We had a wonderful time at THE LAKE this past week. It was wonderful to put all worries from home to the side and just have fun. A big thank you to Dad & Mom and Matt & Kristi for sharing their boats with us. The houseboat was the nicest I have ever stood on. Even Shawn who doesn't love the lake, was comfortable.Matt and Kristi prepared all the t-shirt badges and the chart to track them!!
Thank you Becky for shopping for all the food, and Randi for getting all the t-shirts! Also to Dad, Matt and Todd who kept the boats going all day long...
G-dog was amazing. I am happy to report that the joint task force--yes that is everyone who was there---assigned to keep Gavin safe succeeded in their mission. And although available, the doctors on call were not needed in their medical capacity. That kid loved every part of the reunion.
He slid down the house boat slide as much as we'd let him... (Giving Granddad high-fives on the way down!)
He climbed with Dad and searched for Lizards.....
He fished with his dad....
And with his uncles and cousins
He Geo-cashed with a GPS (thank you Uncle Kevin), and his cousins.
He sang songs and roasted marshmallows around the campfire. (thank you Matt, Kristi, Becky for the great campfire books and remembering flashlights!)
He rode tubes with the help and patience of cousins (and uncles and grandparents)....before he had been dumped...
And after...(thank you Uncle Matt for helping him get back on the inflatable horse!)
He adored his all of his boy cousins.....(Andrew and Luke seemed to always have a shadow named Gavin). What incredibly nice cousins we have!Tiffany took her cues from the older boys and leapt between tubes....
Jocelyn laughed with cousins until her sides hurt.... and she could no longer hold on.
Marissa was part of the "dream team" (Dream Team: Brandon, Nick, Marissa and Nathan) who took whatever Granddad or Uncle Matt or Uncle Todd could dish out. And then went on to help others "live the dream" of riding the tubes. (Shockingly I do not have pictures of the spectacular wipe outs of the "Dream Team" riders!! Maybe I was awestruck...or maybe I couldn't get my camera to focus with all the bumps and turns.)
I really enjoyed our campfire "What I Believe" moments. Thank you to all the adults who prepared some thoughts to share with the family. I know all benefited from what was shared.
A friend asked me when we got back if we'd had a relaxing time at the lake..."Well..." I answered "...my family doesn't really go to Powell to relax.. We go to play."
The badges of honor we not only ironed onto our reunion shirts but also scraped into our knees, pounded into our skeletal frames and plastered onto our smiling faces!
Long live Lake Powell!!
