Three of the five bald eagles that were circling the lake all afternoon.
Happy Jordan!
Daddy's face after jumping in the very cold water. Jordan stuck her head in my shot just as it was focusing so it ended up on her instead of him. You still get the idea...
Which ones are the smart ones - the ones in the boat or the ones in the lake?
At least they're smiling!
Finally, after nearly two years of no use, the boat came out of storage yesterday. The last time we used it, we got stuck on the lake in KS in September of 2008 with a engine starter problem. By the time they pulled the engine and fixed it, it was October so the boat was winterized. We pulled it out here in January of 2009 and it sat all last year while Robert was deployed (no Arledge family to use it this time). After spending a great deal of time cleaning it, the moment of truth came when he started it up here in the alley. We headed out to American Lake 1) because it's close and 2) because there are always a lot of boaters on it in case we get stuck. Last time we got stuck, there wasn't a soul around for quite a while.
We rode around the lake for a while, watching the eagles hunt and then the kids just had to try to water. It has not been in the 80's once yet this year. Barely in the 70's a few days. This water is c-o-l-d. Jordan went first - she's the least affected by the cold. After a couple of swims, she didn't want to get back in. Sam took one dip in from the back and one quick swim and he didn't want to go back. Gabby, and therefore Daddy, lasted a bit longer, swimming around for five minutes or so. Hopefully we will find more time to use it before the summer is up. Hopefully the lake will warm up a little. That's probably wishful thinking. Glad I bought that wetsuit in Montana. Hope it still fits.
June 6th Gabby bridged to Brownies. It sure feels like I just signed her up for Daisies in Kansas yesterday. She did a lot in her two years as a Daisy and is looking forward to being a Brownie. She was in two awesome troops as a Daisy! Thanks to everyone who worked with those troops to make her time in Girl Scouts fun. Yes, this one one week earlier than the boating trip and yes, the weather is a nasty as it looks! It was rainy and cool and a little miserable but if they're going to be Girl Scouts in Washington, they're going to have to deal with it!
