And More Idaho...

I always try to stay up to date on blogging when we are on vacation. Yes, it's sometimes a pain, but I know by the time I get home, I'll forget so much stuff. I'm always so thankful that I did it when I look back.

I typically have phone pics and camera pics, and I don't bother with our water camera. When we get home, and I get everything caught up and life is back to normal, I just forget to even look at it. I just remembered and I have a few lovely ones from Idaho. I didn't even take it out in Canada since we didn't go in the water since it was wet and cooler.

This is typically my view for half the day in Idaho. The scenery is gorgeous and so is the man on the dock.

 The kids lounge around.

 Noah got so good at the stand up paddleboard. He's never really tried it. He was all over the place.

 He got so good that the other kids made him pull them around the lake.

 This is Ben driving with David on back, and Em on the other jet ski. I was happy to keep floating in my raft with Suzy.

Then, we were hanging out and Noah may or may have not peed on David right after this picture. 

This ladder ball game is HARD. I thought it would be way easier. But, it's tough. I watched Ben and my Dad play and it took Ben probably 20 tries before he made one. Then, I tried it and I was worse. It's not as easy as it looks.

 Then, my Dad went for a kayak ride and Noah wanted to join him on the paddle board. I thought this won't last long. I figured my Dad would rig up some towing device and pull Noah home.

But, nope. They came paddling home about 45 minutes later. They went over a mile. Noah is a tough cookie.

Ok, that's all for Idaho 2019. Until next year...

Idaho, Day 3 and 4

Every morning, Suzy makes us breakfasts like this...bacon, pancakes, whipped cream, strawberries, real maple syrup. Oh vay, we've gained 10 pounds.

This is a recap of a few days. I didn't blog last night. We were just too tired. The kids and all of us are sleeping like logs. We've spent a lot of time rafting. The kids love rafting. Noah only likes to do it if we don't go over big waves. We hit a really good one the other day and he almost flipped out. Poor guy. So, my Dad goes a little easier when he's on the raft.

 We headed to the little beach down the way yesterday.

 It's a cool little beach and a different point of view.

 Grandma Suzy and Noah built a sand castle.

 They always swim out to these logs and sit on them.

 Me and my pops!

 My handsome hubby...

 Noah has become obsessed with badminton. I always thought it was badmitton, but the computer is telling me it's mint. And David too. So, I guess, I should trust them that they are right, and I was wrong for the past 45 years.  Noah wasn't that great yesterday, and today, he woke up and is like 10 times better.

 We did lots of jet ski rides. This is Ben and Emily going out on there own. David and I were cracking up because Ben is so cautious. He looked like he was barely going. When he came in, I asked him how fast and he said he got up to 19 mph. I had to laugh. That's like barely moving, but I'm glad he's careful, especially since he's just learning, and not driving like a bat out of hell. 

 Here's David jumping into the water.

 Noah found Papa's net and went hunting tadpoles. He puts them in a bucket of water for a bit and then throws them back in the river. He's cute and puts some seaweed in there with them, so they feel at home.  He never wanted to fish again after that first fish died. He felt so bad. Noah has a big heart.

 We did an 16 mile round trip boat ride and the kids rafter the entire way. Well, when we turned around, Noah wanted on the boat.

 David took over the wheel for a bit, so my Dad could have a break.

 I love the boys hair after awhile on the raft. It looks like they spent an hour fixing it, and it's standing straight up.

 Me and my little man.

 There was more badminton tonight.

 There was about 45 minutes left of sunlight and Emily and Noah went out on the paddle boards.

 Noah came back after a bit, but Em was still out there soaking up every last ounce of sunshine.

 We had a fire and smores and enjoyed our last sunset here.

 Em did the final sparkler.

And it's an end to another great vacation. We are so grateful for these perfect summer vacations that we get to take every year. We thank Uncle Terry, Aunt Paula, my Dad and Grandma Suzy for their hospitality and always welcoming us with open arms. I've realized that this is the trip our kids look forward to the most. They make the best memories with people will love and really, that's all life is about. Flying home tomorrow with full hearts and about 5 extra pounds around our mid-section.

