Boating on Beardsley

short little video when Drew and Sly were visiting and we took the boat out on the lake.
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two weeks

In the past 2 weeks since my last post, I've been home for 3 days. well, i suppose "home" is relative...because I really should refer to our hideaway as home, too. But I guess since our regular day to day activities happen at our home in the Bay Area, I always refer to that as home. What I'm trying to say is that we're not on our regularily scheduled program. Summer is suppose to be like that, isn't it?

Since I last wrote, I quietly celebrated my birthday, we celebrated my MIL's birthday, drove up and down California to hang out with my BFF and her kiddos for 3 days, nearly finished another quilt...ran out of thread...so I'll finish it this weekend, took a ride in the Rhino in the forest, fretted about a forest fire that's only about 7 miles from the hideaway (thankfully, because of the direction it's moving and ridges and road breaks, no threat to the community), took our little teeny tiny boat out on the SF Bay for the first time, and spent some quality time w/ the parentals. Tomorrow, we'll head out on the Rhino again with the neighbors, perhaps get some birds-eye views of the fire. I've also tended a farm, ran a restaurant and created a comfy home for my pet - all facebook games that I'm addicted to. Care to join me? Then please, jump on that FB bandwagon and play with me! I guarantee that you'll waste valuable hours.

I'll post more details of our summer events soon!

photo of the fire that started Sunday afternoon.
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Enjoying summertime

Last year I commented that summer just might be my favorite time of the year. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a fan of the excessive heat, in fact, anything above 80 is practically sweltering to me, but summer is when we really get to enjoy our friends and family and all the outdoor activities available to us near our hideaway.

Last Friday, we headed out in our Rhino with the neighbors.

That little atv has proven to be worth every penny because we can to enjoy so much more of the forest and the views it offers. It really gives us so much more respect for our surroundings.Since we were at such a high elevation, over 8500 feet, the spring flowers were still in bloom and so amazing.

We rode to "The Top of the World". Not sure if that's an official name, but it sure felt like it. That's our neighbor who was a forest service fire fighter.

Jimmy's enjoying the views.

I'm enjoying the ride through a meadow.

When we got down to Herring Creek at 7300 feet elevation, our ride was almost over, so we hopped off our 'bikes' and enjoyed the sound of the the creek and the shade of the trees.


We were expecting other friends to arrive that evening for the weekend. When we got back to the hideaway, there was no time to make dinner, so we ordered pizza from Pie in the Sky and ate on the deck then made smores for dessert.

Drew, Jimmy and Sly have been friends since before high school. A couple of years ago, Jimmy and I spent a weekend with Drew at his family's hideaway near Clearlake. Drew and Sly had just spent the week there on vacation and happily, they agreed on coming to visit us at our hideaway for a couple of days. Friends that last a lifetime: Jimmy, Sly and Drew.

The next morning, we took the boat out on Beardsley Reservoir.

The lake was very full, nearly up to it's high mark, which made us very happy! Good snowfall this past winter.Our 'secret' waterfall from Cow Creek was flowing nicely. It's in a little cove and kind of hidden.

This was the 1st time anyone has fished with us. The lakes and rivers near our hideaway are supposedly great for fishing, but we've never had the chance to test it. Unfortunately, the fish weren't biting for Drew that afternoon.

They boys went out for a while on their own to check out the dam. I enjoyed my time on the shore relaxing, reading my magazine, enjoying the views and soaking in the warm sun. But within 15 minutes of my solitude, the weather changed and I could see a thunderstorm heading in. The boys came back, we quickly packed up, and as we rode in the boat back to the launch ramp, we got pelted by the rain and wind. It only lasted about 10 minutes, so by the time we hitched the boat back onto the car, the sun was out again. We actually enjoy the summer thunder storms, but if lightning had accompanied the storm, we didn't want to be on the water. Luckily it didn't.

Before heading back to the hideaway for grilled burgers, asparagus, corn and more smores, we went up to Clark Fork River to enjoy the view of the waterfall. After dinner, we chatted and laughed on the deck with our little campfire till bedtime.

