Immediately after we finished with the Christensen reunion, we got ready for the Hill Reunion. It was Cameron and Christa's turn to plan it, and they decided on a camping trip in McCall, Idaho. Their fourth baby was due in a month, so they had a lot on their plates. They are real troopers!
My mom and dad were so nice and said that we could borrow their new camping trailer and pickup to pull it. Not only did that save us a ton of space not having to pack camping supplies, but it also made it way more comfortable once we were there. Jonathon got a quick lesson on how to drive with it, hook it up, empty the tank, etc. and then we were off.
As we were heading out, we got a call asking for help taking some of the stuff up, so our first stop was Cameron's house to pick up reunion supplies. We loaded them into the back of the pickup and the trailer. It was completely full by the time we were done. There was no way they would have been able to bring all of those things without the trailer, so it ended being a huge blessing.
When we arrived at beautiful Ponderosa State Park, we spent the first few hours getting everything set up. Then, Crista set up a time for a photographer to come and do family photos. This was a huge deal because the whole family hadn't had a picture taken in many years. It was a beautiful evening, and they chose a nice location close to the camp. She took a lot of photos, but with that many people (especially kids), it was tricky to get one with everyone looking good. I ended up taking a whole bunch of the photos and photoshopping them together to get a good one. I was so happy with how it turned out!
One of the coolest things about the campground was that there were deer just strolling through it. We were shocked at how close they got to us. Andrew and I got within 20 feet of one so we could take a picture. They must be used to humans because it didn't startle or run away. The campground itself was beautiful with lots of trees and vegetation. We brought our hammocks and set them up near the camper. Needless to say, there was a lot of enjoyable leisure time spent in those hammocks.
That night we had dinner, Jonathon helped prepare a yummy cobbler, and then we headed to bed. The camper was so amazing! Jonathon and I had a queen size bed that was surprisingly comfortable, and the boys each had their own bed to sleep in. We even had air conditioning and a bathroom. We felt very spoiled. I could definitely get used to that kind of camping. We awoke refreshed and ready for the next day. That so rarely happens on camping trips.
After a yummy breakfast, we all headed out to the lake to go canoeing. The directions we were given weren't great, so everyone ended up lost. As we were trying to figure out how to get there, Jonathon got pulled over by a policeman in Dad's pickup. Ugh! He was going 40 mph in a 25 zone. It was very confusing though because we weren't in the town any more, so we thought the speed had increased. To make matters worse, when he asked for the registration, we had no idea where it was so we had to dig through the glove box. We found a bunch of expired ones, but not the newest one. We explained that we were borrowing it, and thankfully, the police officer let us go with a warning. He was very nice, but it was a bit of a nerve-wracking experience.
After a few wrong turns, we finally made it to the canoe site. We loaded in them and started our paddle. I kind of had a bad attitude about it at first because of the crazy morning, but it turned out to be so fun. The water was perfect, and there were very few people on the lake that morning. Christian and Andrew got one canoe, and Jonathon, Hyrum, and I were in the other. We rowed up and down the little side channels and enjoyed the amazing scenery.
That afternoon there was a trip to the lake planned. Some of the family got together to rent a jet ski. We decided against it because it was very expensive for a short amount of time. It ended up being a good decision because there were a bunch of mix-ups on the timing and about half of their time got eaten up by an orientation that they were supposed to attend prior. It was pretty sad, but they did get to ride for a while. The main area with the beach was pretty crowded, it was super hot outside, and the water was freezing cold. The kids only lasted for a few minutes before they were ready to be done, so we abandoned the beach and went to go get ice cream. My mom told us about a very famous place in McCall. She was right because the line was out the door and around the corner. It would have been an hour wait, so we changed our plans and just got snow cones instead.
When everyone got back to the camp, we played games (KanJam) and got ready for dinner. For the campfire that night we toasted strawberries covered in marshmallow fluff and then drizzled nutella on top. They were pretty delicious!
The next morning we spent time at the camp doing crafts. Everyone got a t-shirt to decorate with markers, and the kids painted little wood toys. Later that day, we went for a hike up to a look-out. The view was pretty impressive from the top of the point, but the wildflowers were even more amazing! There were little meadows full of pink flowers everywhere. We found a gorgeous spot in one of the meadows that was bordered with quaint wooden fences and took a bunch of pictures. It was a lovely spot. We would have stayed longer, but the mosquitoes were eating everyone alive, so we had to abandon the effort.
Early the next morning we had to pack up and leave in order to make it to the Egbert Family Reunion that was being held in Murtaugh, Idaho later that day. It was crazy that we had 3 reunions back to back to back, but at the same time, it was also nice to just make one long trip of it.
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