Hot Fun in the Summertime

We have had a great week up in the Grande Prairie area. Today we were swimming in Uncle Jack & Auntie Cheryl's dugout with the kids. If this sounds gross and disgusting to you, it just means you've never seen THIS dugout. Treated with aluminum sulphate and copper sulphate, this beautiful pond boasts a bluish green tinge. Under your feet is not prairie mud, but black tarps that cover the banks and depths of the dugout for maximum heating and protective pleasure. All around are trees and a manicured lawn with a shed containing pool supplies doubling as a dressing room. Sure, there's the occasional bug or two, the tarps are slippery, and the water is rain-water run-off, but it's a blast.

We were there with Heather and her boys from 11 AM until 5 PM (including the picnic lunch and potty breaks). We pulled out a little pool for Judah and all to use and tried to keep lifejackets on the kids. The water was a perfect temperature and the sun was nice and hot. I got a sunburn. Nothing unusual about that. At least all the kids were safe in the sun. We didn't have to worry about bugspray for mosquitoes because it has been so dry up here. We all got wet one way or another. Jim caught the end of the action before heading off to work after a good night-shift sleep without the boys in the house.

Micah was talking funny. At one point, the four older kids came after me with pool noodles, and Micah said, "Come, my minions!" Where'd he get that? He told me it was from Veggie Tales. There were other lines, but I just don't remember them. Perhaps my brain is baked more than I thought in the beautiful sun...

Aslynn spent some time lounging in the shade and jumping on the trampoline. She had a few episodes where her swimsuit came down, occasionally on purpose, and we got a bit of a show. At least she's little - we have time to train her before she makes any embarrassing memories for herself.

Judah, well, I'm mot sure how much he swallowed, but it was sufficient to have him spit up once. He loved the water and it was hard to convince him not to join everyone else in the big dugout. Enough action happened around him to keep him pleasantly occupied most of the time. At first everyone was a little wary of entering the dugout. Faith walked him home in the stroller a quarter mile to my parents for a nap. He was back out there later and loving it.

Friends, family, great weather, and a relaxing time - it doesn't get much better.

- Mark