Camping at Little Bow!

We did it and survived one week of camping at Little Bow Provincial Park. We left last Sunday after church and came home late Saturday afternoon. So we were gone for 7 days and 6 nights. It was a lot of fun! I seriously have over 150 pictures that I took. So there are going to be a LOT of pictures.

SUNDAY, July 24

We went to church, then came home and changed. I doubled checked the trailer (we stayed up late packing and getting things ready), and added a few more things. Then we headed out. Richard took his truck into Lethbridge and left it at UFA(he came back home and worked Tues and Wed). We picked him up and kept going. It was really hot out and our burb's AC decided not to work.....bummer. It worked off and on, and then nothing. So much for trying to keep DJ awake! He zonked when it got so hot in there. Oh well! Good thing for lots of windows! I rolled them down and kept going. We pulled in and got a camping spot. We couldn't get one beside the others, but we weren't too far away. We got all set up and I made supper. Then we went for a walk/ bike ride. The kids brought their bikes and spent a LOT of time riding around everywhere! We had us some smores and then I put the kids to bed and went to bed myself. I had a super bad headache (my Sunday headache) and was ready to die! Not really, but I couldn't keep my eyes open much longer, so I crashed.

MONDAY, July 25, 2011

The kids surprised me and we slept in till 8am. So nice. After breakfast we packed up a lunch and got everything and went out to the boat. We had that boat loaded to the hilt. Then we all got in. Well I got on the tube with 3 little girls and we got pulled out to the beach! It was fun times. They loved it, we all sang the ABC song a few times till we got to the beach! Then we all played and  relaxed. I got a few skis in and so did Brent. The 2nd time I went it was like glass. I love to slalom when it is so smooth. We then headed back in and found Cam and his girls waiting for us at the dock. It was my day to make supper so we hurried back to the trailer so I could start. I decided to make tinfoil dinners. We cooked them in the fire pit and they turned out delicious. It was a fun, fun day! My girls were exhausted and didn't take long to go to sleep! That night we got a really crazy thunderstorm and then it rained like crazy. So I wasn't too surprised to wake up Tuesday morning to rain.

Here's Cadence, Ali, Brianna and Abbi on the tube. These 4 girls LOVED the tube and went on it many times together! They always had so much fun!

DJ was my little boat man! Even though he doesn't look all that excited here,he loved to ride in the boat. Everytime he heard someone say they wanted to ski he'd jump up and run for his life jacket and run to the boat screaming, "VRRMMMMM" and pounding his chest (meaning me)!

DJ did a face plant into the sand off of the blow up alligator. It was so funny. I ran for the camera and took a picture before I helped him. He was not very impressed with me!

Emily brought this dingy and the kids loved it! They'd take turns paddling and going places. I should say, us adults took turns too!

Here's a picture of our "beach scene"! We all brought books that we read too, so nice to relax!

Richard with DJ and Mary. They decided to relax on the tube!

DJ excited about Cadence building a little river for his boat. He thought it as great!

We brought Macy with us and here she is hiding in some shade sleeping! She had fun rolling around in the sand and getting all dirty. We had to dunk her in the water every day before we went back in to get her a little clean!

Abbi and Ali busy making sand castles.

Tuesday July 26, 2011

This was kind of a BLAH day! It was cool and rainy on and off all day. We took the kids to the park and let them play. Let them ride their bikes around. I think they had a fun time playing with each other, it just wasn't that fun as an adult! Oh well! We did survive. Oh I should mention that Richard and my dad got up early this morning and went back home. They both had to work. So I was definitely missing my hubby too! Brent and Tiff made supper for us. It was hamburgers and hot dogs and was very yummy! I was so ready for the kids to go to bed that night. I went and showered them all down, and got them clean. Then put them to bed. Luckily they all fell asleep quickly. Then I sat down outside and read my book!

