Thursday, July 17, 2008

Thanks Julie!




Preston and Paige had so much fun on their weekend with Aunt Julie. Preston loved having a live-in buddy to play with. They went to great grandma's and grandpa's every day. By the end, Paige was ready for mommy to come home. We took Julie out on the boat on Monday. The water was chilly, but that didn't stop the kids from swimming. It was great having her here for a few days to visit with us as well. We are so grateful to her for giving us the opportunity to spend some time together. Thanks Julie!



NW Fly-In 2008 in Grand Coulee

Greg and I just got back from the Northwest fly-in. We had a wonderful time. The drive was rough at 12 hours, but it was worth it. Julie flew up with her kids to stay with ours, so we had a whole weekend all to ourselves. Well, us and 35 other sky ski fanatics. Banks lake was a beautiful lake. We had glass even in the middle of the day on Saturday.



This picture is the marina first thing in the morning.




The best part of a fly-in is getting instruction from people who know what they are talking about. The boat above is the one we hung out on most of the time. The guy flying through the air is our instructor, Lawrence. He is 52 and has been riding for about 10 years! He was amazing. He could tell us exactly what to change each time the boat came around. We learned a ton from him.



This is Ben Ferney. He is a pro that will compete next week at the national competition. It was such an opportunity to ride with him and watch from the boat. He just floats through the air.




Greg improved so much. He is slowing his rotation and getting some high jumps. It was fun to see how much he progressed in just two days.



I'm still fairly beginner, but I worked hard on jumps. I can't believe how many things there are to think about: line tension, height on the foil, dipping before the jump, keeping the tip up. It finally came together for me and I'm feeling pretty comfortable with it.



We filled all the boats with skis and people and headed over to a cove to get a group shot from above. I can't wait to see it.

Wow, this was such an awesome trip. I can't wait to go to another one. We may hold one here eventually. We love this sport and want to spread it so anyone interested, let us know!

4th of July at Rockport






For the 4th of July, we invited Greg's grandparents to the lake. They hadn't been on a boat in several years so they were excited to go. The kids loved having them there. Greg was happy they were able to see us doing something we love so much. We got the tube out as well for the kids. Paige was an animal. She was standing up, leaning over the side, and grinning like crazy. Preston was a little nervous at first, then really got into it, then got wet from a big wave and wasn't so happy.



This picture shows how much higher the water is this year. We had somewhat of a beach to play on last year (top). Now the water goes right to the boulders.

Thanksgiving Point

I went to Thanksgiving Point at the beginning of July with my friend Courtney. I haven't seen the rose garden in bloom before and loved all the colors. It was a great chance to play with the new camera. The kids loved looking at the fish in the pond. We were roasting by eleven o'clock. We definitely plan to go earlier next time.