDLESSLY about driving Grandpa's boat.

So good to see that boy smiling.

Sweet Emma.

Fishing time with Uncle. 

I tried to get some photos of things other than just us in the boat. :)  This is the view from my dad's dock.

Emma did the kid's triathlon again this year.  This is just before the start.

This was Isaiah's first year.  This perfectly captures how he was feeling before the race.

Emma completed the race entirely on her own this year.

Isaiah had Grandpa as an escort through the race.  I don't think Grandpa realized how fast a 3-year old can be!

Isaiah spots his fans.

Coming in for the big finish!

Finishers!

Our day at the sandy beach.

Getting ready for a crazy ride!

Again, trying to capture different photos of our trip.  Not a bad backdrop for eating, eh?

Emma getting ready to "hit it" on the kneeboard.  We did a deepwater start where she was already strapped into the board and I was holding her afloat. 

She's off!

Screaming the whole way!

We took the boat way up lake, trying to find a certain waterfall.  We never found the place we were looking for, but did find a great picnic spot.

Throwing rocks at things in the water.

Beautiful scenery.

We ended up making it all the way to the end of the lake (55 miles), where there is a town called Stehekin, accessible only by boat or float plane. 

Proof that I was at Stehekin (in the background).  Also proof that I have wrinkles.

Not the waterfall we were looking for, but very beautiful.

We got right up close to it!

Okay, the end.  We are heading back in a couple weeks as a family, plus our bff's and TWO nannies!  Can't wait!