Lake Powell!!
The first thing I have to say is, dear goodness, Lake Powell is beautiful. Everywhere you turn it is just breathtaking. I am so grateful that we had the opportunity (and will continue to in the future) to be able to bring our kids to such a magnificent place and introduce them to such a remarkable and unique treasure.
Man! I don't think I'll ever get over just how beautiful it is!
My favorite part of the trip was without a doubt, wake boarding.
I really got the hang of some things this trip and had SO much fun trying new things and practicing tricks.
I even got a jump in! Now I didn't technically land it, but I definitely had air! And it was on purpose and well I was VERY proud lol =)
It was seriously so fun being out there on top of the water. I really love this sport and already can't wait to go out again. And it was especially fun to go with Tommy, who I hardly ever get to see now, and share the same enthusiasm about it with. It was just awesome.
Another favorite part was swimming with and just watching Lexi in the water. In the very beginning she was pretty scared of being "too deep" and would freak out and grab anything as tight as she could, even if it was just your skin, to feel safe.
But after the first day, she learned that her life jacket had a purpose lol and well...then she just LOVED it.
I was surprised because I thought she would like playing in the sand and on the beach more than being in the water but she definitely spent way more time being a little fish.
She would even go out in the deep all by herself. And she would be so proud. She is so cute.
Another favorite part of mine, was cliff jumping and jumping off of the boat. I was sad we couldn't do higher cliffs (it's against the law now) but we got to go to a small cove and jump off a 15ft or so cliff, so that was really fun.
Even though I was a complete chicken and wasted so much time being too scared to dive off.
I really wanted to dive but had such a hard time actually doing it so I was up on top a lot.
But eventually I did it! =) And jumping off the boat was so fun too.
As far as the rest of the trip, it all was just pretty amazing.
Here's a little synopsis for those who care =)
The ride there, could not have been any better. The night before we left, our amazing friends gave us these two tv's that strap on to the back of the front seats and so our kids were seriously mesmerized when we put on Frozen after we got going in the morning. And then they eventually just fell asleep. Seriously... amazing.
The "getting on the boat" part was a little struggle "some", but not really for me and the kids. Since we just waited for the boat to be ready up at one of the main stores and hung out.
The only hard part for me was really what came next, (well kind of... it wasn't so much hard, really just disappointing).
It was when we first docked.
The place well... wasn't exactly the greatest.
That first night was the hardest too. I didn't want Izaac sleeping up top with everyone at first (because I'd have to move that pack n' play over and over again, wasn't sure if everyone would keep him awake, or vice versa, and well it's the top of the boat... so what IF he somehow managed to get out and topple over the edge and into the water?)
So the first night, he slept in the boat in one of the rooms downstairs across from Cari and her two youngest. But being the first night in strange place and sleeping by two other little guys, I should have known, he wouldn't sleep through the night lol. So mommy ended up sleeping downstairs too (or at least "tried" to).. lol it was quite snug and I was terrified that I would wake up to a ginormous spider above my head.
Oh, and it was hot!
Well, I didn't want to do that again haha so I thought I'd try just putting him up on top and see what happens. Oh my goodness, it worked out awesome!
We put him in his pack n' play and he would just go to sleep eventually. He never cried to get out. And if he would wake up in the middle of the night, he would see me and I would just tell him to go back to bed and he would. The only downfall was having to move the dang pack n' play every morning and night, which happened to break this trip, but hey, I'll take that as my only struggle!
Not bad AT ALL!
Lexi slept great too. There was one night where she woke up and was still half asleep but was pretty upset so it took a couple minutes to wake her up and then calm her down, but that was it!
The next morning, Jacob was my favorite person ever, because he agreed to move the boat. It's not an easy task by any means and I was so happy that he was willing to do this.
Tommy, Jimmy, Bret, and Dad went to go find another spot and they couldn't have done a better job!
The next spot was PERFECT. The water was crystal clear, the beach didn't have nearly as many pricklies, it was deep enough to jump off the top, and it was right next to a fun and beautiful spot where you could explore and play at.
Needless to say, I was very happy.
From here, it was all just play, rest, eat, play, rest, eat.
I mean, it was still exhausting. As a mom of two little ones, it's not really a sit down and do nothing vacation. But both kids did really well. Izaac was just starting to walk and so it was funny to watch him walk on the boat because it would continue to sway lightly. Needless to say, when we got home, he had it down because he did not have to factor in the sway any longer. =)
And he had fun in the sand. He mostly would just sit there and eat it though. I swear, every 5 minutes, me or Jimmy would be saying, "Don't eat the sand!". Not sure why it would taste so good. It sounds and looks absolutely gross.
And he was more scared of the water than I thought he would be. If you went in deep, he would cling on to you for dear life and he didn't really like when there would be waves. But that's ok.
He did like being in this little blue float.
He took some awesome naps and was way less worrisome than Lexi was, the last time, since he isn't nearly as crazy in trying to climb everything and escape.
Though he did get a lot dirtier
And Lexi was great too. It was so weird watching her play on the sand or go into the water all by herself. She is getting so big.
We had a great time. The food was great (Tevia and Jake did almost ALL of the cooking) so that was super nice. The weather was great. There was a couple small storms that came through so it would be windy or rainy at some points but it actually made for some fun. And the company was awesome. I love being with my family and it was so nice to be with Jimmy all day, for the whole week!
