More boating fun!

We spent the morning out on the boat again yesterday and had a blast with the Fink family! Claire got me on the tube but it was only for a gentle ride to get us to less choppy waters for wakeboarding and skiing.

I love when these two girls are together. I think they bring out the best in each other and definitely have lots of laughs!

Get ready for a wild tubing ride...

and, wipeout!

Claire was able to get up on skis and went a long time before getting tired.

I was also able to ski a bit and loved it!

Now for the gentle tube ride back to the dock to turn in the boat...the girls were getting pretty brave by the end of our morning!

We ended the great day with some lunch at Papas on the lake. Such a fun day with a fun family!

 

Pontoon time on Lake Conroe

We decided to rent a pontoon on Lake Conroe for the day and had an absolute blast! Claire first tried wakeboarding when she was at camp and loved it so we were able to get her out on a wakeboard again during this outing. My favorite thing to do when we go to Minnesota, other than see family and friends, is spend time on the lake on the pontoon. This definitely allowed us to get a taste of up north for sure and reminded me just how much I miss the lake! 

Claire did awesome at wakeboarding! She really had a fun time!

It was a gorgeous day to be on the lake and a great family bonding day for us! We are so thankful to have this opportunity!

 

Claire's 14th birthday (posting just a bit late!)

Since Jeff and I both had to work on Claire's birthday, her best friend Abigail took her out for a wonderful breakfast at First Watch, after swim practice. Thankfully Abigail's mom is wonderful about taking lots of great pictures!

When everyone got home, we surprised Claire with her favorite...a big cookie cake!

Then we headed off to volunteer at the concession stand at a swim meet...

the girls got to run the registers and seemed to enjoy it!

After the meet, Claire wanted to open her presents before heading to bed.

We got her a cross necklace, some perfume, two new swimsuits, some cash for school clothes, and....

the Oh Snap! pickles she found at CVS when in Washington DC and loved them! As you can tell from the picture above, this was probably her most favorite gift!

We seem to have a pretty happy 14 year old so I guess we did alright with the birthday gifts this year! We are so grateful and thankful that God chose us to raise this precious child! She has definitely been the light in our lives! I look forward to where God leads her as she begins her next chapter and enters high school!