Thursday afternoon we arrived at Yuba and set up camp. Mason basically laid in the tent and waited for us to be done. He LOVED playing in the tents!
He thought it was pretty cool to hang out by the campfire each night and would make sure to tell everyone that the fire was HOT!
Just a few days before we left Mason was still terrified of the four wheelers and wouldn't go near them if they were on. Once we got to camp he suddenly thought they were great. The ENTIRE four days we were there he begged to take a "ride" on one. Daddy took him once and he did great. He would get upset if anyone else wore "his" helmet.
If you can't tell, Mason was so happy to have Payton with him 24 hours a day! Right when Payton woke up Mason went running over to him and gave him a huge hug!
Mason couldn't stop giggling because they both had their hoods on.
(These two could honestly be brothers! They LOVE each other so much!!)
Bob and Mason had a little dance party....Mason's dancing could be compared to Elaine from Seinfeld...he is horrible and it is hilarious to watch!
Friday morning while the boys were on a ride Brooklynn asked me to take her down to the beach. She told me it was "girl time" and no boys were allowed. We then had more girl time the following two days! I love her like she is my own!
We hopped in the boat a couple hours later and headed to our own private beach! It is completely fenced off and there is no way to get to it except by boat. We did share it with a herd of cows, but the kids (and Bob & Brad) loved it. They chased after the cows all afternoon!
My shoulders were already fried at this point...
After playing on the beach for awhile we hopped back in the boat and went tubing/skiing/wake boarding for the afternoon.
(No, he didn't go by himself, this was still on the shore in two feet of water)
Mason didn't love the tube so much. Halfway through the ride he turned to daddy and said, "All done!" Then proceeded to turn around and lay on his shoulder until the boat stopped.
He wasn't very happy about being on the tube.
I love my big brother!
And his kiddos!
Brooklynn was up next on the tube and wanted to ride with "Brad Bowles."
After he fell off the tube Brooklynn (completely annoyed) asked him, "Why did you stand up?!?!"
He took driving the boat VERY seriously!
Brad decided to try the wake board and got up on his first try! He did great!!
That would be his "focus face."
Next, my dad went water skiing for a bit while the water was still flat.
I love tubing with my hubby ~ we actually got some time alone! HAHA
About five minutes after we got on the tube Mason zonked out on Payton's lap.
And he stayed asleep the rest of the boat ride!
We got back to the beach and played until almost dinner time!
This kid thoroughly enjoys the water!
We headed back to camp, showered and got ready for dinner. In our family camping isn't really, "camping." Our menu was as follows:
Thursday: Foil Dinners and s'mores for dessert
Friday: Pancakes & sausage, whatever we wanted on the beach for lunch and homemade pizza and breadsticks for dinner. Pies and toast over the campfire for dessert
Saturday: French toast sticks & bacon, deli sandwiches for lunch and steak for dinner. Homemade donuts for dessert!
For a few minutes we had some pretty crazy wind so the kids stuck it out in the tent.
The next day we headed back to our beach and went boating again all afternoon!
I didn't bring my camera in the boat and I wish I had because Brad had some pretty hard falls off the tube!
We LOVE the sandy beach! Not a rock in sight!
After boating we got in the car and headed to Scipio (about 15 minutes away). There is a rest stop with a Dairy Queen and across the street is a free petting zoo. They have the coolest animals! Zebras, emus, ostriches, deer, camel, goats, mini horses, a pony, donkeys, chickens, some huge bull thing, etc.
While in Dairy Queen Brad and Mason headed to the back of the restaurant while we were at the front ordering. We asked Mason if he wanted his own ice cream cone and he excitedly said yes! Then from the back of the Dairy Queen we hear Mason yelling at my brother, "BOB!! BOB! MY OWN! MY OWN!" He wanted to make sure he was getting his own ice cream!
I'm sorry, but I HAD to post this...it was too funny not to share!
He was chasing the chickens all around!
These two are my whole world! I am so lucky to have them!
The beach close to camp had quite a few rocks so Mason HAD to take off his shoes every five seconds to get them out.
His kisses are the best! Especially when he wraps his arms around your neck!
Obviously he had fun. He rocked himself to sleep in the hammock.
By the end of vacation Mason was trying to kick start all the four wheelers.
PERFECTLY TOASTED MARSHMALLOWS!
Finally, on the last night Mason actually slept in his own bed through the night. The first two nights were awful, but the last night was wonderful! When morning came things took a slight turn...
Brad and I woke up to the sound of the tent being zipped open. I figured Mason was trying to leave...well he was actually coming back in! The little punk had unzipped the tent and gone outside all on his own for who knows how long while everyone else was asleep. Luckily he didn't wander off, drown or get kidnapped! Lesson learned - zippers go on the TOP of the tent from now on!!
I am so grateful we were able to go on vacation the entire time this year! It was so relaxing and fun to just spend time with my family!
YUBA 2012 ~ 2013 ~ 2014
