Arrr Lake Powell Pirate Adventure

Flashback 25 years ago. Me, my best friend Misty - eight years old, at Lake Powell for the first time together. Turned out to be a vacation that would be repeated each year (at least once) until well after our missions.

It was great to be back in Powell after a ten year break - this time, with our little Mini-me's! (Both named Abby, by the way.)
Isaac was thrilled to be living on a pirate ship - and even took his turn at the wheel. Captain Abs steered us to the perfect campsite.

This man in the black hat is named Randy. He's Misty's official dad, and was pretty much my second father growing up. He put up with a lot of crap from me when I was a kid - so of course the first thing I told my children to do when we boarded the houseboat was to give that guy a hard time. Isaac was happy to comply.

Big Abi and Little Abby hit it off right from the start.

Isaac scoped out the only sand pile on the rocky beach and claimed it as his. He was yelling, "My king of da MOUNTAIN!" as I snapped this shot. He would have been happy to stay in the sandpit behind that rock all week long.

Abby collected all the seashells in sight.

But we did make it on quite a few ski and wakeboard trips in the "little piwrate ship" (as Isaac calls it).

We all loved the feeling of the warm wind in our hair and sun on our faces!

The trip happened to coincide with Isaac's 3rd birthday (Pioneer Day - July 24th) and he couldn't have had a better day! We started off with a hike up to some Indian ruins. Explanation: I totally stole this image of these awesome campers from google images because we had to swim up to the ruins and I left my camera on the boat. Isaac took one look at the room the lady with the shades is leaning into and declared to the world: "Dat is a Baby Indian Jaiwl! Dat is whewre dey put the Baby Indians when dey wewre naughty." He chattered on and on about the baby Indian jail all the way down the trail.
On the way back from the ruins, we stopped at the marina for birthday ice cream!

The Abbys were pooped on the way home. I swear that could be me and Misty 25 years ago - in the exact same spot! How nostalgic!

They awoke happily when I told them it was time for the pirate party on top of the houseboat!
The kids loved creating their own shipwreck and plundering through all the pirate loot that awaited them inside.

And Isaac's face in the photo above expresses his sheer delight at the pirate ship Daddy and I gave him.

We baked melty, gooey, chocolatey cupcakes in the 105 degree heat - but I didn't hear any pirates complaining!

And to top off the evening - FIREWORKS! (Everyone else on the lake may have thought they were celebrating Pioneer Day, but my little Isaac knew the truth - they were all for him.) Happy Birthday little buddy!

The rest of the week was spent in paradise. Waking up whenever we felt like it, sleeping wherever we felt like it, eating Grandma Dott's delicious food, and playing, playing, playing.

My little Abby REFUSED to get anywhere near the tube all week long. She cried, she begged, she pleaded to not be forced into that deathtrap. I felt like the meanest mom in the world when on the last day, I just jumped in with her.

Her screams of terror lasted approximately 2 seconds and then transitioned right into screams of pure delight. She wouldn't get out of that thing. Rode it with 3 different passengers, and logging a good hour and a half of straight tubing madness.

She tubed so long that Isaac fell asleep in the back of the boat - sitting up.

What an incredible week! We'll be back, mateys! (And we'll be sure Daddy can get off work and join us next time!)