Camping Take 4: Sproat Lake

BC Day long weekend found the whole Brown (and Wight and Greenwood) clan at Sproat Lake.  We had gorgeous weather.  The lake was crystal clear and beautifully cool.  The girls loved having their extended family all around them.  It was nice for Cole and I to have extra chaperones around as well.  Our girls slept wonderfully, for the most part.  We took a day trip to Tofino on Saturday- it wasn't hot and sunny and clear there...there was this funny mist that settled on the beach and you couldn't see more than 20 feet in front of you and it cooled things off.  But we still had fun..most of us anyways.  We (the Wights) LOVE Tofino in any weather.  It was still warm enough for us that we didn't need sweaters and we still went into the ocean. My girls are true island girls and love the beach in any weather as well.  I'm not very good about taking pictures- I did get some this trip but 97% were in Tofino, 2% were in Coombs on the way back and 1% was on the way out of camp the last day.  So there aren't any of actual Sproat Lake.  But mostly because we were constantly swimming and having such fun. 

Highlights and memorable moments:

-watching K swim around the lake confidently in her lifejacket
-watching B get more and more brave in the water
-wrestling my sister off her tube after she claimed I wouldn't be able to
-playing President late into the night with Cole, Tanya and Alexis and all the "butthole" jokes that accompanied it
-TOFINO TOFINO TOFINO
-TACOFINO
-playing in the ocean (I got wet head to toe and I almost never go that far into the ocean- I'm a fresh water kind of gal)
-surrounded by family in the lake and K saying she wanted to go with mommy (possibly the first time she's every said that when daddy, aunties and grandparents are all options)
-cousin love with J, K and B
-Cole forgetting to open the bbq lid while lighting it and singing much of the hair on his face off

Many, many, many pictures to follow:

MIXED FAMILY SHOTS

B running to Alexis

hug

Alexis spinning K

sibling-in-law rivalry

mommy snuggles for J and a curious B

building sandcastles with Aunty Jacqueline

Grandma and J

the favourite Aunt (for real)

SKIMBOARDING

B joined in at the end

FOOTBALL

MY GIRLS

same expression

love

COUSIN LOVE

pay no attention to the girl picking her nose

POSED GROUP SHOTS

COOMBS

goat on the roof in the background

Now if you've made it all the way to the bottom, you will now be graced with the picture of Cole and his facial hair singed off...

That time my sister jumped off a bridge...twice.

My youngest sister visited this summer and used her new-found-adulthood to take herself off a bridge.  My mom would never agree to sign off on the bungee jumping, so she had to wait till she was old enough to sign for herself.  K was excited to see "Aunty 'Eggsis'" go bungee jumping.  This unfortunate experience not only includes plunging head first off a bridge, there is also a weigh-in (for obvious reasons) and then you get to walk up the dozens of stairs to the bridge with your weight written on your hand.  Can you imagine if all recreational activities required you to walk around with your weight written on your hand?  Cole used to work at Wild Play and knew the jump master.  He told him to make sure he dunked Alexis good.  She didn't know this- she asked for only her hands to touch the water.  Guess who they listened to? She also got upsold.  For an extra $50 she got to try the Primal Swing.  A female member of the staff went with her to make up the extra weight needed.  Find the two videos below.

waiting for Alexis to jump

stuck in the viewing cage

BUNGEE VIDEO
PRIMAL SWING VIDEO

Camping Take 3: Miracle Beach

First weekend in July we went camping with our friends at Miracle Beach.  It poured.  The end. 

Our rainy camp set up.  Cole rigged the tarps all by himself!

What do you do when it rains? Play cards! These kids had some pretty amusing rules and strategy tactics.

Mommy daughter time in the tent.  I'm bottle-feeding my baby and K is "nursing" her baby.

Hard core kids playing at the beach in the cold.

Such bad luck.  I didn't expect, when I booked the trip for July, that we would have to contend with rain...a lot of it.  I think we were all pretty good sports.  There were a few meltdowns, a lot of mud, and only one lost child (mine of course).  It was unfortunate that our friends had to have their first family camping experience in the rain- we were happy they held on all weekend. :)

A few of my take home memories:

Our friends retreating to their tents early the first evening, scared off by the rain. 
B finding a big, cold, wet, mud hole on the beach that she continually climbed into.
Saturday hot dog roast with a family that we don't see much since they moved away.
Pajama clad kids playing at the park.
Many many 'smores.

We will have to go back when it's warm and sunny.  The beach looked lovely- but the rain prohibited us from having a proper beach camping experience.