Casa de Crazy...: The Lake!

This weekend a whole new generation of "lake rats" was born. We went down to Possum Kingdom with Tyler, Katie, Gracie and Caroline...Uncle Thomas...Andrew and Kayci Bell and Aunt Heather. It makes my heart so happy for Knox to get to grow going to the lake because my all time favorite memories of childhood are being at the lake with all of my cousins.

There were not 9 cousins who had more fun than the "Bolin grandkids" ...if it was totally insane, yet super fun, we tried it! We all learned to ski with two skis, slalom, tube, wakeboard, surf and anything else Uncle Paul threw at us. We would all bunk in the same room at night where Aunt Ann would tell us stories about Tilly the mouse, only to be awoken at the crack of dawn by uncle Paul for "serious skiers" who wanted to go skiing when the lake was like glass.

Today as Gracie was "skiing" on her Easy Skier (we did not have anything that fancy when we were little) and as Tyler is driving the boat, Thomas is sitting on the back holding the rope teaching her hand signals, I am cheering her on and Uncle Slade is on the dock ready to dive in and get her to swim in....it totally took me back to 23 yrs ago....

I vividly remember being in the lake with a life jacket up past my ears with two ski's that someone had tied together. My dad was in the water with me, teaching me to keep my knees up to my shoulders and in a ball until the boat pulled me up, Uncle Bob was in the back of the boat to make sure I got up relay hand signals and Uncle Paul was driving. Mom, Libby, Ann, Nonnie, Da and the cousins were all on the dock watching and cheering us on. I remember FINALLY getting up and the elation of, "I'm doing it!!" Uncle Paul sounded the horn that was to the tune of The Eyes Of Texas and I was skiing! It lasted about 3 minutes until I hit some wake and toppled over.

Fast Forward 23 yrs and you have me yesterday behind the cruiser learning to surf with Thomas now driving, Tyler with the rope, Andrew giving instruction and Gracie, Caroline, Slade, Heather, Kayci and Knox cheering me on. Somethings never change....

I can't wait for Knox to have these experiences. To be worn out a dinner because he has been in the sun all day, swimming, laughing, skiing, and just being a kid.

He wore a life jacket for the first time and now at home won't take it off (he's a weirdo) he got in the lake the first time with Aunt Katie who spun him around like a motor boat. He watched Caroline do it a few times so decided to let her take him, but still wasn't too sure about all this. He then swam with Mommy and Caroline. He LOVES the cruiser and was transfixed the whole time we were on it. He would point at all the boats and say "boat!..bye bye boat!" when they would go by. He was not too sure what Mommy was doing when I was surfing behind the boat but he quickly became my biggest cheerleader. Give him a few more lake weekends and he will be an old pro.

My favorite moment was last night when Gracie was showing us all how she was skiing with her little legs bent and holding a pretend rope and she looks up with a huge smile on her face and says, "Guys, did you see me... I was AMAZING!"

To also give her "props" she did jump off the high dive and she is only 3....the kid has no fear.