A Showy Way of Going...

When I started uploading pictures for this post, it was 10 o'clock on Friday night, and all of the adults were sitting in the kitchen at my sister's house, while my brothers-in-law read aloud from the Craigslist ads in Stockton and other small towns... some of the descriptions are hilarious, grammatically and otherwise!  This was one of our favorites- this fella is very proud of his roosters!

Gorgeous Young Mottled Houdan Roosters - $5 (Stockton)

"I have several young 3 month old gorgeous showy Mottled Houdan roosters. They are striking looking! They are black and white with the big top hat and have a showy way of going. These photos show them a bit younger.

Pickup after 6 pm to allow them to get to quieted and cooled down and hopefully on their roosts. 7 pm might be better. You will need a good carry crate and cash. These guys have been treated as pets. Thank you. "


Some showy roosters, aren't they?


But back to the beginning of this weekend - Jace and I headed to Stockton Friday morning, to spend the weekend with my sister Susan, her family, and Tara/Luke and Isaac.   Ron and Susan bought a ski boat this spring, and we finally made it up for a weekend with them.   And what a fabulous time we had!  Thank you, Susan, Ron and boys, for a wonderful weekend!

We headed out to the marina Friday morning about 10:30; the sky was somewhat overcast, but the temps were still reasonably nice, in the upper 70s and low 80s.  A far cry from the 103 of last week, and very welcomed!  I forget how beautiful Stockton Lake is - of course I'm a huge fan of Tablerock Lake, but Stockton is even more peaceful - we were one of the only boats out on Friday.

Jace has been looking forward to our visit for the last couple of weeks; his cousin Landon has learned how to ski, and he has been anxious to learn.   The three boys started out on the tube on Friday, and Ron dragged them all over the lake!  

Lunch!

After eating some lunch, the sun came out and it was warm enough for the adults to enjoy the water. Luke, Ron and Susan all got out on their skis. Tara and I were so impressed that one of our siblings had the skills to get out there. We all three had a good chat about it - we think we could have actually been somewhat athletic, but we were never given the opportunity to develop our abilities... with six kids, our parents didn't have the time to haul around to practices, etc. so it just wasn't ever something that was encouraged.

Sisters!

Suz - showin' off her mad skills!

Luke got out as well, for the second time on Friday - he and Ron were out on the lake at 5:30 AM with Ron's boss.

Luke - he also had a showy way of going...

Ron goes out with his boss and others fairly often in the summer, in the mornings, and he was awesome on the skis - up on just one ski:

Ron - I'm so impressed!

Jace got up on skis his first try, with some pre-ski coaching from his uncles;  he did great!   He went again Saturday, and crossed outside the wake a few times as well.  He's hooked, and already asking when we can come back and go out on the boat again.

Our little guy, Ike, had a great time watching everyone get out on the skis and tube - the first time his dad got out on the skis and wiped out, Isaac burst out in tears!  But once he saw Luke was ok, he enjoyed the show.



Naptime - heading home




Me & Tara on the tube

After coming in off the lake, the guys put the boat away and fired up the grill for some burgers, french fries deep-fried zucchini, and more.  For dessert we had an early birthday party for Jace, he's geting ready to be a teenager... hard to believe!  His birthday is at the end of summer every year, and it is always hard to have any kind of party, since he and friends don't stay in touch as much over the summer.

Jace was very surprised, and it was special to celebrate this milestone birthday with our family.   He had a great time with his cousins, playing on the lake, the Wii, XBox, Legos and more- even though we only live an hour apart, we just don't get together as much as we should.

Now it is Sunday morning, and we're relaxing with coffee in Susan and Ron's kitchen, and just enjoying the morning before we all head home and start getting ready for the work week.  One of the best things in my life is my family, and times like these are the ones that the kids, and adults, will remember.  A big THANK YOU to Suz and Ron for everything!