on the lake (part 2)

As promised, here are the pictures of the kids learning to waterski, tubing, and enjoying being out on the boat! Without further ado...

They started skiing like this, crouched down:

 

But soon both were able to ski from a standing position (although my boy did continue to prefer the crouched ski for whatever reason):

 And much fun was to be had out on the tube (Mommy too, but alas, no photos!):

AIRBORNE!

lake days

We spent much of the past two weeks at Kerr Lake, in NC, where we vacation with hubby's family every year. This year was the wettest that I can remember, with more rain and higher lake levels than I can remember. (The lake's level can go up/down by about 30 feet in elevation, regulated by the corps of engineers, but it usually stays within a foot or two in the summer). The state park beaches were underwater, and the point where our dock is was mostly under water too. Soggy mud bogs along our golf-cart path required some creative detours as well!

Despite this, we were able to enjoy the overcast days and find quite a bit of sun by the end of our 10 days there. The kids had a wonderful time learning to waterski on the boom that hubby made (similar to a barefoot ski bar) and they were so proud of this tough accomplishment. They also had fun swimming and letting daddy haul them around on the tube. Because this mommy took so many pictures, I'm putting the waterskiing, tubing and boating pictures in a separate post!

Our first night there, James and I biked to a west-facing overlook for a view of the gorgeous sunset. It was the only pretty sunset all week!

 

We had calmer water than I can remember, too! The lake looked like glass most of the week. I guess "still waters really do run deep"! 

 

 

My handsome, crazy husband--love this guy so much!

The kids wanted to be IN the lake every waking moment!

T.J. really wanted to keep the rocks he found high and dry...they were underwater again the next day! He also wanted to build a sand castle, but settled for a "mud castle" instead!

 

Family portraits, lake style:

 My handsome boy:

 My beautiful girl:

 And silly mommy teaching her some synchronized swimming (which I did one year in college). Here are our "ballet legs". Life jackets make this much easier!

 Hubby even captured a nice picture of me:

 So there you have it. Lots and lots of family pictures! With more (the boating ones! stay tuned!) to come. We love being at, in, and on the lake!

celebrating independence

 The week has been full of the things we crazy Americans do to celebrate our independence: Fireworks, firecrackers, and running around with sparklers. Parades with fire engines, politicians, marching bands, crazy bicycles, men on tractors eating lollipops, and sheep (I didn't get a good picture of the sheep: take my word for it!). Pool time on a scalding hot afternoon. Grilled hot dogs and hamburgers. A Capitol Fourth (and Neil Diamond!) on PBS. Red, white and blue outfits, decorations, and food. And lots of fun and lots of family. Its all life as it should be, in the land of the free, and home of the brave.

See? Men on tractors eating lollipops!

 And here are my favorites from playing with sparklers and camera settings tonight!

Hope your Independence Day was as wonderful as ours was!