Year 3, August 31st, 2018: Labor Day Weekend, Part 2, School Section Lake Day

Abishai ended up sleeping with us the whole night because it was so late and we fell alseep as he did, so Jared didn't get a chance to transfer him to another bed. There is a pack and play in our room, but he ended up climbing into it from the main bed to get his paci and blankie. I'm not sure if he got out of the pack and play or if Benaiah helped him, so I'm not sure he'll be able to stay in it. We might have him bunk with Keturah. There's enough beds for everyone, so only a couple of people have to double up. There's two full baths and it's just like a regular house with full kitchen, well water, heat, washer/dryer, etc. They don't need air conditioning up here because even on the warmest days, there's a nice breeze off of the private lake. The lake is all enclosed and it's all private land, except for a tiny strip of public beach. But that's public to the cottages I think, not necessarily the public at large. The cottage is about 30 minutes from every store and restaurant, too. It definitely is peaceful and so far, very quiet. Uncle Ron said it would get busier as more people arrived for the weekend and got on their boats. In fact, there were a lot of waves from the other boats this afternoon.

The kids were all awake (except for Benaiah of course) by around 8am, so no one got up super early. But soon after breakfast they all wanted to head to the water. It was only 60 degrees outside, so we made them wait to get into the water until this afternoon after lunch. They were able to take the paddle boat out and paddle it around picking up trash and cans for recycling. Up here you pay a fee when you buy something in a can or bottle and then you get that fee back when you return them. Charlottetown in Canada was the same way. Most of the cottage's yard is steeply sloped and shaded so it does stay pretty cool, especially here in the downstairs walkout basement. I'm under a blanket right now because it's so cool out. Therefore, when the kids were allowed to get in the water, I did not go in. Nina didn't either. Jared put his swim shorts on so he could handle Abishai but even he didn't go under. The older kids swam close to the dock, while we kept the little ones nearby and hung out on the plontoon boat. It took a great deal of effort to get Benaiah up off the couch and outside with other kids, which did irk me because Abishai was already shivering at that point. I don't think I got a picture of all 4 of them in the water at the same time. But oh well, we'll try again tomorrow if it doesn't rain.

Benaiah took the paddleboat out, as well as played on the blow up raft. The middle boys, Justin and Luke, were trolling, aka teasing, Keturah heavily at several points today, especially near the raft. They would keep it just out of her reach in deeper water, which was not safe. At one point, she seemed to be struggling and I yelled at Benaiah to go get her. She ended up not ending help, but it was a reminder to all of us that we need to know the signs of drowning and not tease each other like that in the water. Earlier, I was inside the cottage (not a cabin, they are very different terms apparently), I thought Jared was watching Abishai near the water. Well, Jared went with Ron somewhere, and didn't tell me. Nina was down there with the kids, but no one told her to specifically watch our for Abishai. I don't like just assuming that another adult is watching the kids. I know she had come inside a couple of time leaving the kids alone for a few minutes. Anyway, Abishai ended up falling into the shallow water, and just like I had predicted, he was upset that he was wet. Great. I ended up keeping him inside with me and ate lunch until Jared got back and I reminded him that we have to pass the baton of responsilbity to each other verbally and don't just assume. For then on, I was adamant that Abishai always have on a life jacket or water wings. He didn't always, but he did for most of the time the kids were swimming. And you know what? He DID jump off the dock into the DEEP water without hesitating! Nina's 4 yr old granddaughter “won't jump off” the dock, so Nina feels more comfortable leaving her without a life vest. I'm not sure that's terribly safe, but she's not my kid. My kid is unpredictable so I have to hover over him constantly.

