This post is definitely picture overload.........you have been warned :)
Everyone except Kate and Christine had a stick they were working on and some of the cousins have been carving theirs for several years! It's a perfect cabin pastime.
This was found down by the dock.....no I didn't touch or hold it!
Gavin prepping for his maiden run of the season:
Now it's Jonah's turn. He was a little hesitant and looking at the next photos, rightfully so. One of my favorite shots is where you can see his face under the water being dragged by the rope. We reminded him that when he falls to let go!!
Liam practicing moving in and out of the wake:
Caleb had tried to get up the night before on some new skis that were proving to be a problem for everyone even Uncle James, who usually gets up off the dock and lands back on the dock never getting a hair of his head wet. Caleb was happy to be back in the good ole trusty skis.
After many more runs of skiing (I don't have pictures of Jared and photos of me are too horrific to post...I have unbelievably terrible form) it was time for water sports! Gavin and Jonah were the first to go out and at one point, they told me later, they were whipping around so fast they really thought they'd flip out, so Gavin told Jonah they should say a prayer and they did! So a verbal prayer was offered and in the middle of the whipping no less. I laughed so hard when they told me what they did!
Gavin starting to get into the motion of "Slow Down"
In the evenings we had a lot of hanging around on the couch and what I always find interesting about this particular family is they are not huggers...oh no, you usually get the double pat on the back from both parents and some of the kids (not all), but they all can cozy up on the couch or in cars or other small spaces together and really enjoy being so squished.
The next day brought another attempt for Jonah to get up on the skis and with the help of Spencer he got up right from the dock! He was very proud of himself!
Christine made it up from SLC and we got to spend just one night with her....not enough time at all! The boys love her and Rach as well!
Time for more water toys:
This next series of photos is my all time favorite! Check out the facial expressions on Jonah and Rachel and Liam's legs...seriously, the fact that they all stayed on is a miracle! Someone must of been praying and I'm guessing it was Gavin Tom ;)
The big kids were ready to go!! But because we were losing air in the pull toy, we couldn't throw them out, despite Karen's best attempts.
It was time to head back to G&G Hill's cabin and what better way to start things off then being thrown into the cold water against your will, or your pretended will. I think Jonah actually liked this!
Pulling a "dead weight" always works!
Looks like he must have skipped that rock clear across the reservoir with all those muscles firing!
Grandpa always has poles for the boys to use and even though they never caught anything, they still love to throw that line out into the water.
Gavin is a fish monger. He has a gift to catch them with fishing poles and rods, spears fashioned out of sticks, even his hands! I want to remember this memory, even though it has nothing to do with this particular time in IP. But there was a hornet in the house that landed on a dresser (an unfinished antique) and suddenly I hear him scream that he's got it. When I go into the room, he's got a knife that he stabbed the flying beast with and it's buzzing in anger and hysteria at it's eminent death. Then just like the fish he once speared up Sugar Hollow, he starts rapidly explaining what happened and chuckling to himself that he actually got it with a knife! He's always so surprised with himself, but he's got these rapid-fire reflexes that lend themselves to stuff like this. Maybe one day he'll save something instead of kill it :)
After church at the Island Park ward on Sunday (where Liam passed the sacrament for the first time) we headed to Big Springs and had a contest to see who could keep their feet in the ice cold water (52 degrees, year round) the longest. Gavin came in at just over 2 minutes (notice his grimaced face) and the rest of us had pulled out before 60 seconds was up. It makes your legs ache, it's so cold! Big Springs is one of the head waters of the Snake River and puts out something like 120 million gallons of water every day! It's beautiful and clear and according to Caleb's 4 year old self "is the yummiest water ever".
We walked through Johnny Sack's cabin which he built by hand from 1932-35. He was a German cabinet maker. This is the water wheel.
The final day in IP, we spent the afternoon in West Yellowstone where Jonah got some awesome cowboy boots that he wears to school on the days that he doesn't have P.E. (he teacher told him boots don't work for gym) and the other boys bought more knives. But before heading back to the cabin we made one last stop at Coffeepot Campground where I spent many many years camping with my family. I wanted to hike this trail again and this year we were thrilled to happen on a whole load of huckleberries! Who would have thought! I was never there at this time of the year with my family, so I never knew these beauties lined the trail! We filled our Nalgene bottle and packed them all the way home to Virginia to enjoy our first morning back! They were truly divine.
After spending most of our time picking huckleberries, we had little to time to fish off the "big rocks". But Jared was helpful to get their lines ready and although they came away empty handed again, they still had a great time.
Jared, the sentimental soul that he is, not only took a photo of these but picked some to press and bring home!
From our start in Ogden through Wyoming, Vernal, Provo, Idaho Falls and Island Park we covered over 2000 miles..... and we all agreed it was the best way to spend two weeks of our summer break!
