Ethan's rafting adventure

I thought this series of pictures deserved their own post. I don't know how it started but Ethan was sitting on this raft. I don't know if it got pushed or if it just started floating but all of a sudden Ethan realized he was leaving the edge of the lake and started panicking. Derek got him to calm down a bit and then he and Jack went on a rescue mission to get him out of the lake. Once Ethan realized that he wasn't stuck in the middle of the lake forever and that he was going to be rescued he calmed down and sat still.

Once he was safe he decided he could do a little joyriding

And finally they got back to shore safe and sound

Memorial Day weekend in Maytown

We had lots going on this year fro Memorial Day weekend. We were invited to hang out at a friend's lake in Maytown. Maytown is about 10 miles south of Olympia so it is real close to home. Only about 20 minutes away. It was a lot of fun. Derek had to work over the weekend so we were close enough that he was able to hang out a bit although he ended up having to work more than he anticipated, which stunk because he didn't get to play with us in the sunshine.

The group was a bunch of kids a bit younger than us that loved to party but were very mindful of the kids and seemed to enjoy them. It was a great time and I was so glad that we were invited out. I took a ton of pics and was able to whittle it down to just a few or so.

Addie absolutely adores Miss Niki. they had a little dancing game on the deck and were too cute to watch. They would dance from side to side on the deck and then jump off the end. It was cute.

Ethan very quickly found out that the lake and surrounding area was covered in tadpoles and frogs. He quickly named a tadpole Billy and after that they were known as Billies. Here he is searching for billies in a stream around the edge of the property.

On the last day we were there Ethan got to hang out in a boat a little bit. He thought it was the coolest thing ever. he listened so well and sprinted faster than ever to get his life jacket on before the boat left without him.

I thought this picture was cute. Have I mentioned that I LOVE my new camera??

Ethan went for a watery stroll

Addie loves these flip flops. She thinks they are the coolest.

Addie can't get to Niki fast enough when we see her and they are generally inseperable for a bit.

She is so darn cute in those bright sundresses

Addie and Daddy had a blast skateboarding down the hill. It was the perfect amount of slant so that they moved along well but not super fast. Still controlable.

Did Addie tell Aunt Stacy a funny joke?

Addie is the Budlight Monster

Addie loves to fly up in the air and Uncle Jack is so tall she goes waaaaaaay high in the air.

I think Addie jumped off this deck at least 100 times

Some of the guys made Ethan a couple of swords to play with around the fire. Here Ethan is attacking Jeff who took it like a pro.

Aunt Stacy shared donuts with Addie making her Addie's new best friend

Addie went for a tractor ride with Aunt Stacy
Addie wanted to check out the water for frogs then just wanted to stomp around in the lake
Addie loves her daddy and is always most comfortable in his arms

Memorial Day weekend at Salmon la Sac

I hope that everyone had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend. I know we did. Every year a group of my friends go camping at Salmon La Sac and when we can we like to join them. This year, unfortunately, Derek had to work over the holiday weekend. I knew I couldn't drive the camper over and definately couldn't take the kids camping on my own all weekend long, so instead of going for the whole weekend we just went for one night. We had a blast. Of course I had my fancy new camera for the trip and so I got some absolutely gorgeous pictures of the kids. So, here are some pics of our trip...

My rockstar sis came with us. My friends are also her friends. Plus it was great to have her help.

The campsite is right on a river so we spend a lot of time climbing on wood piles and rocks. This is Ethan's walking stick he got at the Oregon coast in March.

Ethan thought it would be funny to dip his butt in the water.

This is my friend Ivy's little boy Bodhi. he thinks Ethan is too cool so he asked to go down to the river to play with us and they played awesome down at the edge of the river.

Another little girl brought this tricycle and Addie immediately found it and claimed it as her own.

Here is the one and only picture of me from the whole trip.

Ethan came up with some big plan to dig a hole and then eventually hide in it to scrae people. It was definately dirty but the kids spent hours entertaining themselves digging this hole.

Justin decided it would be fun to bring a pinata for the kids. It was great. We had a huge group of kids this year and they loved the pinata. It kept breaking without spilling candy but when the candy finally started coming out I thought it was never going to end.

The pinata became a hat after it had been beaten to death.

Addie couldn't quite get it figured out so Justin tried to help her but I think her head was just too little.Addie took possession of this dog. I love rottweilers and really wish we had one. They are such awesome kid dogs.

Here Addie and Clover were fighting over whose dog it was.

Addie had a very strange obsession with Jill's car.

Justin and Ethan did some BB gun shooting

Addie and Clover are only a few months apart and they always play well together.

A little bit before we left on Sunday I took the kids for a walk. There is a trail near the site that I had never really walked down. So we followed it along down to the water. It was just a nice little walk and some time for just the 3 of us to hang out although Ethan kept running off and hiding. Crazy kid. These are some of my favorite pics from the whole trip.

So, that was our trip to the other side of the mountains. We had a blast. I love that trip and wish we could have stayed longer and Derek could have been there. I hate it when he misses our adventures.