Traveling circus X 2!

As if it's not chaotic enough with our three kids we thought we'd go on vacation with Em, Brian and her 3 boys! We made this trip last year and it's official...we have started a new tradition! Yes it gets crazy at times with wrestling, screaming, fighting over toys and baby cries but it is so fun to get to hang with good friends! I was a quick trip...we actually joked that it takes longer to pack, unpack, pack again and clean up then it does being here for 2 days! We got so lucky and had a warm, sunny, no wind day at the beach! The kids played in the water and sand, buried each other in the sand and climbed the sand dune (until the sand got too hot and was burning their feet...have you ever heard of that on the Oregon Coast...sand that's TOO hot to walk on?!) We had dinner at the Pelican Pub which is one of our favorites, and we got so lucky to find someone that was done with their camp fire just as we were leaving so we got to have our smores. The boys had decided that it wasn't worth it to go buy firewood and a lighter just to roast some marshmallows so they had convinced the kids that they would be just as good on the BBQ at home. That is not how the tradition of smores on the beach goes for me...I grew up with my grandpa making a fire every night and we would sit down there for hours...all you friends of mine that got invited on the annual beach trip know what I'm talking about! I told Jamie our kids needed these memories...they are some of my favorite growing up. He said they have plenty of memories...we just got back from Gozzer for a week to which I responded they need some roughneck memories like cooking dinner and dessert over a sandy fire...not going down water slides at the Gretzky's! (the funny part is they don't even know who that is...no idea how good they have it!). So my wish came true, we roasted marshmallows, made smores and came back home with knots in the hair from marshmallow stickiness and smoke scented clothes...I LOVE it! After a morning coffee run (where the kids found wild bunnies that run around behind the coffee shop...and they conveniently sell bunny food so the kids can feed them!)...we packed up and headed home. So that was it for our summer outings...we are home and glad to be here. Summer always goes so fast but I feel like we did our best to make the best use of the time we had...and created wonderful memories...both of the lifestyle of the rich and famous and roughing it on the beaches of Pacific City!

Life of the traveling circus...

I can honestly say I am HAPPY to be home! I know that makes me sound like a spoiled brat complaining about how many vacations we have been on...and I'm really not complaining...it was so much fun....but there is just something about being back in your own bed with your own things! We went back to Gozzer for another week...and brought our babysitter and her friend with us (Chloe and Jali) who both happen to work for us at Papa Murphy's too. We decided to break up the 7 hour drive and leave Saturday night. Jamie made reservations at the La Quinta (The Ritz of Kennewick!) and we left at 9pm so Jalen slept most of the way while the girls had a Twilight mara
thon. So we get in at 12:30am...go in to check in and they say there is no reservations and there are no more rooms but they recently changed their name so maybe we called "The Baymont" next door. Ok no big deal, it was literally in the same parking lot so we walk next door and after a couple minutes head to our room. Well...SURPRISE! The room he gave us a key for was occupied (and let me add that our party of 7 was not exactly using whisper voices!). We go back to the lobby to find out that there is only one room left and it is a room with one bed. That should work out well with so many of us...so we ask if they at least have a cot. We walk into the smallest hotel room I've ever been in, set the girls up on the floor on one side of the bed, put Chloe and Jali in the twin cot on the other side and Jalen, Jamie and I share a bed (as usual!). Within a minute of laying down Jamie asks to switch sides because he opens his eyes to find he's within inches of Jali...just slightly awkward! These poor sitters have to be wondering what they have gotten into...all they have heard is how fun Gozzer is and now they are sharing a small hotel room with a family of 5! We wake up early, take advantage of the continental breakfast and hit the road. It was smooth sailing from there and we were at the condo by 1:00 and at the lake by 2:00. We had a great week...Jamie and I got up in the morning at 5:30 to go work out and then get in an early round of golf, then we'd meet the kids for a full day in the sun. My parents joined us halfway through the week and we had a fun time hanging with them. We took the boat out again for a couple hours so Jalen could do some more wake surfing, the girls could wake board and of course the intertube! I made the mistake of going with Jamie on the tube and between the water and him landing on top of me got pretty beat up! My cheeks hurt from laughing so much! I then went with Ellie and Jalen which was not easy being in the middle of them...I kept sliding off the back of the tube. My sweet little Jalen let go with one of his hands to put his arm around my neck and said "I keep you safe Mommy"...those are the moments that mark your heart! The main reason we were up there was for the Club Championship which was a Saturday and Sunday tournament. So we are out Friday playing with my dad when they see that it also happens to be the ladies club championship and they proceed to sign me up right then and there. I have only been golfing for May and I have never played in a tournament. I'm instantly nervous...feel like I have to give a speech in front of my high school class kind of nervous. There were only 5 people playing so my dad kept saying the worse you can do is to come in fifth...they all thought that was pretty funny! It ended up being a great time...a little lady drama which is to be expected but I played great, met some fun ladies (one being Janet Gretzky who I got to play with both days...and got our whole family invited over to their house to swim and go down the water slides!) and if you can believe this...came in second in the net contest! They gave me a framed plaque and everything...SO COOL! We left on Sunday after the tournament...and drove straight through this time...we weren't risking it with another bad hotel situation! So we got back at 11pm on Sunday night just to turn around and leave again Monday for Pacific City with my best friend from high school, Emily, and her husband Brian, and 3 kids Max, Jack and baby Reece. Bad planning on my part doing back to back vacations but still so excited to hang with my friend! Did a quick swap out of the clothes...loaded up the sand toys, smore supplies, sweatshirts, and flip flops and we were on our way!

