The boy turned 10! As
any parent, I had to shake my head in disbelief as our boy turned a decade,
double digits, in reference to the passing of time. Where did it go? And why did it seem to pass so quickly?
He celebrated at our local water park/pool with 9 of his
friends for a total of 10 children. . . appropriate I think.
C'mon in! The water is fine!
My hands are usually cold. This picture proves it!
Bathing beauty
Every child in this photo was there for the party.
10 year old's try to be cool
Grandma Carol and Cathy
More non-swimming special guests-Moira and Ann
Having fun!
Gotta love swimming!
Was it a race?
Well, it is still officially Disney!
Grateful for gift that support the electronic age
Grateful for gift cards
What is great about this age is that it is still okay to invite both girls and boys to the birthday party. There were actually more girls than boys! Here's to another year!
What a day! Grandma
Carol’s 85th Birthday and our anniversary. Lots of reasons to celebrate. And, the request was a picnic by a lake. Got it!
We grabbed Hy-Vee chicken, coleslaw, and potato salad and
added them to the cooler full of drinks and headed to LakeWapello
for the evening. Uncle John brought
cupcakes and ice cream. We were blessed
by a temperate day in the middle of a summer heat wave.
Grandma Carol got an Iowa Hawkeye scarf and a custom tote
bag as gifts.
The boy brought along his remote control vehicle that can go
on multiple surfaces including sand, water, and snow. It got to run on two out of three. The battery needed charging by the time we
left the lake.
Everyone took a swim after our picnic meal. And, given the lovely weather, it was almost
chilly when we got out of the water shortly before 7:00 pm.
Grandma Carol proclaimed that she prefers swimming in lakes
as to pools. When asked why it was
because she grew up swimming in lakes.
Uncle John reminisced about how LakeWapello
had changed since his formative years.
All of us commented on the pebble and stone filled sand that was rough
on the feet. The husband suggested that
the sand needed to be raked like they do on Castaway Cay, Disney Cruise Line’s
private island. (You knew I would get
Disney in there somewhere!)
It was a beautiful evening—the lake, the milestones, the
company! Well done, Williams Family,
well done!
To celebrate the boy’s 9th birthday, we decided
to rent one of the two cabins at Pioneer Ridge, part of our county’s
Conservation Commission, located a few miles outside of town. Due to a soccer tournament schedule—more about
that later—the festivities began at 7:00 pm.
Guests of all ages arrived for arrived for the party, after
finding their way down an unlit gravel road.
Hopefully, the lights of the cabin welcomed them, along with the husband
who stationed himself outside to direct traffic.
While both girls and boys were invited to the party, it
would be the boys who would spend the night in the cabin. But everyone wanted to take a tour of the two
story cabin. Upstairs featured a loft
with bunk beds and a queen size bed, including a set of dressers on each
side! Downstairs featured a living,
dining, kitchen area, and a bathroom with a shower.
Once all the children arrived and had some pizza, they were each
given flashlight as their party favor.
Then the husband and Jeremy, the dad of two of the guests, took the crew
of 7 out into the night for a hike. When
they returned, they had 10 children as three more joined during the hike!
The birthday cake was ready when they returned. The wanted Lilo and Stitch to grace his
birthday cake. Yeah, Disney! (You knew I would get it in here somewhere!)
After cake, came the opening of presents and there were
cheers and ahs at the variety and generosity of the gifts!
Thanks to the husband, and again, Jeremy, a camp fire
followed with the making of s’mores, as there is a fire pit located in the back
of the cabin. Guests can help themselves
to an armful of pre-cut firewood for $3 per bundle. It’s on the honor system, as guests put their
payment in a small wooden box attached to the firewood shanty.
After s’mores, the “day” guests began to leave and the
husband prepared to tell a camp fire story.
This is where things got interesting.
We had said good-bye to everyone who was leaving and I began
to tidy up the cabin while the boys were outside. Within minutes, the boys began to make their
way inside. Seems that the story was a
bit too scary! Hmm. . . did that happen
on purpose?
Soon all of the boys were inside the cabin and were getting
ready to get into their sleeping bags, but not ready to call it a night. Flashlight beams and “boy noises” continued
until late into the night. They were all
awake by 6:30 am.
Breakfast was prepped and ready for the hungry brood. After all were dressed, the husband hosted a
morning hike through the woods. I got a text message from the trail “have water
ready.” Seems that the morning trail was
a bit rough, but one boy sprinted back to the cabin.
We then paused to take some pictures of the group around the
cabin.
We loaded the cars and continued to play outside while I
cleaned the cabin as required—sweeping, wiping surfaces, etc.
The husband and I delivered the boys safely to their homes
around 10:00 am. As for our boy, he was
showered and asleep by 6:15 pm that night and I followed at 7:00 pm. We had a grand time and hope everyone else
did too!
We were grateful for the star filled night—almost a full
moon, beautiful weather, and great guests!
Guests included:
Braydon
Hannalee
Jeremy and Emily (parents of Braydon and Hannalee)
Friend and neighbor Ann
Grandma Carol
Sam
Abby
Moira (mother of Sam and Abby)
Nate
Jennifer and Rod (parents of Nate)
Taylor
Teri (mom of Taylor)
Jack
Brock
Conrad
Scott (parent of Jack, Brock, and Conrad)
More about the Cabins at Pioneer Ridge:
There
are two cabins that are similar in size, but different in layout to select
from. (one has the queen size bed on the main floor for guests not wanting
to use stairs.)
The
rental fee is $63 (includes tax) plus a $50 security deposit
Pots,
pans, dishware, silverware, and cleaning utensils are provided.
A list
of cleaning expectations is posted in the cabin, including removing all
garbage.
Rental
guests are given a combination to the lock box containing the key to the
cabin. (Note: The lock box is
located on the “porch” side of the cabin.
We arrived after dark and I was holding the flashlight in my mouth
so I could manipulate the paddle lock to get the key.)
Guest
can occupy the cabin as early as 2:00 pm and must be out by 11:00 am the
next day.
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