Sunday, August 16, 2009

Another Camping Adventure

This summer we've been out camping a few times which has been really fun for us. This was another adventure we had a few weeks ago up at McCall. Josh had been working up at the scout camp there so while Emily and Kaitlyn were spending a week with their Louisianna cousins and G'ma & G'pa the rest of us went to visit Josh. We took Lucy our dog with us and she did great. I think she loved it. McCall is such a great place to camp and the lake is so pretty. I think we need to go camp there every year! I loved being out under the stars at night, cooking over a camp fire, and seeing deer run right through our camp! Matt got such a fright when they came within a few feet of him while he was crouched down looking for some sticks for the fire. It scared him half to death! He went running off as fast as he could screaming "DEER!" It was pretty hilarious! The deer ran one way and Matt went the other, and then a few seconds later the deer turned around and came running back towards our camp again! They can run fast! It was a memorable camping trip. Taking a walk by the lake at sunset
Natalie blowing bubbles
Mark by the camper
Our camp site
Brady zonked out! This boy can sleep anywhere I reckon!
Matt, Natalie, Brady & Lucy
Playing at the lake.... Brady wasn't too sure about the water at first.
Matt swimming. The water is so clear too.
Brady playing in the sand
Natalie and Brady
Making sand castles and digging holes
Pouring in the water
Matt going back for more! One thing that happened to Matt while playing at the lake was that he was playing with this other little boy and they were collecting rocks for their sand creation and when they went to pick up this rather big rock they dropped it on Matt's foot! Ouch!! Poor Matt screamed and had a pretty sore toe and foot for about a week after that. He was lucky he didn't break his foot.

Monday, August 10, 2009

Our Summer Holiday!

We had a great time on our trip to Northern Idaho this past week. We drove up to Spokane, Washington, and then onto Coeur d'Alene Idaho, and then on to Sandpoint and even to the Canada Border! We couldn't go that far and not at least stop at the border! We rode fast, scary rollercoasters, played at the waterpark, hiked in Bear country (yes that's real Grizzly and Black bears thank you!!), saw waterfalls, camped at a beautiful lake, canoed, and finished our trip off with a trip to the emergency room for Brady and then a minor wreck on the way home too..... thankfully no one was hurt, just a front bumper that needs replacing. So here are a few pictures from our trip and a brief explaination to go with it. :)
Mark getting our camper all set to go and our new car. It has some much needed room for our BIG family!
Downtown Spokane, Washington. Playing in the water fountains at the park. It was one hot day too so it felt really good!

Natalie and Matt having fun.
Now that's what I call one BIG wagon! It had a slide on it for the kids to slide down on after climbing to the top. The kids had a fun time playing on this.
Brady & Katie go for a slide!
At Spokane Falls. Emily and Natalie climbing some stairs with a big bridge in the background.
At the Falls. They had a Gondola ride you could take over the falls but they had to shut it down when we were there because it was so hot. 115 Degrees Farenheit in the cabins!! Yikes!
Up in cooler country.... near the Canadian border hiking to a place called Copper Falls. There was a sign posted saying beware of Grizzy & Black Bears here. Some of our kids were pretty terrified by that and we had a hard time convincing them to get out of the car! It made for a very exciting hike!!
At the Falls, and thankfully no Grizzlies waiting for us!
Hiking back.....
Matt taking a break by a stream. It was a really pretty hike.
At Bonner's Ferry, just south of the Border. The American Flag flying high here!
At the Canadian Border. The country side was just gorgeous up here.
The Canadian side of the border. The cars lining up to go through the check point.
This "line" in the mountains is on both sides of the road. It is the unoffical border line between the two countries.... seriously! Maybe this gives Border Patrol an easier view of those people trying to make a run for it?!
The International Boundary line. I'm on the Canadian side.
Back to the good ol' US of A!
Camping at Round Lake, near Sandpoint, Idaho. The countryside was so beautiful up here! Mark getting the fire ready for cooking dinner.
Matt
Brady playing in the dirt.... this boy was so dirty when he was all done! I guess that's all part of camping.
Round Lake
Emily, Kaitlyn & I in a canoe on the lake. We made it back just in time before a big thunderstorm hit and it poured with rain. We did NOT want to be stuck in a metal canoe on the lake with that storm!
Waiting out the storm.....
Thankfully it only rained for about 20 minutes and then once it cleared up it was a beautiful day.
Swimming and relaxing on the lake. Little Brady fell asleep on my lap!
Going for an afternoon hike around the lake..... we got about a quarter of the way around and decided we'd take a short cut back across a small inlet in the lake. As we started crossing in the water, this beaver below started swimming straight towards us! Then he disappeared and next thing we knew he popped up again about 10 feet away from Kaitlyn & I, scarring us half to death!! Mark said Kaitlyn ran on water to get away from it! He'd never seen her move so fast! I was carrying Brady on my back so I just had to squeal and move as best I could on the slippery rocks! It is pretty funny to think about now. That Beaver was not scared of us one little bit!
The little critter!!
Some beautiful scenery - a bit different from the mountains full of pine trees. Still very pretty though. This was just outside of Lewiston, Idaho on our drive back to McCall.
Our last photo is of poor little Brady the day after he took a spill on a slippery picnic table while I was trying to make dinner over a fire in the pouring rain. He ended up with 5 stitches and had to be sedated so they could make sure he would stay still. Then on our way home, in the pouring rain, we rear ended an old lady after she slammed on her breaks in some slow and go traffic. The roads were so slippery it was just an unfortunate accident. We will need a new bumper on our car, and her car is an older car which we think will end up being totalled. Probably not worth getting fixed. Maybe she'll be a good candidate for the 'Cash for Clunkers' program! Thankfully both her and everyone in our car is safe and ok, so that is what's most important. Just not a very fun way to end our vacation. Overall, we had a wonderful time making memories as a family, and seeing some of the most beautiful country around. I wish I could capture better their amazing beauty with my camera. I guess for those of you who really want to know just how pretty it is, you'll just have to come and see it for yourself!! Hint hint.... come stay with us anytime!