Gozzer Bay...another day at the lake

Boating

Pirate Cruise

Fishing

Huckleberries, the lake and golf...Gozzer here we come!

We just spent our first of a few weeks at Gozzer in Couer d'Alene. We started going 6 years ago and it has officially become our favorite place. It is so family friendly, with everything from kids camp to amazing sports courts, pools, golf, such amazing snack shacks they are actually called "comfort stations", and best of all the lake! We spend our days playing in the sun either at Gozzer Bay where there is every water toy you can imagine including a big water slide, the beach for the little ones, fishing for the big and little, and jet skis...or at the pool that is surrounded by a play structure and sport courts. The kids go hard all day and crash hard at night! We went with Aaron, Lace, Caleb, Addie and Tristan and my parents. The cousins have so much fun playing together (most of the time!) and we have lots of laughs throughout the week! This is the first year that I actually played golf on this amazing course which was so fun...and as I mentioned the huckleberries...they are everywhere! In the comfort stations on the gofl course they have huckleberry ice cream, popsicles, syrup, jam, candy...you name it and it is SO good! It left me wondering why we don't see more huckleberry here...I mean what do they only grow in Idaho?! We rent the Gozzer boat for a few hours that comes with a driver and an instructor (that happens to be a professional in water sports). These guys are so great, they teach the kids to wake board, wake surf...go as far as get in the water with them to help them get up or in our case go WITH our kids! Matt took Jalen on the surf board to try some wake surfing and Jalen had the biggest smile the whole time! I think Matt's legs got tired before Jalen did...he would have stayed out there all day! And AJ who is a professional wake boarder took Lily to ride doubles on the wake board and then helped her get up on her own after. He also gave us a little show with all the tricks...flips and turns and all...it was impressive! Jamie, Aaron, and Calen all did some wake surfing and Ellie rocked it with the wake board...she got up and stayed up for a long ride! We ended with Lace and I doing the tube, then Jamie always gets on and lets them try and knock him off which has us all in tears laughing. Although this year Caleb gets the crazy tubing award...he got flipped 15 feet in the air...and held on! It was a little scary for all us moms...especially his...but once we knew he was okay that's all anyone could talk about.
Aaron took all the kids fishing and Ellie, Lily and Jalen all caught their own fish! They are lucky they have such a cool uncle because mommy doesn't like to look at let alone touch the slimy fish!
This year they had the "Pirates of Couer d'Alene that we took the kids on. It was on a big party cruiser and they went out onto the lake and did a whole show up on the top deck. The girls loved it, Jalen was a little scared in parts (when they were sword fighting...he didn't get that it was just pretend!) but they got fun little gift bags at the end with bandanas, eye patches, necklaces and gold coins so that cheered him up.
We wish we could spend the whole summer up there...but we are back for now (after a 7 hours drive...the only downside!) We are looking forward to going back in a couple weeks to end out our summer on the lake!