Fun at the Lake

(Warning - this post is LONG! - pictures are at the end!)

OK, so I'm finally getting around to posting about our trip to the lake. I would have done it sooner, but, let's just say, I got a little, um.....crispy out there, and have been moving very slowly since we got home. It still hurts everytime something touches my back or shoulder, and especially when Ruthi grabs me, but it's getting a little better.

As my hubby says - "If you're gonna be dumb, you gotta be tough!" Well, I'm not very tough, so it's definitely been slow moving - but I will survive! Thing is, I was wearing sunblock - but apparently didn't reapply often enough!

He was pretty red too, but it was no biggie for him, since he's had MUCH worse in the past.

CJ's shoulders got a little red, but not too bad.

And Ruthi - well, I was slathering that stuff on her fair skin, and I was worried, because when we got home, her cheeks were still a little red, and when I put her in the tub, I noticed her back was a bit pink too. But she didn't seem to notice, and by the next morning, the redness was gone - thankfully.

Now, about the trip: Chip got home from work Sunday morning and had only gotten 3 hours of sleep. They had worked a bad accident on the interstate most of the night - very sad - 1 car - 6 people. 3 fatalities, and 3 in the hospital. And he didn't sleep well during those 3 hours due to some unsettling dreams after seeing all that!
So, the kids and I went on to church. I knew he'd sleep much better if we weren't in the house making noise, and well, I didn't need to make an excuse to stay home from church. I'm trying to quit doing that!

We got back home, had some lunch and finished packing the things we'd need. Then we got on the road. We had to stop at Target on the way to pick up a couple things. Right before we got there, it hit me - the one thing I forgot to pack - my swimsuit!!! I don't have a clue how I missed it, but I did.

Chip, of course, thought it was quite convenient I remembered as Target was in our sights! (And we were too far down the road to turn back.) But really, I DREADED trying to find a new suit. I hated the thought of spending extra money on something I already had at home - and the thought of trying to quickly find something that fit correctly!

And it was pretty much a nightmare. None of the really cute ones, of course, were to be found in my size. I ended up with one that I still wasn't all that sure I really liked.

We decided that since we didn't really know what condition the boat would be in, after being stored all winter, that Chip would just drop Ruthi and I at the hotel so she could swim in the pool, and he and CJ would go on to the boat and do some cleaning and such. I didn't want her to be bored to tears if we were busy cleaning and have her begging to go swim!

So, we went for a swim in the pool until she was tired and hungry, then headed back to the room for a bite to eat and some relaxing.

When the guys returned, they said the boat was pretty much a mess, and they only got a little done. Mainly because CJ decided he'd rather swim than work. And poor Chip was so tired still.

We got up Monday morning and headed out. It was very overcast and looked like it might actually rain...but it didn't.

The boat was indeed, a mess. Chip said it was much worse the day before though - at least he had gotten most of the loose stuff (leaves and such) out. But there was still a bit of cleaning to do.

So, CJ got a quick lecture about the fact that so much needed to be done and he'd not offered to lift a finger on Sunday. And then was told he'd have to help before he could play. It's only fair!

So we found our little cove we like to hang out in and dropped anchor. I had brought a rubbermaid-type tub, and filled it with water for Ruthi to play in. She LOVED it!

We cleaned for a while, and then I had to jump in and cool off a bit. That felt WONDERFUL! Then some more cleaning.

Once the boat was looking much better, we decided to enjoy ourselves for a bit.

Ruthi is SUCH A FISH!!!! She absolutely loves the water - always has. But I wasn't sure how she'd do with the fact that she couldn't actually run around in it. At first, I don't think she quite understood why she couldn't do that, but she was still having fun. She got braver, and braver and soon was "swimming" without me holding her. I was far more nervous than she was. But she quickly learned to hold her head up, and when she would roll to her back, she figured out how to get back facing the way she wanted.

She was so cute! She was shouting - "Swim, swim, swim!!!" and trying to doggy paddle. I didn't think I'd ever get her out of that water - she was having so much fun!

CJ swam forever - he loves the water too. (Though it took many years for him to come to love the water!)

Ruthi finally tuckered herself out and went down for a nap. So Chip and I floated around for a while and relaxed.

CJ had decided to take a break from swimming and was hanging out on the boat - which was great for when Ruthi woke up, he was right there. (She didn't sleep as long as I expected!) She would have been fine, I was floating right by the door, but CJ being by her side made her happier than waiting all by herself for me to climb back on the boat.

Pretty much the rest of the time, she played in her little tub, just as happy as could be. As we headed back to the marina, she was just relaxing in her tub.

When we got back, and she got out of her tub, I noticed the water was a little dirty looking. Then I realized......ugh.....she had dirtied her swim diaper. And, apparently, some had gotten in the water (not solid stuff, but stuff, nonetheless.) which would explain why it looked so dirty! Oh, how sick I felt - knowing my baby had been sitting in that, and her bath-time Dora had been in there with her. And she had been holding and kissing Dora. Ugh! How could I not have caught that? Well, she was so content, and there was no smell at the time!

Of course, then all the horrible thoughts about e coli start running through my head, and I felt like such a horrible mom! And since it takes about 7 days for any symptoms of that to appear, the 'what if's' keep coming back to me. You'd better bet I was praying over her that she won't get sick! And I believe she's going to be just fine.

Anyway, in spite of that incident, and the sunburn, we had an absolutely wonderful time. And the next trip will be much better, because most of the cleaning is now done! There are still a few things to be done, but not too much. So we can enjoy it the rest of the summer, and won't have to do a deep clean again until next year!! (It's SO worth the work to be able to enjoy the benefits!)