California Part Two: Lake Tahoe

This is the 4th post in the past few days, so if you missed one, scroll down.

So we got up to Tahoe on Wednesday afternoon (it's about an hour and a half from my parent's house) and I actually can't remember at all what we did that afternoon. Anyone remember? Oh well. Amy made grilled pork chops that night for dinner and they were delicious. Then after the kids went to bed we played a rousing game of Scum (a family tradition) and then turned in for the night.

Thursday we got up, had breakfast, packed lunches, and headed out to go on a hike. With 18 people, 8 of which are kids, one is my dad with bad knees and an almost-broken toe, and another my mom, who is very in shape, but is nursing a recently sprained ankle, we had to find a hike that accommodated everyone. So I researched the hike this year and it turned out well! It was about a mile and a half each way and it went down to this beautiful harbor (Skunk Harbor). Of course, that meant we had to go up on the way back, but that's okay. So we ate our lunch at the harbor and waded in the lake a bit. It was really nice and the water felt great on the hot day.

Getting ready for the hike.
Heidi and AmyOur cute family :)
Hiking along...
Down at the harbor.Our little friend that joined us for lunch. I noticed him when he was trying to eat my toes in the water! Eww!
So then we hiked back up and drove back to the cabin and then some of us went to the pool and some stayed and relaxed (thank you mom and dad for staying while Eli napped). Wendy made lasagna for dinner that night and then we roasted marshmallows around the fire pit my dad brought up from their house. Mmm, those s'mores sure tasted good. :)

Then on Friday we went to the beach! A few years ago we found this great beach called Sand Harbor, so we went there again. Usually when we go to Tahoe it's in June, so it's not very crowded, but boy were there a lot of people there last week! It was hot and everyone was out at the beach. I could tell Eli really wasn't feeling too good that day and sure enough, after playing in the sand for awhile, I wrapped him up in a towel, snuggled him on a chair and he was out in about 10 seconds. Poor kid. So he then enjoyed a nice little nap on the sand and we had fun playing frisbee, enjoying the water, and bathing in the sun. Friday was our night for dinner and we made yummy Greek food. We had souvlakia, pitas, tzatziki, Greek salad, and fruit salad. It was soooo delicious and everyone seemed to enjoy it.
After dinner we went roller skating! It was so fun. Amy is full of good ideas (the water kickball in the previous post was her idea too, well actually, her husband's). It's an outdoor rink and I guess in the wintertime it's an ice skating rink. They had all these little lounge areas around the rink with big fire pits and nice couches and tables. We could see the heaters that were there for the winter time too. How cozy! So anyway, we all went except for Rob who stayed home with his two youngest - Russell and Grant, who were asleep. My parents watched Eli and Vanessa so the rest of us could go (and because of their bad ankle and toe). Thanks mom and dad! I think they were entertained watching all of us. It was really fun! The kids all did pretty well. Seth was the only one who really got the hang of it and could go by himself by the end of the hour, but everyone else managed to stay up while holding on to an adult. It was fun to goof off and feel like a kid again and it was definitely something we should do again.

Mike & Steve helping Kenneth. Steve didn't get skates but he was very helpful with the kids - and he didn't lose his balance like the rest of us did when the kids fell over!
Ham.
Wendy and Shannon.
Steve, Brenna, and Amy.
Speedster Heidi. :)
Skating champions.
Goofy sisters.
Alright Seth!
The whole gang. - Wendy, Shannon, Amy, Seth, Jeremy, Me, Heidi, Kenneth, Mike, Brenna, and Steve.
Then we put the kids to bed, played another few rounds of Scum and hit the sack. Saturday morning we just got up and packed and cleaned up and we all left to drive home that day. Eli was great again on the trip. Yea! Mike & Wendy stayed at our house that night and during the day Sunday and then they headed out on Sunday evening to drive the rest of the way home to New Jersey. I felt bad they had to come so far, but it was really fun to see them and they made it home safely Tuesday night.

So that was our trip! It was fun to be with family and to create memories. Eli had a fun time being surrounded by more little people and he started to really get the hang of walking (I know, I still need to blog about that). We had a great time! But, as always, it's nice to be home. Congrats on making it through all of this! More to come about life back here at home later...