gotta recharge every once in awhile

FACT: we have not been on a summer family vacation in 3 years

FACT: working at the campground consumes our lives in the summer, children get neglected, husbands are rarely seen

FACT: work related issues at the campground have been less than ideal for a couple weeks, stress levels were high, and the bounce was nearly out of our bungee

FACT: beyond our wildest dreams, we ditched the campground chaos, got a temp (Larry), and high-tailed it to Lake Blaine for VACATION!!!!!

4 glorious nights away. and thank you to Larry and Dan who ran the campground while we were away.

sometimes you just need to get away. as robbie and i were discussing the possibility of going we both felt that a few days away would recharge us, and the light at the end of the tunnel (labor day long weekend) wouldn't seem so impossibly far away. don't get me wrong, i love the campground. but the appeal of running it every summer (with 2 small children) is beginning to wear off.

so we've been away, and are now back. i couldn't be happier with our little vacation. it was phenomenal.

this is where we spent most of our time. the "relaxation station". thank you costco! (even though it sprung 2 leaks on the second day, we patched it up good as new) it was perfect because it has a mesh bottom in the middle so Judy could still play in it and not die. Xander loved it! i couldn't believe how brave he got while we were there with swimming. he can tread water in a life jacket and dog-paddle on his own no problem now. just seeing the huge smile on his face and him laughing at how fun this was made my day. you just can't put a price-tag on that. Judy wasn't as brave and didn't want to get in the lake. she barely tolerated the life-jacket she was forced to wear 99% of the time.

Xander liked the canoe quite a bit. the sea-doo was too loud for his liking. this was just his speed.

Xander kept saying "Happy Canada's day!" it was really funny. i don't know where he picked that up, we didn't do any major Canada day celebrations.

then when he got out of the canoe he held out his hands and said "can i have my trophy?"

then put his hands in the air and said "i won! i won!" apparently he was in a race.

Judy really liked the sea-doo. she is more adventurous than Xander. plus she doesn't have issues with loud noises. although we did get Xander on the sea-doo twice. we purchased some noise reduction ear-muffs for Xander which helps a lot with his sensory issues. but the second time he went on he smacked his head on the steering column when they went over a wave and that was the end of that. they had to idle all the way back from across the lake. it took them awhile.

we had a most excellent time away. i can't wait until we can spend even MORE time doing things like this. maybe next year? well, that is a long ways away. but i would be all over that!

on another note here is some of the things i love about my Jude. since i've been writing a lot about Xander lately, i've decided Judy could use some attention.

• she is determined. if she gets something in her mind she doesn't stop until she either succeeds or fails. and failure usually isn't an option.

• she has fallen off the table at least 3 times, her high chair 2 times, regular chairs (including sofa's) at least a dozen times, and has only fallen down the stairs once but that was because Xander pushed her (for which he was punished severely). all those tumbles and it still doesn't stop her. either she is brave or all those falls have made her stupid. the jury is still out.

• she wants to be with "the boys". when Rob and Xander are doing things together, she's got to be right in the mix. not being allowed in on the fun is literally heart-breaking for her.

• even though she spends half the day climbing and falling off of things she is still a little bit of a chicken. she doesn't love to be tossed around, unless by her father. heights make her nervous. go figure.

• Judy's only word (other than mama/dada) is "more". which sounds like "MUH".

• she eats anything i put in front of her, which in contrast to Xander is a huge relief.

• she loves her brother.

• she has a very sweet nature and will grow up to be a very easy going girl.