LeRoy Camping trip

Took awhile to get the pictures downloaded, but here you go. We went camping in Eastern Washington the second week of August. We were going to go camping on the west side of the state, but decided against that once we saw that the weather was going to be cold. We were tired of cold wether in August, so we went east of the mountains towards Lake Chelan. It turned out to be a great decision. The weather was great and warm, even when climbing out of the tent at 6:30 in the morning.



We found this great camp site overlooking the river. The camp ground was all grass, which was a lot nicer than dirt. The day we arrived, they had a burn ban in effect but lifted it the next day. I had brought a ton of wood, so we were all glad we got to use it for fires.









We moved right in and went for the white trash look that is easy to come by when camping. I don't know what it is about hanging cloths to dry when camping, but it seems so natural.










Rebecca tending to the fire. I remember my parents telling us, "keep your sticks out of the fire" when we were little. I found myself saying the same things to the boys. Rebecca found herself saying the same thing to me, but I had to tend to the fire--it was my man given right, or so I said. I don't know what it is, but the fire attracts me to it.






Jonah had one to many smore's and was out on the lawn acting crazy. That will be the last night of that. We now know that 6 smores is one too many.










Since we were up at the crack of dawn, we were usually fishing by 7:30 in the morning. It was actually relaxing, because I just sat there with coffee and untangled lines. It was beautiful in the morning along the river.









We made the kids stop for lunch each day or they would have just kept on playing until dark.













It is amazing how long kids can play with one floating device. There was a hole in it, so we kept blowing it up every hour or so.












We didn't want to bother the "King of Music" after we got back from Lake Chelan. I think the water sucked the life right out of him. It was good for him to have some quiet time.











The weather became hotter as the week progressed, so we headed in to Chelan to get ice cream one day. It was in the low 90's when we started camping and went up to 103 by Friday when we were leaving. Although hot, not as bad as heat with humidity. The evenings were great as it dipped into the 70's.

We did find the go-carts and had to take them for a spin. Noah and I rode together and the other two boys had their own. Jacob banged his into the wall because I was trying to pass him. I felt horrible because his glasses flew off and he was crying. I guess the little boy competitive side hasn't left me yet.

We had to be creative with dinners. You guess what this is. Your right if you guessed a hot dog wrapped in biscuit dough. The kids got a kick out of this even though they didn't cook all the way through. We had to throw them back on the stove to finish them. One did make a dive into the fire.

The best part of the evening for me is always the camp fire. You are tired from the day and sitting around the camp fire, sucking in smoke through your lungs is all that. Oh, I miss it.

We headed to Chelan for two days to swim in the Lake. This was the park downtown right on the water, which turned out to be a great spot. It had two pier's that you could jump off of. The water the crystal clear, which is always nice for a Lake.

Jonah swam all day long. We had to pull him out of the water. He wanted to hang out with the teenagers and "be a man" as he said. they were all running up and doing flips off the dock.

Jacob had a blast off the dock. The water was refreshing for all of us.

This was the view from our camp site. Couldn't have asked for a better spot.

Camping dinner always looks better while you are camping. Once you get home, you can't believe you ate it. Boy it hit the spot.

Jacob always found time to have his alone time. It was a great vacation for all of us.

Family Celebrates Noah's 5th Birthday

Hot mama riding on the jet ski. A couple times around the lake is all they needed to really relax. Rebecca would love to be a Ranger for the parks department on the lake. She could ride around all day showing her badge and spraying people when they don't follow the rules.









Papa Mark worked with Noah on target practice with his new Nerf target. I'm not sure how Noah did, but he seems to be able to hit Rebecca and I in the kitchen from the across the room while we are cooking dinner. Now he knows that although we are proud of him for hitting his target, they target can't be people.






Even though Noah's birthday was on Friday, the family celebrated on Sunday after church at Kitsap Lake Park. Sarah and Josh brought the jet ski and the kids brought their fishing poles. It was beautiful out and we had a great time. It was exactly what we needed after a busy week or work and play.








Noah wanted a red cake on the inside. Red is his favorite color, so that is what he got. We had lunch and then went down fishing and rode on the jet ski. Afterwards, we came back up for cake.










Noah thought he was cool sporting his new hat that he made at church. Noah is a hefty caster with the fishing pole. I think his goal is to see how far he can cast the line.










Here shows you a little bit of the chaos on the small dock. It was bad that day. Lines were flying everywhere. Shirts were getting hooked and you had to really watch closely. Not a lot of fish, but that is never the focus. They just want to sit out by the water.








