Day 2 in the yurt - June 29

We slept fairly well...the boys slept much better than Brian or I (we just aren't as used to futon mattresses anymore).  The dawn light and the noisy birds woke us up from our slumber.  The campground is very peaceful at this time of day with very few people moving about.  It was a  beautiful dawn over the lake.

 
In the morning light, our boys are ready
 to go.  I walk down to let them goof off on the playground while our friends are still just waking   up.   A quick swipe of towel wiped off the dew from the slide. Jude loves playgrounds...since he is our .  monkey boy.  I remember Tamlin liked to hang around at this age too...but now Tamlin likes to race up and down the slides.

This is a picture of Tamlin making his "pirate" face.

 I let the kids run havoc for a bit before we headed to Tom and Rhonda's trailer.  It is a short 10 minute walk across the campground, but by the time we get there the boys are Starving.  Rhonda kindly obliges by whipping up eggs and bacon for everyone.  While sitting, chatting, and eating, we notice the variety of birds around...sparrows, robins, cardnials, and orioles!

 

 

Once back at the yurt, Brian got out the fishing gear and gave all the boys lessons.  Jude is using Tam's old rod.  Tamlin got an upgraded model for this trip.  Brian was letting both boys practice casting while using a jitterbug with no hooks...the same lure he had used to learn fishing way back when :-)  Jude took quite a liking to the jitterbug and wanted to play with it sans fishing rod.  After more than a few casts, we decided it was time to get licenses to try to fish for the real deal.  Licenses were had at a nearby baitshop...rubbery worms in sparkly colors were also chosen by the kiddos.

Later in the morning, Brian's mom and step-dad came to visit for a few hours.  We had a wonderful visit, just enjoying the company and relaxing.  Lunch was yummy chicken provided by Marge.  After, we decided to rent a pontoon boat to cruise around the lake.

We had to get the big boat in order to hold all 12 of us.  We had two hours to see the sights and enjoy the wind...but not much sun!  The boys all had fun alternating between eating cheesie-poofs and hanging out at the bow of the ship.

We let Jude steer the boat for a little while.   What a big grin!   I think he felt like a true captain! 

We didn't see a ton of wildlife beside other boats.  We did see a loon chilling on the shore and flocks of swallows nesting under the bridge.  The best was seeing a huge bald eagle perched in a tree along the shoreline.  Apparently there is a nest near campground and she had two fledglings.  Very cool.

Nearing the two hour mark, the boys were beginning to crash from too much fun and no naps.  Tamlin decided to chill out and meditate.  Jude crawled into Rhonda's arms and fell asleep.

 

 We got back to shore and back to the yurt right before another brief rain storm came across.  After dinners, the kids had fun playing with the water squirters.  Later, I taught Tam how to play a simplified version of Munchkin, which he enjoyed because he won :-)
The boys were both fairly exhausted from all the fresh air and slept well through the night, even with all the rain that pelted our yurt roof.