Wed, July 27, 2011

We woke up Wednesday morning and it was still a little cloudy out and raining a tiny bit. But we could see blue skies. So we decided to go out anyway. We took the chance and were so glad we did! It was a tiny bit cool but it warmed up the longer we stayed out. We got out there around 10:30am and stayed till 4pm. The clouds started to get really dark and we decided to pack it in before we got rained on. The kids had so much fun playing in the sand and going for tube rides. Brent, Tiff, DJ and I went for a little cruise on the boat. DJ absolutely LOVED the boat and always wanted to go on it. He became Uncle Brent's little buddy! So cute! We found a place in the lake where it was like glass. So Brent got some wakeboarding in and I skiied all the way back to the beach! It was fun, but I didn't think my hands were going to  let me make it back! But I did! That night Emily had dinner ready for us and it was so yummy! Oh I should say that Richard was waiting for us at the trailer when we got back from boating. So that was a great surprise! After supper we took our family back to our camp and made a fire for smores. Our kids were so tired. They really wanted to roast marshmellows so we did that. Then we got them ready for bed and they went to sleep.

Anna, Brianna, Cassi, Cadence, Abbi and DJ all ready to go for a ride on the tube!

DJ didn't actually go for the ride but everyone else did and had a blast!

Loved this picture of Brent and Tiff. Brent was so good with all the kids, with taking them for tube rides.

DJ showing me how he'd drive the boat! He did not want to get out of the boat!

This was when we went on our long boat ride and DJ had to go! Didn't realize Tiff got a picture of it! ha ha ha!

Brent showing us his stuff on the wakeboard!

Going for a jump! Check out the crazy ski!

I skiied all the way back to the beach! It was fun!

I was very tired when we got back!

So was DJ, this is how he fell asleep while I skiied back! What a cute little boy!

He slept on the beach with Macy for an hour!

Brianna pulling DJ, Macy and Cadence around in the dingy!

We were the 2nd load to head back to the docks. We had to wait and we watched the dark clouds come in. We barely beat the rain! The kids had a blast riding in the bow of the boat!

Cutest picture ever of DJ! The wind was making his hair stick up! So cute!

Brianna, DJ and Richard roasting marshmellows.

DJ's caught on fire so they were all trying to blow it out!

A feet picture with the fire! This is while us adults were relaxing around the fire at night!

Thurs, July 28, 2011

We got up and ready to go first thing in the morning and Richard and I took our kids to the park. We promised the night before so we went. Then we packed up and went out on the boat again. We were pretty lucky each day in getting "our beach"! We were usually out there by 10:30am. Oh, Megan came right as we were leaving. So it was perfect timing! It was nice out and we decided to get some skiing it before the water got choppy. The kids had a tube ride first. They were so funny. You could hear them laughing and screaming. They'd start yelling, "Crazy Uncle Brent, go crazy." So Brent would do some turns to get them out of the wake. Then they'd yell, "Crazier then that Uncle Brent." It was so funny! Then Brent, Tiff, Cam and Megan went out and did some wakeboarding. Tiff didn't wakeboard, but she drove the boat! When they came back I was ready to ski. I got out there and was ready to get pulled up when Mom yelled out that I still had my sunglasses on. It was too late, so I said oh well. Anyways got up and dropped my ski and away I went. There were a lot of boats out there. I cut the wake and splashed myself right in the face. Not a big deal but with glasses on I was blinded for a few seconds. In those seconds I hit a HUGE wave that I wasn't expecting. To say I crashed is an understatement. I bit it big time. I landed face first, oh and I tried to grab my glasses so I ended up hitting myself in the face too! I laid there and couldn't move. I was trying to breath and I think I freaked Megan out, because she jumped in to save me! I got the wind knocked out of me and was trying really hard to catch my breath! Sheesh it was a crazy wipeout!

That night mom made us all supper. It was also Brent's birthday. So we had lasagna (his favorite), with ceasar salad and garlic bread. Yummy! Dad came out after work, so he was there too. We then sang happy birthday to Brent and everyone pretended to blow out candles (we forgot them)! We're glad you had a HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRENT!!!!

Brianna loved to play in the sand.

Cadence loved drinking all the pop she could!

Cute Abbi!

We had fun playing badminton.

Richard came back Wed afternoon with 3 more big umbrellas. So now we had an umbrella city with lots of shade!

I took DJ and Cadence out in the dingy for a little ride!

DJ and Cadence working together to blow up the alligator!

DJ fell asleep again. I think it was all the sun and fresh air, wore him right out. This time he just went and layed down on the blanket by himself and went to sleep!

Abbi and Cadence playing with their cousins Anna and Bella.

DJ all geared up with his helmet and knee pads (he insisted) to ride up to the other camp site!

