A Vacation and a Birthday

A few weeks ago we took a vacation with Shad’s family.  We headed to Bend, OR to spend a long weekend in a log cabin in the trees. 

We made a couple of stops on the way there.

First, we stopped at the base of Mt. Hood for lunch.  Such a beautiful view of the mountain.

 

Next, we stopped at the Crooked River Gorge.  The main highway drives right over it, but if you aren’t looking it is easy to miss.  They built a new bridge over the gorge several years back, so now you can walk out across the old bridge.  This is the view from there.  It’s 500 feet down!

Josh, Bethany and I were big wimps and only wanted to walk this far on the bridge.  It can be dizzying to look over the edge.

This is Hannah who ran from one end of the bridge to the other.  She is fearless!

We arrived Thursday in the late afternoon.  Shad’s family was already there getting settled in.  We hung out that evening playing ping pong, pool, karaoke and visiting.  The house had a detached studio cabin with 2 sets of bunk beds and a bathroom in it.  The big kids started out the night feeling pretty cool that they were all going to sleep in the little cabin.  It didn’t last.  One kid got scared, so they all filed back in the big house.  While they did play in the little cabin all day long, no one ever slept in it.

Our second day there was spent at the lake.

This lake was so perfect for kids!  We were in a large cove with plenty of room to play.  The water temperature was just right and it was about 85 degrees out.  The lake was super shallow inside the cove, so the kids had tons of room to explore, play and float.  It was actually a floatie extravaganza.

There was a resort just around the corner from the cove that rented paddle boats, ski boats and paddle boards.  Here is proof that I did it!

Bethany enjoyed riding on it too.

Yes, and here is proof that if a kid jumps on it when you are not prepared, you fall off.

Side Story: Just before we were going to return the paddle board, I decided to take it for another spin.  I cruised over to the edge of the lake to see if I could spot any wildlife.  I was cruising along when I noticed that I was coming up on a log that was about 6 inches beneath the water’s surface.  I turned the board to go around it, but I quickly learned that I did not turn far enough.  I was startled to discover that the little rudder on the bottom of the board caught on the log causing my board to come to a complete stop.  My body, however, did not stop!  I took two running steps forward and then went off the front of the board into the water landing on my right knee.  Thankfully, the water was shallow, so it only came up to about my neck.  Not thankfully, that part of the lake was not sandy, it was rocky.  My knee jammed into pointy gravel.  I found myself crying and laughing at the same time.  I was far enough away from people that no one get to partake in the beauty that was me looking like an idiot, so I was laughing at myself.  I was crying because my knee was on fire!  I actually limped around for the rest of the day.

I was so amazed at how good the kids did on the paddle board.  Here’s Josh giving his cousin Rylee a ride.  Hannah is right behind him waiting “patiently” for her turn.

Hannah loved to surf on the front of the board with Uncle Greg driving.  Hang loose!

But the girl could paddle like a champ too!

Josh and Rylee found a log to ride on. 

Here’s Shad and his mom giving the little kids a ride in a paddle boat.

Eventually, Josh found a homemade raft and put it on top of his log.  He paddled around on this thing for a good hour.  Such a dude.

Bethany had a blast playing in the water.  However, she was not very happy with me at one point.  She had asked me to help her sit on the side of her tube with her feet in the middle.  I pushed her around like that for a bit.  Then I got distracted and walked away from her, forgetting that she was still sitting on the tube and not standing in the middle.  The next thing I knew Grandma was helping her out of the water.  Her life jacket forces her to float on her back, so she looked like a turtle stuck on it’s back, panicking.  Apparently she flipped over backwards and did a full flip in the water.  Mom of the Year award right there.  Oops…

Here is proof that Shawn actually was in the water!

That night we celebrated Hannah’s upcoming 8th birthday!

I love this picture!

So Hannah really wanted a beanbag chair, and Grandma Connie did not disappoint!  I love this sequence of pictures.  Here Hannah is clobbering Josh in the head.  Note the expression on his face.

Now note Hannah and Norah’s faces.  It’s so fun to beat up on the boy!

Do you see the chipmunk?

The next day we drove to the top of this butte.  If you look very closely you can see a tiny white car on the road at the top.

Everyone heading to the lookout. 

What a view!

Next we took a hike to some falls.  Here’s Bethany and I all pumped for the walk.  Did I mention it was super hot, dusty and dry?  Also, it was less of a hike and more of a walk down a dirt road dodging mountain bikers.

Ya, here’s the falls.  This is what most folks call…rapids.  Almost not worth nearly getting ran down by bikers and eaten alive by mosquitos!

And here are the toddlers on the way back to the car.

We got one picture in the parking lot before we rushed to our cars because of the mosquitos.  Here is Josh, Hannah and Norah.  Super cute.  Also, be sure you park Head In!

The next day we did a little shopping at the outlet mall (Josh was so happy!), had lunch and then everyone went their separate ways towards home.  We had a great trip!