Good times. Good friends. Good summer.
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The Girls

The girls came up with Steve (my BIL) and family for the week of Camp Retz. They were a lot of fun, helped out with the boys, and were very adventurous, too!
Day one on the tubes, Elton can't stop grinning.

Within a few minutes, she standing on the moving floatie...almost like surfing!

Her big sister, EllyMae takes her turn.

And of course, she's standing within a few minutes, too.

Back on shore, the adventurous girls do a bit of cliff jumping.

I have to admit, I was biting my nails from afar. But Steve was in the water spotting for them, making sure they were jumping into water that was deep enough.

All 5 kids and Steve in his boat.

Elton was able to kneeboard on her first try, too, just like my oldest nephew.

The two sisters striking a pose, just before they tried to knock each other off the floatie.

And ending the day with smores on the deck, all 5 kids on a sugar high, just before bedtime.

Jimmy called them "Elton" and "EllyMae" all week, which is perfect since I don't like using kids real names on my blog.
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Big Brother

At seven years old, big brother R shows his little brothers what water sports is all about.
Not only could he stand on the moving floatie...

he tried knee boarding for the first time and...

not surprisingly, succeeded on his first try!

The rest of the week, he rode the high-speed tubes with the girls.

They wanted to go as fast as they could. It was Jimmy's goal to try to knock them off, taking sharp corners and going up to 30mph in the boat.

We had one day on the 'slow' lake. No tubing permitted and speed limits enforced.

But cliff jumping is allowed. Just watch out for your little brother below!

A day on the slow lake gave big brother R some time on the canoe with Uncle Jimmy.

And night time smore makings seemed to be Big Brother's forté. After 3 years at Camp Retz and 1 full year of Cub Scouts, Big Brother R knew exactly how he liked his smore: burnt to a crisp.

He's showing off his prized smore with the girls and his younger brother. A great way to end the day.
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The Middle Child

Middle J, at 5 years old, is oh so much braver than he was last year. It's so amazing to watch these boys grow up from year to year.
Last year, he would walk into the water up to his knees, but upon his own will, that was the furthest he would go. This year, he was constantly in the water and up to silly little antics that a middle child would be up to.

This year, we couldn't keep him out of the water.

He even did a bit of cliff jumping. You go Middle J!!

Middle J is my photography protégé. He's telling "Elton" to move closer to me so he could take a quick snapshot.

Even though he loved being in the water, still, one of his favorite things was being in the canoe with Uncle Jimmy.

A supah cute snapshot with his friend "EllyMae". Yup, his mouth is full of oreos, just like his little brother.

Middle J, with his older brother R, watch for their baby brother in the canoe with the girls.

Middle J is a little better at keeping the food in his mouth during smores night. Just a bit of chocolate under his nose.

This is our proudest moment with Middle J. He actually got on the floatie being pulled by the boats for the first time this year. Brave Middle J, yes he is! Can't wait to see what he'll be up to next year!

And he's becoming a helpful spotter for his Uncle Jimmy, too. He plays a very important role, making sure that Jimmy knows when the person falls off so they can pick them up. He has the orange flag in hand, ready to put it up if the person falls.

Middle J and Uncle Jimmy, the dynamic duo.
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The Youngest Nephew

Little D is the youngest of the nephews, but at 3 years old, he strives to keep up with his big brothers.
For the first few hours, he was content throwing rocks into the water.

And eating oreos. Similar to last year.

But soon, he was swimming in the lake with his daddy, happy as a fish.

By lake day #2, he was diving in: his version of cliff jumping.

Here's little D taking a swimming break with his friend "Elton".

A quick snapshot with his mommy and daddy.

Riding in the canoe, feeling the water, with his friends "Elton" and her sister "EllyMae" (Jimmy's nicknames for the girls).

Time for smores! Little D didn't like marshmallows, but loved graham crackers. As you can see.

Little D relaxing on the big floatie with his Uncle Jimmy.

This little boy can strike a pose, don't you think?

I can't resist one last photo of a his precious cheese-face!
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