The wind blew and the tire blew. But we made it through. And had fun too.

I think Lake Powell might be a little like childbirth. There's some pain and some discomfort and a lot of hard work, but the reward at the end makes it all worthwhile. And before long, you have forgotten all of the pain associated with the process-hence your willingness to do it all again.

Anything is fun when you surround yourself with people you:

The GoPro was on hand to capture Jill's reaction to...
..this. I think the boys expected her to do a girl scream and run in fear but instead they got...
...The Lizard Whisperer.
Every gorgeous day on the lake ended with a storm. We got really good at gathering everything off the beach and the top of the boat in record time.
We made good use of "together time."
Erick's friend, Megan, shows off the earrings we all made. (Thanks Brittney and Makia)
Little Jilly was crushing on Christian's friend, Nick. After giving him a little squeeze one morning, she commented in passing, " I like that boy. I like his face."
Sunk the ski boat? Not to worry. The resourcefulness my children led them to find friends with ski boats who were on the lake at the same time and beg them to get them out on the water.

Christian got the wakeboard warmed up.

Brittney's friend, Ashley: aka: the boat owner.

With the wakeboard sufficiently warmed up, Nick made an attempt at the flip...


It was a very good attempt.

I think Mom could have cared less that we had no ski boat. This is her favorite form of entertainment: a good book and a stack of magazines.
A boat full of adicts...
Jill poses her willing parents. I'm not sure of the symbolism. Open hands, open hearts?
Just a small sample of Jill's collections.

Since there's no ski boat, we can assume that having a life jacket on means a wave runner ride. I think she's pretty dang cute.
Looking for treasures.
Speaking of treasures...what a cute grandpa he is.


The 's' fell off. It was supposed to read, "Swift." As in "Taylor."
Brittney,Gabe and Makia in the signature jumping pose.
We had to get another one with both of Makia's legs bent. It took several tries. For some reason, one leg always wanted to stay straight.
There is something wonderful about dads and daughters.
My hero. This was not a relaxing trip for him. I dare say, he needs a vacation.
Megan, Erick, Hailee, Makia, Dad, and Brittney catch a little breeze on the top of the houseboat as we head in. Goodbye, Southern Breeze. You've served us well.
When we went to get the trailer to pull the boat out of the water, we noticed it had a flat tire. Erick and Dad made a lengthy trek into Page to get it fixed. We waited. This is the second blowout of a different tire that happened an hour into our trek home. More waiting. While we waited we walked to Subway for sandwiches. I stood in line behind Christian and Nick and listened to them discussing their options. Nick was going back and forth. "Hmm..the BMT or the Meatball?" But he knew for sure he wanted a footlong. When the girl came to take his order he combined a couple of the choices he had been mulling over and told the girl he wanted a "football." I laugh every time of think about it. I'm laughing now. I wish you could've seen their faces.

A parting gift from Mother Nature leads me to believe that we will be back. In fact, already, all I can remember is the good. I'm pretty sure we loved every minute.