On Monday morning (right after school got out), we packed up our car and headed to Pollock Pines to meet my family for our family reunion.
It had been unseasonably cold and rainy this year. We were the first to arrive and enjoyed the beauty of our campsite.
One by one, everyone else arrived within the next hour.
We got things unloaded and set up camp.
A cold picture on the dock.
That day, we enjoyed visiting, eating dinner, and sitting by the fire, and playing games.
(A few of the uncles may have gone to the restaurant/bar to watch the NBA playoffs too.)
Monday night was the coldest we've ever been camping! We all froze!! Trav and I woke up on Tuesday morning to see if Parker's registration for BYU classes had gone through. Something had gone wrong, and we had to register him from the tent, using my phone as a hot spot. We were able to get him the same schedule except for one class.
I wanted to take a picture of these three crazies on the dock but couldn't see their faces because of the shadow ... so they turned their faces towards the sun for me.
On Tuesday, we hung around the campsite and a few brave (crazy) souls went into the water.
We enjoyed time relaxing,
reading in the hammock, (and playing in the hammock)
playing games,
crafting, exploring, and visiting. The kids had a ball! We had a huge group campsite, right on the water. It was so beautiful and peaceful.
Thanks Uncle Kevin for bringing all the fun kayaks and paddle boards for us to play with! We love Lifetime! :)
Enjoying the sunshine!
Conner keeping an eye on the little ones (Max and Emily)
Grandma and Grandpa thinking they are too old for camping (at least the sleeping part).
Emily and I found a caterpillar.
On Wednesday after breakfast we decided to go on a hike to the waterfall.
Off we went on a short 1 mile hike.
Jenkinson Lake is a beautiful lake!
The waterfall was a lot bigger (and a lot colder) than last time we were there.
Conner and Uncle BJ
Our family (minus Parker)
Cousins exploring.
Calissa and Aunt Chrystal
Crossing the river to get to the waterfall side. There was a group of football players there that struggled to cross this river. It was funny watching how easily the kids did it. (The football players also became part of the entertainment. It was funny watching them try to jump off the rocks into the pool of water below.)
Calissa being a teenager.
Tina, Kellie and I decided to hike back around the lake (instead of hiking back to the cars and driving back around). It was about a 4 1/2 mile hike with gorgeous views along the way!
We stopped for a few selfies along the way.
You can't really tell, but between that opening in the bushes along the water was the rest of the group hiking back to the cars.
We also saw a banana slug along the way. Here is Kellie taking a picture of it.
Gorgeous, gorgeous lake! The weather ended up warming up the final day and we enjoyed some time in the water.
Grandma and Grandpa bought everyone a water gun. The kids were pretending to just be standing around,
minding their own business ...
and then they attacked Uncle Kevin and Uncle Drew.
Tina and I ended up out in the kayak. Drew was coming for us to dump us in the cold water.
We were trying to escape and ran into the trees in the lake. (The water was super high this year!)
Relaxing after the war.
Calissa and Trav enjoying some reading time.
Cousins playing games.
Our traditional picture on the dock with the grandkids. The open spot is for Parker.
(Left to right) Sam, Charlie, Conner, (Max on lap), Lindsay, Danny, Nathan, Abbie, Calissa (Emily on lap), Kaylie, (Parker), Maddie, Christopher
Adults: BJ, Chrystal, Kevin, Kellie, Drew, Tina, Trav, Jen, Dad, Mom
We had a fun-filled few days with the Romer family. The kids were all at great ages to make this a memorable trip. Camping is a lot of work, but you can't be the time spent together as family!