DJ brought his backpack full of toys. He got Mary and they both sat down and played for a while. So cute to watch. Those two play so good together.

DJ with his Uncle Brent, the birthday boy!

Friday, July 29, 2011

Mom and dad left for home the night before. Cam and his girls packed up in the morning and were out of there by 9:30am. The rest of us got ready and went back out on the boat. We all decided to get our skiing right away. So we did. Good thing, because it got very windy out and the water was choppy. It was still a relaxing day on the beach. Aunt Tiff taught the kids how to properly make a sand castle. It was so cute. Abbi came up and told me that Aunt Tiff is so smart, why aren't you smart like her mom?! It was pretty funny! They had so much fun playing with Aunt Tiff! Friday night we just combined food and had roasted hotdogs over the fire. The kids loved it. I should also mention, that every morning and evening the kids would ride their bikes EVERYWHERE. That's the best part about Little Bow, you can ride your bike anywhere you want. They loved it. DJ even rode his trike everywhere. So that made for some very tired kids at the end of the day. We were outside all day long!

I had promised everyone that I would stay up late with them, since this was our last night. I always went to bed around 10 or 10:30pm (which is late for me)!  Cody came after work and brought their baby monitor. That way Richard and I were both able to go up to their site. We just sat around the fire and talked and laughed a lot! We roasted some steak and some yummy marshmellows to make s'mores! I stayed up till midnight! I went to leave and ended up tripping over a tent stake and went flying and crashed. Yup, that's what happens when I stay up too late. We were laughing so hard. I'm sure we were pretty loud! Fun times!

Me getting ready to ski. The water was always freezing when you first got in it!

I'm up and ready to drop a ski.

I dd it! Ha ha! Megan took the best picture ever of me slaloming!

Here was our main boat driver of the week!

Cute kids loving the tube. On the way back it was pretty choppy and we almost lost Brianna. She bounced and her legs went over top of her head and touched the back of the tube. The only thing that saved her was she was hanging on super tight. We stopped and put them in the boat. She was very brave, didn't cry at all!

One of our favorite things to do was drive out in the middle of the lake and all jump in. Here's Richard, who was the brave one that jumped first.

Megan jumped in and I lowered DJ down to her. He wasn't very happy with me!

Aunt Tiff showing Abbi and DJ how to make a good sand castle.

Brianna went to try one by herself after watching her Aunt.

Cadence got these glasses because she jumped in the lake from the boat all by herself. I may of bribed her, and this is what she picked out!

DJ had fun playing in the sand and water.

Abbi loved making sand castles and was getting so good at it!

Sat, July 30, 2011

We were planning on leaving first thing in the morning, but decided to go on out on the boat one last time. We did pack up our stuff and hooked up the trailer. We got everything ready and just left it there. Then we went out on the boat. It was crazy how many boats were out. It was too windy and choppy to do anything on the water, but we still had fun! We then headed in around 3pm and we all headed for home. It was so much fun and I'm glad we went. The kids had a blast and still talk about it!

Finished packing everything up and we're ready to drive down to the dock!

My 3 cute little girls!

We promised them a popsicle and this was the cheapest one the store had....$10 later. Oh well, they all loved it! Makes for a cute picture!

Richard, DJ and Mary enjoyed the shade and sharing the food!

BIG bite DJ!

Abbi worked very hard on these sand castles. She called it her city!

Cadence just being so cute!

Brianna working on her sand castles!

DJ trying to throw the ball back to the people, but it was too windy! I think these 2 couples beside us were kind of annoyed by all our kids. At one point DJ ran up and threw mud at them....not sure why (a little embarrassing)!

Brianna, Richard and Cadence relaxing in the sun!

DJ playing with his little ducky! He loved that thing, he'd take it out in the water to give it a drink!

Our family picture just before we left Little Bow! It was some fun times!

Cutest picture ever of these 4 little girls! Ali, Abbi, Cadence and Brianna sure had fun playing together all week.

Cousins!

And this is what happens when you party all week and then drive home in HOT weather and the A/C stops working....all the kids fall asleep!

So there is my super long post on our week in Little Bow. I was sad that I didn't get any pictures of the girls riding their bikes everywhere because they did that a lot! There were a few crashes too. Abbi was a maniac on her bike. She'd FLY so fast and then slam on her brakes. That girl scared me a few times. Anyways we had fun in the sun!!!!