Bear Lake day 4

We started our morning off with a big full breakfast. It was nice to be able to have everyone there too after a few days of only part of us. When everyone was done with breakfast, the kids were put in charge of cleaning it up. That was an interesting and nice change. They didn't do a too bad a job either.  

When they were done, it was debated on what everyone wanted to do. We finally decided to go on a walk. It was all the grandkids, Tiffany, Dad, and myself. We first walked around the condo property and then made our way out and onto the walking trail. The trail went on forever and the kids were having a lot of fun, so we kept going. Tiffany and the boys were so fast that they were so far ahead of us, we weren't sure where they were. The rest of us eventually stopped at LaBeaus and we texted Tiffany to find out where they were. 

After a few minutes we got a response, they were down by a park somewhere, but said they were on their way back. When they got to us, Jeff had actually pulled up as well and Dad treated everyone a shake. Now with shakes in hand, we sat down to eat them. They were so yummy. While we were eating we also played the I spied game. Everyone got in on it and it was actually pretty fun.

When everyone was done with their shakes or at least for the most part, we decided to follow Tiffany to the park she and the boys had found. She said there was also access to the beach and it looked pretty fun. So the majority of us headed that way, while Jeff took Dad back to the condo. He wanted to grab his Jeep and all the yard games that we had back at the condo and would meet us there. He would also talk to Jenny and Brian and let them know where we were at, if they wanted to join us. So with the Men gone, the rest of us went back to the walking trail and headed towards the park.

On the way, we found some pretty cool things. In front of a restaurant they had huge scumpltures of different bears. It was very fitting for Bear Lake and some of the kids wanted to take some funny pictures with them. The boys thought they were crazy, but that didn't stop them from having a little fun. We also passed another store front that had a bunch of classic and old cars displayed out front. I'm not sure why they were there, but they were nice to look at. It's too bad Ben wasn't with us. He would have liked looking at those cars.

After a few minutes we finally made our way to the beach. The kids of course ran over to the playground, but Tiffany grabbed their attention and told them that there was a cool access to the beach and they all came running. As we made our way to a wooden path I was surprised that it kind of looked like a swamp. It had reeds all around it and if you looked close enough you would see those reeds were surrounded by water. I quickly warned the boys to be carful so they don't fall in. It wasn't very deep, but it was dirty and I'm sure cold.

Once through the wooden walkway, we came to the beach front. It wasn't a nice clean beach, but that didn't matter to the kids. Some of them took their shoes off and went wading out into the water. They didn't go very far, it was crazy cold, but they had fun looking for rocks and whatnot hidden below the water. Eventually when their feet were freezing enough, they made there way out of the water and back up to the sand. Now they had to figure out how to clean their feet off in order to get their shoes back on. Luckily for them, Jeff pointed out that there was a faucet near by where they could do just that.

After they were done, they joined the rest of the group who did the same...looking for rocks, but they were finding them on the beach. When they found a good one, they would take turns trying to skip it on the water. Eventually it turned into a distance race and went from skipping to just throwing. Everyone was getting in on that and were seeing who could throw their rock the farthest. It was hilarious to watch considering it turned into...lets see who can throw farther than Miranda. No one was able to, but both Dad and Jeff came really close. 

When we were done with the rock throwing or more so, their shoulders were sore enough to finally stop, we went back to the wooden pathway and walked back to the park. When we got to the park, I was happy to see that Jenny and Brian decided to join us.

While they were setting up some of the yard games, the kids ran off to play at the park. Some of them went to the swing set and other went over to the jungle gym. It was chilly out with cloudy covering the sun, but that didn't hinder them at all. They were all over the place having fun. The boys started yelling my name, so I came over and they both wanted to show me what they could do. Owen climbed a funny looking rock wall and William mastered the rope pyramid. They were so proud of themselves and went and did it again and again.

After a few minutes of hanging with the kids, I noticed that the yard games (V-King, Spike Ball, Kan Jam, Frisbee, and Corn Hole) were set up and ready to go. Walking back, they had already started a game of V-King. It was played with pretty much everyone who wasn't over at the park. Eventually everyone else made it back to where the games were set up and we had all of them going at once with everyone bouncing around to the different games all taking turns. It turned out to be a really fun afternoon. We had so much fun, that we didn't even realize that time had come and go for lunch.