Abishai adores the water. He couldn't wait to get on the boats and ended up with a total of 5 or 6 boat rides for the day. In and out he went of the ploontoon boat while it was docked, which scared me each time because there's a small gap between the boat and the dock where he could get his foot stuck. And of course he tried to climb up and over the seats and gates. He's fearless. He's invinvible. He's Abishai. But he loved it! They have a swing set and sand, too. Abishai did manage to get to the bathroom all day, which was awesome! But he didn't have to wear a shirt or sandals all day, just like at home. He was so beyond exhausted that he basically put himself to bed in the pack and play and quickly feel asleep without Daddy snuggles and reading books. When we all went out on the ploontoon boat for a second tour with Gary and Leah (they had arrived around 4:30pm), Abishai was stir crazy and very hard to handle. While we were waiting for Ron to get down to the boat, Abishai went inside to find Ron and ended up coming out with a jeep and bus to take on the boat with us! It was a very hilarious moment! He's always the vivacious, percocious, “one more thing” child. Always. He ate a huge supper of course.

Yes, Gary and Leah arrived around 4:30pm and brought vegetables from the farmers' market. I was desperate for something other than carbs, which seems to be the only thing that the fridge was stoked with. Ok, there was dairy and some meat. I brought my own carbs, but I needed some color on my plate. All the stores are 30 minutes away, so it's not that easy to go “pick up groceries” although I think we will need some. The other kids had gotten out of the water and they ended up just messing around while dinner finished cooking. We had, I kid you not, sloppy joes (meat, tomato base), bread (carb), baked beans (tomato base), tomatoes, and french fries (carb). Then they cooked up corn (carb) and finally we had watermelon for dessert. Thankfully, Leah had brought some baby carrots with her, so I had those and a peach from the bag they bought at the farmers' market. There's no frozen veggies, no lettuce for sandwhiches, just a bag of raw broccoli. Apparently Luke and Clara only eat carb and meat and no vegetables. After my week of gluten, my belly just doesn't want to be filled with carbs. Anyways, there's now green beans and cabbage, cantalope, and peaches, I'll be fine.

The adults talked after dinner and Leah got me up to speed with the situation at home regarding the death of a 16 yr old boy who we knew. It's still a hard thing to swallow. But 5 of his organs went to 4 people, so that helps a tiny bit, and the parents are doing ok in their relationship with God and with each other. The brother, who is 17, is not doing so well. I'm very grateful that we had this weekend to the lake planned because it will give Gary, who has been at the hospital many times this week, and the rest of us time to rest away from all the questions people, and allow us to process some of it. It also gives us time with Benaiah away from the internet and work/school responsilbities. It's a much, much different vacation than July's vacations were. I even found myself bored at points today and kept reminding myself that the rest of the weekend's weather is going to be crappy, so spend as much time as I can outside and get your videos/pictures/memories today. I think we accomplished that. I only turn my apps on maybe 5 times. There's no wifi, so we are using just data, so we have to be careful. No, I can't do a complete fast. It already pains me enough to not finish my games and I'm missing stuff on Instagram because it's not loading up well. I'll try to load up some things tomorrow because it's the first of the month though and there's new Lilla Rose products! Benaiah does need to find internet somewhere so he can load up an assignment for his English class by 2 pm on Monday. Grandpa glared at both of us when he said “hey, maybe you should fast from your phones” when Benaiah was asking about how much data we have. Like he's going to fast from his own phone, ha! He can't because of ongoing situations and in reality, I do have some things to check on regularly, too. No, I can't do a complete fast, nor do I plan to. Nor should Benaiah be required to. Not having 24/7 internet is enough, thanks. It's just part of our DNA and yes we all do our best to be counter culture. In fact, Luke was asking Justin why he has a limit on how much screen time he has in a day. Luke had been up until 3 am messing with his phone and he woke up looking at his phone. Both Keturah and Justin did “sneak” screen time, Justin on his DS and Keturah on her LeapPad, but they spent so much time outside that I didn't bother count how much time they were on. It was less than 2 hrs for sure. Justin was explaining why they are limited to 1 hr on school days and it was like Luke was laughing at them. Well, kid, it's how we roll. We acknowledge that it's always going to be a battle to keep technology from overtaking our lives, but yes, we use it heavily. In fact, I'm typing this while Benaiah is winding down on his new laptop he bought from a teacher playing his game offline. Jared is editing a book. And I'm typing the blog so I don't loose stories and feelings in my head before Tuesday. It's how we roll.

