The Hazard Chronicles

We're going full steam into our summer. There is a lot that has happened since the last post, so hang on for some great photos and we'll take things in chronological order:

Boating Adventures

In our last post we mentioned that we had purchased a boat. It's a bit more boat than we originally had in mind, but it can fit our large family along with some friends for some time to come. Because of everything else that has been going on, we haven't been out on the water a whole lot since we brought it home. The times we have though, have taught us some important lessons. Namely, that we have a lot to learn.

From launching and loading from a trailer, to "kid management" while underway, to actually getting moving on the water in the first place, we have definitely run into our share of excitement. Fortunately, nobody has been hurt in the process, and we haven't broken anything expensive yet. We have made a lot of mistakes, hopefully learning in the process, and we have had a lot of fun. I think that our standing Wednesday night climbing dates are going to turn into Wednesday night figure-out-the-boat dates.

Just to give you an idea- here is our first time out:

1) Drive to boat launch
2) Block the entire road and parking lot while we figure out how to get our trailer oriented correctly
3) Nearly drop the boat off the trailer before it gets to the water
4) Serpentine the trailer down the ramp
5) Kids are crazy!
6) How do you turn this thing on?
7) Ahh- there is a secret button. It's labeled "on." Now the key will work.
8) Kids are crazy!
9) Now it's on- how do you get it to actually go forward?
10) It's not going forward!!!
11) Is that rain I feel?
12) Oh- we need to let it warm up. There we go.
13) Wait- was that lightening?
14) Kids are crazy!
15) It's raining pretty hard now, lightening is everywhere, and we haven't even left the dock yet.
16) I guess we're headed home
17) Load boat onto trailer- this part actually went pretty smoothly.
18) Isn't the engine supposed to be up out of the way when we drive?

19) Why isn't the engine going up?

20) Will you kids please stop yelling?!!!

21) Oh- there's a secret button for the engine when you put it on the trailer. It's labeled "trailer."
22) We need to plan better next time.

At least we had a good family night lesson. The soundtrack? Shakira:

I messed up tonight, I lost another fight

I still mess up but I'll just start again

I keep falling down, I keep hitting the ground

I always get up now to see what's next

Birds don't just fly, they fall down and get up

Nobody learns without getting it wrong

I won't give up, no I won't give in

'till I reach the end

And then I'll start again

No, I won't leave, I wanna try everything

I wanna try even though I could fail.

Getting ready to lead the boat back onto the trailer

At least the storm gave us a spectacular sunset that night. I love this place.

*****

Las Vegas

Every year of our marriage, Rachel and I have been lucky enough to do one big "us" getaway. This is largely due to my parent's willingness to take on our kids (who can be crazy) while we go and relax. This service is very much appreciated and definitely not taken for granted. It is also one which has probably kept Rachel and I out of institutionalized care- whether that means a prison or a hospital depends on the day you ask. Because of these little trips though, we get a chance to rejuvenate and put things in perspective. So here's a big shout out to my mom and dad. Though we've said it in person several times, it cannot be emphasized enough- THANK YOU.

This year, our destination was Las Vegas. Here, I'll let the pictures do most of the talking:

Twice, we got out to Red Rocks- an amazing rock climbing destination. The heat of summer keeps most people away in the summer time (on the hottest day, our car said it was 123 degrees). We are hard core though, and getting up before the sun made it possible to enjoy a couple of mornings in this breathtaking place. The first day we did a lot of sport climbing, and the second we did a little longer multi-pitch route. We did, I hate to admit, have to come down a little early when the rock became too hot to touch and we could see the rubber on our shoes melting. Seriously.

We went and saw Cirque du Soleil perform "O." Pure acrobatic and theatrical eye candy. Pretty stunning.

Lots of walking on the Las Vegas strip. Some of our favorite places were the gardens in the Bellagio, the hamburgers an Planet Hollywood (which I promise are world famous), and the Aria hotel and casino with all its modern art. Vegas has some pretty cool stuff.

Not a great picture, but it proves we were there

One night we went to the "Worlds Greatest Rock Show," which had a lineup of some great cover bands for various rock icons through the ages. Each band went out of their way to reproduce not only the music, but the costumes, stage effects, and on-stages movements of the actual bands, and with a little imagination it was easy to pretend that you had gone back in time by about 45 years.

The Mob Museum was actually really cool. We went there to kinda kill time one morning. We ended up spending 4 hours, and only left because we had to be somewhere else.

We did a comedy show where Rachel got picked on more than she deserved. She was a good sport though.

With Marissa and Wesley, we went to an "escape room." I think that's what it's called. I'll admit, I was skeptical at first, but it was honestly one of the coolest things we did. Secret passages, ingenious puzzles, and creative props made the experience very worthwhile. The company was also pretty good :). 

All told, Las Vegas was a really good, really hot, but really relaxing time for us to enjoy life without children for a little while. What a great trip.

*****

Lindsey's Birthday

As much fun as it was to be on our own for a while in Vegas, I was actually pretty excited to see our kids when we got back. In case anyone hadn't noticed, five kids is a lot. Readers of this blog probably know that it gets crazy sometimes. And our little escapes are definitely needed from time to time. The other side of the coin though, is that having five kids is actually really, really rewarding. I love our little (big) family more than anything, and I love the things we do together. We have a ton of traditions and little quirks that we know about each other and we have a lot of fun doing things as a family. I'll admit, I am tempted sometimes to indulge in thoughts about what a DINK sort of lifestyle might have meant for Rachel and me, but being away for a while never ceases to confirm the truth that I wouldn't trade what I have for the world. It's a pretty awesome life.

As eager as I was to see each of our kids again, Lindsey was the one that I was really excited for. And she did not disappoint. As soon as we walked in the door, she ran up to us (dressed as a lion) and me gave the biggest little hugs that she could (all the while, giving me her trademark pat on the back). Then she stepped back, struck a pose, and managed to exclaim through giggles "I'm THREE!!!"

Yep, our little Lindsey girl is 3. She is not my baby any more.

As a matter of coincidence, some family friends that live down the street from my parents were also celebrating birthdays that day, and they invited us to take part in the festivities. They even got a cake for Lindsey. It was so much fun.

Here's Lindsey by her cake

Rach was a little embarassed when I took all my clothes off and started flexing for people. 

Here's Jack. The three oldest kids (but especially Jack) spent almost the whole time going up and down the climbing wall.

Maren spent the whole time on the carousel. I think she rode it about 15 times. I'm not exaggerating.

Independence Day

I really like Independence Day. I don't know if I'm "patriotic" or not- that word means lots of different things, depending on who you are, and some popular versions of it really turn me off. At the same time, I genuinely love my country. It's diversity of landscapes and cultures is beautiful to me, and I appreciate that people, including me, generally have more control over their own lives than they would in many other places in the world. 

I also like Independence Day though, because of the community atmosphere. I like that people meet around barbecues for good food, or street corners for parades, or front yards for fireworks. I like that people tend to forget about their differences for a while, including those about what "patriotic" actually looks like. It's a good day.

This year, we went to a party at a friend's lake house for the entire afternoon. There isn't much more to say- there was boating, food, beverages, sand, lots of kids, lots of people, and a nice way to relax after a long vacation.

Have a good week!