Idaho, Day 2

We woke up to a cooler, rainy morning. I tell ya, the rain is following us. It's a nice change though fro home where it's hot.

We made the most of it and played some badminton. We also took out the jet skis over and over.

By the afternoon, it had cleared and we got on the raft. Well, the kids go on. I learned that older people should never, ever get pulled on a raft. You'll be sorry. Noah was brave and got on. After a few minutes, they hit a few good bumps and he wanted off. He didn't get thrown in though.

Then, these two went back for more.

They love to fly out. It seems like it would hurt, and I'm sure it does. But, they get right back on the raft and go again.

There was some log walking.

We put in the king of the raft. Unfortunately, it went under the dock and got a little hole in it. We taped it up. Who knows if it will hold. But, the king of the raft may be gone.

We had a delicious dinner of grilled sausage, chicken, roasted veggies, breadsticks, salad. My oh my, we'll need to diet when we get home. Then, we had a fire. I know it looks like it's noon, but it was already after 8.

We had smores. David and Suzy are the official marshmallow roasters. They make them perfect.

My Dad got a bunch of sparklers and little fireworks, so that was fun.

The kids play games on the trampoline. The building on the left is the new garage. It's so nice. It looks like a hardware store in there.

The sunset was gorgeous.

The next two days should be zero rain and nothing but fun.

Travel Day and Idaho, Day 1

We normally take a few days to drive between Vancouver and Idaho and do something fun in between. But, this year, we didn't want to take too much time off, so we flew from point A to B. It was the first time we've ever done that.

We had to leave early to get on the ferry. The problem is, if you miss it, you are screwed!  HA! The next ferry was over 2 hours later, so if we didn't get on the 8:40 ferry, we would miss our flight. Luckily, we got on. We were worried with it being a Monday morning. But, David and Uncle Terry took the car down early and left at parked at the ferry terminal in line. They only live 5 minutes from the ferry, so they came home for an hour. Then, we all went back. It worked out perfectly.

 We took a few pictures. I told everyone to sit up straight. This is as good as it gets.

We had a layover in Seattle and then on to Spokane. My Dad and Suzy picked us up at the airport and drove us home. We were greeted with a gorgeous sunset right when we got here. Or course, this is at like 9:00 at night. It gets dark so late.

The kids ran right to the front to check out the water.

We woke up to a gorgeous sunny day today. Ben and David played some ladder ball.

Noah wanted to fish so bad. Papa got him all set up and showed him how it's done.

Noah loves to fish. Last time, he caught several and we threw them all back in.

And wouldn't you know it, he had a bite in a few seconds. But, then the line got tangled and snapped. My Dad wound it around the tackle box, so we could reel him in.

Here he was swimming around. The rule is to throw it back if it's under a foot, bu this one was a little over.

We got him in the bucket and my Dad was trying to get the hook out, but it was way down his throat. He tried and tried, but as soon as he took it out, the fish started bleeding out. We put him in a bucket of water. David kept joking that he was going to fry him up. But, if we killed the poor thing, then he better fry him up. We don't just kill for sport.

Poor Noah was sad that the fish died. He has such a sweet heart.

So, we gutted the fish and put him in the freezer. Suzy is thrilled. David said he'd grill him up another day.

Nice. Fish head. They threw it back in the lake.

Noah didn't want to fish so much after that. So, he went out on the kayak.

Grandma Suzy and him went for a little ride.

We took out the jet skis. Emily can ride alone this year since she is 14. But, we all took a spin on them. Ben took it out for a little bit by himself too.

Emily and Noah took out the kayaks.

Then, Noah discovered the stand up paddle board and he was hooked!  His abs will be sore tomorrow. He rode this thing for hours.

We played all sorts of games.

And jumped on the trampoline with the sprinklers on.

And played some volleyball. We couldn't find any birdies, so we just used a volleyball.

And we played some game with these little flying discs and one got stuck in the tree. So, they did another shoulder stand. They are getting really good at this.

We ended the night with a few sparklers.

We spent the whole day in the water relaxing and playing and having a blast. The kids just came inside at 8:30.  Suzy made us a yummy steak, potato, corn and salad dinner. The kids were so hungry as they were in motion the entire day. It was a wonderful day.