One very funny moment this evening was when all 12 of us got on the ploontoon boat for a cruise around the lake. The little ones were stir crazy and the middles were not moving much because they were exhausted, but Benaiah was in rare form. He got to drive the boat, take pictures for Instagram, and had a grand moment with Grandma. Earlier he had confessed to “gambling” on his computer game, aka he had already spent real money to support his favorite teams or something, but somehow could transfer that money into a “bet” that they would win. Well, Grandma is a tee totaler and makes a big fuss over gambling, drinking and certain words like “awesome.” (Only God is awesome). And she should, to a point. So of course, Benaiah brings up the gambling thing to tease her. But on the boat, Jared accidentally hit Benaiah slightlyin the private area. Well, the word that his friends and he use for that is “ball tapping.” Ok, that's a little much in mixed company, but when he said it in Grandma's presence, she slapped him several times, which only made Benaiah guffaw louder to the point of coughing because he teased Grandma so much. Jared then said, “Well, don't tease Grandma again lest a lightning strike hit you in your sleep and destroy the cottage.” Oh my goodness, yup, we all were laughing. He really should learn that he shouldn't be saying things like that in mixed company and some of us need to chill and take a joke. But it was a grand moment that we wouldn't have had without us all being there stuck on a boat together. It was glorious!

The kids finished the day with some ice cream and thankfully didn't throw a fit about going to bed. Gary and Leah went to bed early, too. And Jared's in bed. It's only 10:30 people! Where's your stamina! Oh wait, I don't have any, I just push myself to the point of no return. I am exhausted, too, but that's because I went up and down multiple flights of stairs and the big hill. My knees don't like me. I miss my mints though. I need something for my mouth to do while I type. I'm going to try to watch some homeschoool lessons so I feel like I have more of a normal routine with watching something. But I usually chew on something and I don't feel hungry. Plus they soothe the stomach. Sigh.

One last story, one of the things I wanted to do was to go out on a boat with Jared alone, and romantically kiss in the middle of the lake, and we did. We grabbed the paddleboat boat while the kids were inside and grandparents were nearby, and took off, lol! I hope they noticed that we were gone because we did not practice what I preached about telling someone, unless Jared did because he had been up with them when I texted him from the boat while it was docked. We didn't talk about anything romantic, but tried to soak in what we could out on the lake. It's so hard to be still and watch! Being still. That's what we are working on this weekend. So very hard to do. So I type and write the stories down. It was a great day and now we are exhausted. Good night.

I kind of went back and forth in the timeline, so here's how the day went:

8-9am, everybody up and fed.

9am-12pm, everybody played on the boats but not in the water. Benaiah got up and teased Abishai. He then played his game and took a nap on the couch from 1-3pm. Jared left with Ron, didn't tell me, and Abishai fell in the water.

12pm-1pm Abishai and I had lunch.

1pm Jared was back and mac and cheese with sandwhiches were served for lunch.

1-2pm Jared napped and kids were told to rest.

2pm-5pm time for swimming; Benaiah joins us at 3pm

4:30pm Leah and Gary arrive

5:30pm supper started

6pm supper, kids played inside and outside, lots of teasing

7:15pm Jared and I take off in the paddleboat

7:30pm when we come back, we all go out on the ploontoon boat (12 of us)

8:30 pm get ready for bed

9pm read and lights out for Gary/Leah, Justin/Keturah

10pm Luke and Clara go to bed with Nina

10:30pm Jared goes to bed; Ron, me, and Benaiah are the last people standing, lol.

It was full, grand, perfect day, especially when Jared got to go out with Uncle Ron and Grandpa Johnson's refurbished fishing boat with Abishai, who immediately made himself at home. Grandpa Johnson would have been very pleased. Perfect day for all of us.

Video playlist:
Labor Day 2018 Day 2

Good bye, Mommy!  No fear of the water for my kids.  They couldn't wait to get out on the water!  It was a bit too chilly to get into the water just yet.  Mr. Luke showed them how to use the paddleboat, which has a small motor so they don't have to do all the pedaling.