Grandma and grandpa took a picture with Noah and then almost got clocked in the head with the bat. Noah has no concept of people around him when he is practicing swinging. That is why we bought him a heavy foam bat. Everyone wins.









It is always a sea of tangled poles and kids needing bait put on their hooks. They are all learning now how to do this on their own.











Noah did get to ride the jet ski, although cautious. Since he fell off the back in June at Priest Lake, he is much more aware of how fast he wants us to go.

"Barn Raising" in Bremerton?

"Marna and Papa" told the kids months ago that they would build a clubhouse in their backyard in the summer. Once you tell the kids something like this, they will keep asking until it happens. Well, we started construction on Saturday and called in the help. We had Sarah and Josh, Rick and Vicki, and our family. We did quite well. We paired each child up with an adult so the kids could supervise us. It worked well. We all had a great time and no one got hurt all day long. Maybe a sore thumb or two, but nothing that required an ER visit.



The walls went up pretty easily which is always nice to see so early in the day. Mark was the one in charge since he still shouldn't be lifting anything and t hat seemed to work really well. At least one of us knew what we were doing.









After lunch, Aunt Sarah took all the kids to see a movie, which allowed us about 2 hours to get some stuff done without distraction. Sarah was designated movie goer since she is due in September. She happily agreed so she could take a nap in the movie.








Sue and Vicki manned the saws. Don't mess with them. They know exactly what they are doing. This is not the first nor the last time sue has been around a saw. Sue and Rebecca are a lot alike. They look at everything as a challenge. Want to get them going, just tell them they can't do something.







Uncle Josh can be used for many things, but all we needed from him on this day were his brawn and brains, in that order. He was the first on the construction site to draw blood. nothing a band-aide couldn't fix.









Rick was quite the agile character, even though he is much older. Ha ha. He was hopping around on the ladder like he was 30 years old. We really used his help well. I also think he had a great time.









Jacob, in perfect form, broke from the grind, and made a rocket ship out of wood scraps and duct tape. Of course, it was amazing.











Rebecca giving tips to Jonah on how to use the crow bar. We tried to harness the energy from the the boys' and put it to good use. Jonah had a great time and was a big help.










At the end of the day, we had four walls up, the roof on and the black paper around the building. Not bad for the first day. Window holes were present and we were all exhausted.










I was allowed to go on the roof, which wasn't the most stable place to be, but it had to be done. It was fun to be up in the trees. Since that day, the tar paper is up on the roof as well. Getting close to completion. I will take some more pictures when all is said and done.

Here is the picture of all the crew minus Sarah and Josh. We all had a great time, but were exhausted at the end of the day.

Happy 5th Birthday Noah!!

Noah turned 5 on August 1st. We have picked up a tradition in our house that you get to pick out a box of any cereal for the day of your birthday. All of the kids get into it putting in their two cents, but only the birthday boy or girl gets to make the final decision. Noah decided on cookie crisp. I didn't even think he knew what it really was but a cereal made with cookies, that was the choice for him. The kids get so excited for that box of cereal. Noah started the day with his cereal and then went off to VBS for his last day. Rebecca sent cupcakes for his class, which turned out to be fun for Noah.

After VBS was over, Noah, his brothers, and two of his friends, went to Chuck E. cheeses. Noah was dying to go there, so we caved and went there. They had a great time. What a full week with VBS and Noah's birthday.










Anyone who knows Rebecca may not know that she is competitive by nature. As you can see by the picture, she was beating Noah at the time. Jacob is usually the one in the family that does the best at this game. They ran for two hours. They had a great time and it was exactly what Noah wanted to do.






The end of the party at Chuck E. Cheeses!














Noah always has the best smile. You can tell when he is having a blast. It shows right through. Can't believe our baby is now 5. We have been telling him this past year that he was not allowed to ever turn 5.









That night, we went out to Azteca with both of his grandparents for fajitas. Noah got a little scared when they came out singing in Spanish and put the big sombrero on him. He got embarrassed and turned red. He loved it though










Aunt Hannah was able to come over before she left on a mission trip and celebrate with Noah. He loves his aunt Hannah.












Noah tried the chocolate mousse, something he has never had before. He thought it was better than cake. He is such a good brother, sharing his mousse with everyone. Not always easy for a five year old. HAPPY BIRTHDAY NOAH!!!