After realizing what time it was and some of the kids complaining about being hungry, we loaded up in the vehicles and got ready to head back. William was begging Papa to let him ride back with him. He's never had a ride in Papa's Jeep yet and was so excited when Papa told him yes. Once everyone was loaded up, we went back to the condo.

Back at the condo we had a late lunch. Dad and I pulled out all of the lunch items and as everyone slowing made their way in, they each dished up a plate and found a place to sit down and eat it. Some were in the condo and other ate outside on the patio. I was surprised they wanted to eat outside, it was still chilly. Halfway through lunch we were joined by one more, Miranda's boyfriend. It was cute to see the two of them together, I wouldn't be surprised if after both of their missions they windup together. 

After everyone was done with lunch and cleaned up, everyone gathered in the front room to either play games or watch a show that Dad had turned on. It was some kind of documentary that was actually pretty interesting. Most of the kids didn't think much of it, but they had games they could play, so they weren't bugged by it at all.

After a while, the kids asked if they could go swimming. It hadn't warmed up at all, but they couldn't go by themselves so I agreed to go. I was happy to see that Dad and Jenny said they'd come down as well. Once at the outdoor pool the kids waisted no time jumping in the water and playing. I have no idea what little game they were playing, but they looked like they were having fun. William love the aspect of jumping in the water and splashing them. I'm not sure if that was actually part of the game or something that he just wanted to do. It was fun to see the look on his face and theirs as he did.

After an hour or so of swimming, it was getting close to dinner time. Luckily it was already prepared, thanks to Mom, but it still needed to get in the oven and the side dishes needed to be prepared. That meant telling the kids that it was time to get out of the pool. They of course didn't like that, but have a few minutes they finally reluctantly got out of the pool and started to dry off. Once we had all the pool toys gathered and their shoes were on, we walked back to the condo. Once there, they ran off to get showered and cleaned up, while Dad and I got things going on dinner.

When dinner was ready, we all gathered in the front room waiting for the prayer to be said. Once it was, everyone dished up and sat down to enjoy the Mexican Lasagna that Mom had made even though she wasn't with us. It was really good too. Gabbi came up to me and told me that she loved this way more than she liked my regular Lasagna. I just laughed and watched as she dished herself up seconds. 

When dinner was done and cleaned up, we hung around for a little bit. Ben, Brain and Tiffany got into some deep religious conversations and the rest of us were in over our heads, at least that's how I felt. It was then decided that the rest of us would go to the other condo and play some cards games. We didn't play for very long, but while we did, it was a lot of fun. Fun always comes to an end though and after playing a few round of Duos, we called it a night and I went back to the other condo to put our kids to bed.

Bear Lake day 3

Once everyone was up and going, Tiffany, Papa, and I all jumped in and got things going on breakfast. When it was done, we called all the kids into the kitchen and had them dish up. Once everyone was dished up we sat down to eat. While we were eating we were talking about what we could do for the day. We bounced around a few different ideas and landed on a cave tour.

Once it was decided, Jeff went online to see if they were even open and doing tours. We were happy to see that they were, but their tours were limited in the numbers they could take. So as soon as we were done eating breakfast, we loaded everyone up in the vehicles and headed to the cave tour ticket booth.

When we got there, we pulled into the parking lot where you can purchase tickets for the tour. Jeff, Dad, and I got out and walked up to the ticket booth and Jeff did all the talking. They told him that they did have some tour spots available, but because of our group size, that we would have to split out group. I didn't understand why we could push our time back to a slot that would take us all, but we went ahead with it purchased tickets for later this afternoon. With tickets in hand, we got back in the vehicles and headed back to the condo.

Our tickets were until after lunch so once back at the condo, everyone pretty much did whatever. The kids were playing games and watching movies, the adults were all on their own, which meant Ben and I were upstairs working on his homework. I was his sounding board and he needed to bounce some ideas around.

When it was time, we pulled out the lunch items and everyone served themselves. Once everyone was cleaned up and done, we then headed out. I went upstirs and said goodbye to Ben, he didn't think he would be able to spare the time that we would be gone, so he didn't end up going with us. Now back in the vehicles, we headed to the cave tour. 