I hadn't thought about it, but boat traffic goes counter clockwise around the lake like regular car traffic does.  I don't know if it's the law, but that's what I observed.  At least when we went out on the pontoon boat and did a full circle.  The kids stayed close to the shore going and coming though and only rounded the little bend a bit.  They didn't do a full circle.

Tootling along.

Abishai was dying to get in the water, can you tell?  It made me super nervous because at the end of the dock, he wouldn't be able to touch the bottom.  And knowing him, he would jump in without floaties.

Jared's first trip on the paddleboat.  Jared literally used every item that floated over the course of the weekend.

Bye!

Let me in, let me in!

Keturah having a bit of screen time before lunch.  The kids did end up getting screen time here and there, but there was always something more fun to do that pulled them away.  Yeah!

Oh, hi, Justin, way up there!  Come on down to the water!  This seems like a lot of stairs, but there many houses on the other side of the lake with 3 times the numbers of stairs.  Uncle Mike even commented later about how much lumber it took for those staircases!

A giant sandbox!  Another one of Abishai's favorites!

I'm totally bummed about this.  I thought because we didn't have wifi that Benaiah wouldn't have access to his video game or netflix.  Well, that wasn't the case.  He can play his game against the computer and he downloaded a bunch of episodes of whatever show he's watching to his phone.  Granted, he's on our data plan but we all tried our best not to use it throughout the weekend.  We didn't get a "you have no data left" message, so I think we did ok with it.  I know I used it probably more than I should of, but I did use technology a whole lot less than normal.  Which, again, shows that I'm very addicted to it.  Like mother, like son.  I, however, didn't watch tv shows, I prewatched lessons on writing and Latin.

First big boat ride of the weekend!  So much fun!

Just a little chilly.  Uncle Ron gave us the slow tour around the lake, so no more than idle speed. You can't go above idle after 7pm, which this was during the day, but the night cruises we took we had to stay at the slower speed. 

Probably the only time they were fully clothed on the boat rides, lol

Abishai insisted he sit between the boys.  He latched onto them, and later onto Uncle Mike's girls, looking for playmates.  Luke took it in stride though and tolerated him well.

There were many types of cabins and cottages.  Some people just own the property and put their campers up.  Some have very expensive cottages.  One even had a houseboat with a slide! And there was one actual sailboat I knew of.  There is also a campground on the lake with a public beach area and there used to be a small store, too.

So serene.

Snuggling up with the boys.

My girl enjoying the sunshine.

Sparkly water!

In heaven in the biggest sandbox he can remember!  Granted, we had the beach on PEI, but he wouldn't remember it.

Wrestling time!

These two make a fine pair.  Luke is Jared's cousin RJ's son.  He was with us last year at the other big lake house.  They are about the same age, just like RJ and Jared are about the same age.  I'm so glad they reconnected.  And I'm glad that we could just let them do whatever without worrying too much about it.  They were very responsible and wore their life jackets while on the paddleboat and wouldn't swim too far out from the dock.  They are strong swimmers though and we were usually close by, taking turns with the little ones.

Abishai is loving this carefree life!  No shirt, no shoes for days!  In fact, we couldn't find his shoes on Sunday so he went to church barefoot!  He did have a shirt on though, lol.

Since we got in really late the night before, in the morning Abishai was surprised to find someone his age to play with.  This is Clara.  She's RJ's 4 yr old daughter.  They loved having a companion all weekend and even fought a bit! BTW, I grew up with a metal swingset like this.  You don't see many of these around anymore because subdivisions won't allow them.  This one looks newer though, so maybe it was replaced?  Still, how fun to pump back and forth on this two seater!

Lunch time! Sandwiches and mac and cheese!

Finally, time to get to in the water!

First dip into the cold lake water!

Living the life!

In and out of every boat.

They got to use the raft for just a little bit, but we couldn't tie it up behind the boat because there was a leak in it.

