Bear Lake Bonanza

I LOVE MY FAMILY.  We got them all together in one place for a few days this month.  Heaven on earth.  Except for occasional reunions, heaven is probably really the only place this will happen.  I am so happy everyone put in the effort and work to bring it to pass.  Thank you, dearest family!

 

Picture of Bear Lake from our Cabin.

We set out on a fine Monday morning with Ethan and Missy and their 3 children, and Colin and Macey, for Bear Lake.

 

 The Drive to Bear Lake

Not long after we arrived at the spacious cabin we’d rented, Greg and Shauna arrived with their combined seven young ones.  The place started hopping and the corn started popping!  On Tuesday, Missy started the day out by making a big birthday breakfast for Brooklyn and all.

 Above- Brooklyn eating her birthday breakfast. 
Below- all the girl cousins eating breakfast on the wonderful deck.

 

Later in the day, Neil and Penny and the twins got into town, followed shortly by Kimball and Jessica and their 3 children.   

 Bonnie holding McKenna while Uncle Greg plays with her feet, McKenna's, not Bonnie's

Colin and Macey and Dan and I worked on making a festive birthday dinner for the whole gang, with a little help from anyone who was available to lend a hand.  We had chicken salad in baguette cups, Asian cabbage salad, a fruit-filled watermelon shark, and monkey face cupcakes. We sang happy birthday to Brooklyn, who turned 9 that day, and then another verse of “happy birthday to us” to celebrate everyone’s birthday throughout the year. 

 Above and Below- Us singing Happy Birthday to US.

 

Next came birthday presents for everyone!  The children got theirs by way of a fish pond Missy rigged up for them.  The adults got ours via a good old white elephant gift exchange.  But before the white elephant fun, Greg asked Shauna to try her hand at the fish pond.  It seems there was one gift left in it and he wanted her to have it.  So she fished, and suddenly rose petals fell down upon them from the balcony above, Greg got down on his knees,  and he asked her if she would marry him.  It just so happened that the gift was a beautiful diamond ring.  She said yes, and the cheering broke out!  We are so blessed and happy to have witnessed this special moment in their lives, and to welcome Shauna, with Katey, Alyssa, Jossalyn, and Levi into our growing family. 

 Above- Right after Shauna got the ring from the fishing pond and rose petals falling from above. Below- Greg on bended knee asking for Shauna's hand in marriage.

"WOOO!" said Greg.

The next morning, there came a-knocking on my bedroom door.  It was Greg and Shauna and children with a birthday breakfast on a tray for me.  Levi turned 5, and I turned 61 on the 18^th.  We decided to go upstairs to enjoy breakfast with the birthday boy and everyone though.  Then we hurried off to let the games begin.  The Washburn Family Olympics of 2012 were underway.  Colin and Macey ran the events, Penny made a wonderful Olympic torch, and Missy made keepsake Olympic medals to treasure. 

 The Blue Team

 The Yellow Team

 Above- This game one dad from each team had to carry the kids to the finish line.

 Above and the 3 pictures below- This game the teams had to go head to head to see who could blow the biggest bubble.

 

 

 

 Above and the 2 pictures below- This game each team would have one person jump then another team member would have to jump from that spot where the prior team member landed. Whichever team jumped the farthest won.

 

 Above and Below- This game the teams had to see which team could keep the ball bouncing on their hands without it falling.

 

 Above and Below- Just playing around after the games.

 Above and Below-The kiddos getting their Olympic medals

After lunch, it was time to go to the lake!  The guys rented jet skis, and I hear a fabulous time was had by all.   

 Above- Zaid playing in the water

 Above- Miss Sophia

 Above- Jaxon and Lilly in the water

 Above- Brooklyn

 Above- Levi, this little guy is so cute

 Above- Jaxon

 Above- Playing on the beach

 Above- Ethan and Jaxon talking, looks like Jaxon said something very interesting.

 Above- Where we camped out for a few hours on he beach

 Above- The kids dug a big pit till they got to the lakes level and hit water.

 Above- Penny, Niel, Greg, Shauna and the Twins

 Above- Christian playing in the mud

 Above- Playing with a frog, poor thing they kids would catch it then let it go then catch it again.

 Above- Man, it was so sandy.

 Above and Below- Having fun on the Jet Skis.

 

 Dan and I took the opportunity of resting at the now quiet cabin for a while before leaving to drive the 2 and a half hours to Julie’s home to pick up Shane.  Kaylee was kind enough to bring him up from Provo so we could meet them there, and Julie was kind enough to give us all a tasty dinner before we headed our separate ways.  It was good to see her and Lonnie, and to give them both a hug.  You never leave Julie’s house empty-handed, and this time she showered me with birthday goodies, and a few items I needed for a game.  Dan felt very lucky that we missed hitting a moose on the side of the road in Logan Canyon on the way back.  Meanwhile, back at the ranch, er cabin, word is that Penny’s and Shauna’s dinner of crock pot Sloppy Joe’s and baked beans was delicious.

On Thursday morning, it was time to rise and shine for the talent show.  Wow, are we ever a talented bunch!  Singing, reciting poetry, wrestling, playing the piano, knocking over water bottles in a unique way, identifying your wife’s foot while blindfolded, and marshmallow moving were our diverse talents.  Kudos to Jaxon for carrying out his excellent Master of Ceremonies duties.

 Above- Tori and Shauna sing a cute little song

 Above- Julie and Greg playing a game called Who am I

 Above and Below- Shane and Colin playing a fun game.

 Above- Miss Bonnie Bell singing

 Above and Below- The family clapping along

 

 Above- Colin and Macey singing Lucky by Jason Mraz, they did a great job

 Above- Levi and Christian wrestling

Above- Since we didn't have a piano Jessica Video taped Kaden playing at home and this is all the kids watching it.

More lunching, time at the lake, and resting came next.  For dinnertime fun, we were treated to a barbecue and pool party by Kimball and Jessica and Ethan and Missy.  That’s literally ending a reunion with a big splash!  

On the last day we parted by singing Happy Birthday to Kaden.  I know we will always remember this happy time, and I hope we’ll continue to build many more memories together.