This time we went all the way up. The ticket booth and the actual cave tour entrance had two different parking lots. I was surprised, it wasn't like this the last time I was up here. Now at the top, we all got out, went to the bathroom, and checked in. Now all we had to do was wait until it was our time. When it was time, Jeff, his family, and Gabbi were with one group, and Dad the boys and I were in the next. I was bummed that we weren't together, but at least we were there.

Jeff and his group took off and we were another 15 minutes behind them. When it was our turn, we joined the rest of our group (6 others) and followed our tour guide down to the cave entrance. He gave us the spill of instructions of things you can and cannot do in the cave and we went it. 

I've done this tour many time before, but this was the first time for my kids. I was bummed that I wouldn't be able to experience this with all of them at the same time, but if I really had to choose, I was glad I was going with the boys. They love rocks and I couldn't wait to see how they would take rocks that grow and whatnot undergrounds. As the tour went on, I was right. They had wide open eyes trying to take in every aspect of the cave and all the amazing things they were seeing.

As we continued our way through the tour, the boys continued to take in as much as they could. Owen was even able to answer some of the questions the tour guide asked about some of the formations. The tour guide seemed surprised by some of his answers and that we was actually able to answer them. The boys were having so much fun. I was glad that this is what ended up as our main activity today. 

When our tour was over, we headed out and back to the top. Once all together again at the top, we talked about our tours. I was kind of jealous hearing them talk about their tour. They said that he was cracking jokes left and right and was so much fun. Ours stuck to his script and nothing much more than that. This type of thing definitely needs someone who can have fun with their group and we didn't get that like they did. Once everyone was done going to the bathroom and getting drinks, we loaded back up and headed back to the condo.

Back at the condo, we all needed sometime to recuperate. We just did a lot of steps both down and back up and our legs and feet were killing us. So we decided to have some down time. I set up a movie for the boys, the girls went in their room, and I went upstairs to lay down. After about an hour, everyone had congregated at our condo. They were rested and ready to get back to having fun. I wasn't, but I wasn't going to stop them from having fun. When I went downstairs I found them all around the couch, they had pulled out the game box and were playing some games. 

After a few games, Dad came in the kitchen and helped me put together dinner. While it was cooking, we went back and played some more games with the kids. When it was ready, we set it all out and let everyone dish up their own plates. As we were dishing up, Jenny and her family knocked on the door. They had finally arrived. They already ate dinner on their way up, so they went and unloaded their car while we sat down to eat. 

We were so happy to see Jenny and her family. We weren't sure that they were going to be able to come up. Kayden was exposed to some kids at work that tested positive for COVID and he had to be tested. While waiting for his results to come back, they told him that he needed to quarantine just in case the test comes back positive. Jenny was worried that they may have to quarantine as well since Kayden was still living at home. After talking with a neighbor, who is a Doctor, told them that because they weren't directly exposed and the likelihood and way that Kayden was exposed, that they would be fine. So they took that as a good sign and came up to join us, but promised to keep their masks on just in case.

When they were done unloading their car, they came back over and joined us. Not everyone was done eating so they sat down and visited with us while we finished up. We all of course asked about Kayden and how he was doing. She said he was doing fine, but was bummed that he couldn't come up as well as have to stay put for the next little bit until his results came back. It didn't sound fun at all and we all felt so bad for him. It wouldn't be the same without him there. 

When everyone was done eating and cleaned up, we talked about what we wanted to do. Jenny and Miranda wanted to play some games, so it was decided that the adults and the older girls would go over to their condo while the younger kids stayed at our condo. All the adults headed over and I stayed back to get the younger ones settled and going with a movie and some snacks. After I got them settled I went upstairs to see how Ben was doing and to see if he wanted to come over and play some games. 

I could tell that he really wanted to, but he was conflicted. He told me that he had to get this next little section done and could really use my help. I told him I would and sat down to help. He then told me he didn't need me quite yet, but would call me up when he was ready. So I went downstairs and sat on the couch with William and watched the movie with the boys. 

An hour or so later, I got a GroupMe message with a picture asking where we were. I told them to play on and one or both of us would be there when Ben was done. After another 45 minutes, the boys' movie was done, and I had them brush their teeth and get ready for bed. I also went in and told the girls to do the same. When they were all done, I put them to bed, and went up to get ready myself. When I was ready to lay down, I sent a quick message letting them know that neither of us would be joining them, and went to bed.