Nowadays, everybody loves these huge rafts!  They were on and off this thing a ton!

This is the tube that will be towed behind the boat later this weekend.  It's got a deep seat in it and Abishai looks so tiny!

Finally, sleepy head Benaiah gets up and joins the crew...and within maybe 30 minutes the other kids were done.  (insert eye roll).  Timing is everything, kid.  But at least he did get out there.

Big boy floating on a raft in the middle of a lake.

Big boy with his sunglasses.  He has always loved swimming, so I don't understand when he doesn't go swimming at home with his youth group.

Look at me!  I'm standing up!

Now how do you use this thing?

Bye, Mom!  That paddleboat certainly got a good workout this weekend.

Hold the phone!  Special moment right here.  This here is Gary's dad's boat.  No one was even allowed to touch that boat without permission back in the day.  It's kind of sacred right to be in this little boat.  Ron's been restoring it I guess.  I think it lived at the Johnson cabin (very tiny, wood burning stove, hunting cabin in the woods near a stream) originally.  It's an incredible privilege that Ron decided to take it for a spin with Jared.  Maybe because his own boys aren't up at the cottage that much because they work a lot?  They actually had to put it in the water up the road at the boatlaunch area and then got it to this dock.  Special moment here.

And Abishai jumped right in.  With this jeep that makes noises.  He's all Johnson, isn't he?  Let's go fishing and hunting and enjoy the outdoors!

Again, bye, family!  I promise you, I did actually get on the watercraft a few times.  But it's fun to watch them have fun, too.

Gary and Leah drove up  separately because they had some church business to attend to on top of normal business stuff.  They got there late in the afternoon.

Three generations, on the 1st generation's boat.  Itt's Jared's Uncle Ron, Jared, and Abishai, but still, Great Grandpa Johnson would have loved it.

When we weren't out on the water in the pontoon boat, we used it as a seating area down near the water.  It was shaded and the seats were very comfortable.  It was also mostly dry and protected from all the splashing.  So, I was sitting in the pontoon boat in this picture looking back up at the cottage.  The cottage does have heat and a/c (although we didn't turn the a/c on).  It has two full baths, two bedrooms, washer/dryer, full kitchen (no dishwasher), two other areas in the basement for beds, a dinning room and a living room.  That's a total of 3 full sized beds (one was Gary's grandmother's bed), a futon (turns into a full sized bed I think), two couches (not sure if they pull out to a couch bed, but people did sleep on them as is), a full sized bottom bunk, a twin sized top bunk, and a pack and play.  All told, there were 12 of us with room to spare because Johnson's are neat nicks and don't hold onto clutter.

Uncle Ron took Keturah and Justin out on Great Grandpa Johnson's boat, too.  It is the 2nd motor that boat has ever had.  And I think he said that it was bought in 1966.

The sun is starting to set and shining off the lake.

So peaceful.

These two are just asking for trouble.  No, they are actually great kids, didn't fight much, and played and played together.  They are 2nd cousins.  Too cute!

Getting ready for our sunset cruise on the lake.

A better look at the restored Johnson fishing boat.  Yes, those are built-in metal oars.

Aw, so sweet!

Grandma Leah actually got on the boat, too, for the sunset cruises!  Just idle speed, please?  And don't you just love the father/son matching sunglasses?

Abishai loved having extra siblings to hang out with.

Awww

My baby, doing his thing, on his phone, just like his mother.  At one point though, we had a good laugh at "taking pictures for Instagram" like of the sunset on the water.  I'm a social media junkie.  He's the only other one that does social media in the family, so he understands what I'm talking about.  How did we exist before smartphones anyway to check weather and updates on news from home?  Sigh.

While we were waiting for Ron to come down so he could drive the boat, we thought Abishai went inside to find Ron.  Well, instead, he went in to find some "friends" to bring along.  Both of these actually make nose and I was pretty worried about them.  However, the gates on the boat all have solid doors and we were balanced evenly so the boat wouldn't lurch in any given direction allowing it to let n water and we were only going at idle speed, so it all worked out.  They stayed inside after that.