Here are some more pics.
(Not all of these -including some previous ones- were taken by me obviously, so shout out photo credit to Tevia, Cari, and Mom)
Oh! and only really posted ones of people part of the "Cox" family since there is literally a bazillion of them!
And then it was over. Time to go back home. That day, well....
let's just say, it was a long day.
And even longer for the people who had to stay till the very end.
I felt so bad for Jacob and well really everybody. It wasn't the easiest day. But you live and you learn and I think we all learned A LOT about the "leaving day".
We had a good ride home though. We got some Chick Fil A in Flagstaff and the kids again, just watched Frozen and slept, so it was really nice.
We are again, so grateful for the opportunity we had to go. Thanks for all the help from everyone, especially Jake!
Till next time Riptide!
..... Oh, and sorry for the long post!
and all the pictures... =)
Here's a little synopsis for those who care =)
The ride there, could not have been any better. The night before we left, our amazing friends gave us these two tv's that strap on to the back of the front seats and so our kids were seriously mesmerized when we put on Frozen after we got going in the morning. And then they eventually just fell asleep. Seriously... amazing.
The "getting on the boat" part was a little struggle "some", but not really for me and the kids. Since we just waited for the boat to be ready up at one of the main stores and hung out.
The only hard part for me was really what came next, (well kind of... it wasn't so much hard, really just disappointing).
It was when we first docked.
The place well... wasn't exactly the greatest.
(1) The beach was FULL of pricklies. So as a mama with a one year old who will just crawl on the sand the whole entire week, I was not happy.
(2) The water was actually quite dirty. There was this one little shallow bay about 15 yards from the boat that would of been so cute to let the kids play in but the water was disgusting. It was all foamy and greasy looking, and
(3) one of my favorite parts about the trip is being able to jump off the back of the boat from the top, and in this particular spot, it was way too shallow to do that.
That first night was the hardest too. I didn't want Izaac sleeping up top with everyone at first (because I'd have to move that pack n' play over and over again, wasn't sure if everyone would keep him awake, or vice versa, and well it's the top of the boat... so what IF he somehow managed to get out and topple over the edge and into the water?)
So the first night, he slept in the boat in one of the rooms downstairs across from Cari and her two youngest. But being the first night in strange place and sleeping by two other little guys, I should have known, he wouldn't sleep through the night lol. So mommy ended up sleeping downstairs too (or at least "tried" to).. lol it was quite snug and I was terrified that I would wake up to a ginormous spider above my head.
Oh, and it was hot!
Well, I didn't want to do that again haha so I thought I'd try just putting him up on top and see what happens. Oh my goodness, it worked out awesome!
We put him in his pack n' play and he would just go to sleep eventually. He never cried to get out. And if he would wake up in the middle of the night, he would see me and I would just tell him to go back to bed and he would. The only downfall was having to move the dang pack n' play every morning and night, which happened to break this trip, but hey, I'll take that as my only struggle!
Not bad AT ALL!
Anyways... back to the story.
The next morning, Jacob was my favorite person ever, because he agreed to move the boat. It's not an easy task by any means and I was so happy that he was willing to do this.
Tommy, Jimmy, Bret, and Dad went to go find another spot and they couldn't have done a better job!
The next spot was PERFECT. The water was crystal clear, the beach didn't have nearly as many pricklies, it was deep enough to jump off the top, and it was right next to a fun and beautiful spot where you could explore and play at.
Needless to say, I was very happy.
From here, it was all just play, rest, eat, play, rest, eat.
I mean, it was still exhausting. As a mom of two little ones, it's not really a sit down and do nothing vacation. But both kids did really well. Izaac was just starting to walk and so it was funny to watch him walk on the boat because it would continue to sway lightly. Needless to say, when we got home, he had it down because he did not have to factor in the sway any longer. =)
And he had fun in the sand. He mostly would just sit there and eat it though. I swear, every 5 minutes, me or Jimmy would be saying, "Don't eat the sand!". Not sure why it would taste so good. It sounds and looks absolutely gross.
He did like being in this little blue float.
He took some awesome naps and was way less worrisome than Lexi was, the last time, since he isn't nearly as crazy in trying to climb everything and escape.
Though he did get a lot dirtier
In his defense, he always had help....
I loved how Tevia did her hair one of the days!
And she loved being with all of her cousins. We sure do miss living by them.
Of course, she would still occasionally need to have her "blanket and juice" rest
She even took some naps
Here are some more pics.
(Not all of these -including some previous ones- were taken by me obviously, so shout out photo credit to Tevia, Cari, and Mom)
Oh! and only really posted ones of people part of the "Cox" family since there is literally a bazillion of them!
Lexi even went tubing!
Last one on the boat...
Maybe one day we will get a picture where we are all smiling =)
And then it was over. Time to go back home. That day, well....
let's just say, it was a long day.
And even longer for the people who had to stay till the very end.
I felt so bad for Jacob and well really everybody. It wasn't the easiest day. But you live and you learn and I think we all learned A LOT about the "leaving day".
We had a good ride home though. We got some Chick Fil A in Flagstaff and the kids again, just watched Frozen and slept, so it was really nice.
We are again, so grateful for the opportunity we had to go. Thanks for all the help from everyone, especially Jake!
Till next time Riptide!
..... Oh, and sorry for the long post!
and all the pictures... =)
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