Perfection.

Awesome bunch of lilly pads on the left side of the pontoon when it's docked.

No words.

No filter.

This is a huge privilege, too, to be able to drive the big expensive boat.  I think Ron can sense that Benaiah is responsible enough that he gave him a chance.  Otherwise, only Ron drove the boat when we were out.  No other adult had the desire to.

Evening time.

Ooo, fun lights!  This is Ron's 2nd pontoon boat.  He was able to trade in his old one a few years ago for this one plus cash.  And in true Johnson form, it looks brand new because they take care of their things meticulously. 

Lots of houses all in a row.  Ron and Nina do know some people in the neighborhood or at least what's going on with some of the properties, which ones are for sale or who built what.

Chit chat.

All 12 of us on the boat.

The little ones were getting stir crazy because it was after bedtime.  But we couldn't speed up (and we didn't want to) because of the no speeding curfew at 7pm.

Aunt Ninna took this picture.  Yes, it was a bit chilly in the mornings but warmed up to a sweaty, muggy 80 degrees most days.  So we shed our long sleeves and pants soon after lunch.

"Wightwing McQueen" lamp!

I love how the lots are very private once you are up on them.  Panoramic view of the lake.

Panoramic view of the cottage.  Some people have an actual beach area, some go immediately to a dock at the bottom of many, many stairs.  Ron and Nina have an easement that holds the water back and occasionally there's a bit of lake bottom that is exposed.

iPhone pics now.  Another shot of Abishai and Jared in the paddle boat.

Tada!  At the lake!  Now if I could just master the selfie with other people in it!

Yes, socks, it was cool out in the morning.

Handsome guy.

Water, water, water!

I dipped my toes in but it was way too cold for me.

Trying to warm up in the sun.  Abishai's lips turned blue many times.  He finally realized by the end that it's not worth it to be in the water and shivering.

Great way to carry your kids: put a life vest on them with a handle!  Jared was dunking Abishai in and out of the water like that.

Panoramic view of the lake from the boat.

Ready to set sail on Great Grandpa's boat.

Lens flare!

"The sun is getting real low..."

This tree wants it to be fall already.  Later in the evening, Jared and I took out the paddle boat by ourselves. I wanted to be all romantic and kiss in the middle of the lake.  And we did.  I just had to refrain from problem solving during the whole ride and taking in our surroundings more.

Little guy wondered where we had gone.  He made me nervous just standing there at the edge of the dock without a life jacket on so I made him back up.

Monkey see, monkey do.  Abishai using a real paddle!

Wow.

Panoramic view again.

Baby selfie.

Stir crazy on the night cruise.

Clara being stir crazy with her Grandma, Aunt Nina.  All of Ron and Nina's kids live locally, and so does one of Mike and Pam's girls. The other one lives in Florida.  We didn't get to see much of Jared's cousins.  Just grandparents and grandbabies.

My baby reading one of my favorite secular novel series, the Thoroughbred series.  Mr. Townshend.  And his son who I wanted the barn hand to marry.  I based my Colorado dream home after what I imagined in these books.  To this day I could still redraw that home sitting up on a hill with a driveway lined with white picket fenced pastures and a full mile oval in the back of the house.  Spiral grand staircase, front window for the baby grand piano, 4 bedrooms, washer/dryer upstairs, TV on a rolling stand that we could put in front of the fireplace and then roll back into a closet when we were done.  Yup, I had the whole thing planned.  Oh, maybe 5 bedrooms: master, two kid rooms (two boys bunked together, one girl with a wall mural of horses), one playroom, one guest room.  Maybe 3 1/2 bathrooms.  Large pantry, modest kitchen.  Maybe a dining room in the way back.  Yes, I can picture it.  It melts my heart that she's enjoying them.  Maybe I should reread them with her!  Then we can talk about them, not in a school/theologically way, but just for fun.  Hm....food for thought.  I was that girl that loved the horses   I still am.

Good night.