Granite Flat Cousin Extravaganza

Last week we spent some quality time up American Fork Canyon with the cousins.  Karen reserved two campsites at Granite Flat Campground where we were joined by Mary and Phil and their herd.  Kristen's two oldest, Ruthie and Zoe, came too.  I was so impressed with the older cousins--Gretha, Anni, Ruthie, and Zoe.  The younger kids mobbed them constantly and they were so patient and kind, coming up with endless games, fun activities, and "pony rides" for the littler ones.  We stayed the majority of the week and there was no fighting or arguing, just peaceful fun--quite the feat for 14 kids.  The campsites that Karen picked out were perfect--close to streams and a small river for exploring, and distanced away from the rest of the campground.

Zeke, lounging near the fire pit.  Notice the layers of dust and dirt.  The kids were filthy, despite spending so much time playing in the nearby reservoirs and our nightly "baths."

Sophie, stirring some bacon to add to our Dutch oven chicken stew on Monday night.  We decided that to be authentic, we'd better employ a stick as a kitchen utensil.

Maya and Hallee, playing near our campsite.

We spent the majority of Tuesday at the Tibble Fork Reservoir.  Mary and Phil brought up their canoe, so the kids took turns paddling around and jumping into the cold water, loving it all.

Waiting for a canoe shuttle to the other side of the reservoir.

Cousin Arden was in heaven, catching all sorts of animals and insects.  He's captured a water snake in this photo.

Gretha, Zoe, Ruthie, Hallee, and Maya, hanging out near Tibble Fork.

At one point, Anni decided that she wanted to jump into the reservoir.  In executing this jump, she stepped right onto the edge of the canoe for take-off, effectively capsizing the vessel.  Mary, Arden, and Maya consequently went for an involuntary swim.  This started a trend that lasted the better part of the afternoon--jumping into reservoir from the canoe.

I love that grubby, happy Zeke face.

Sophie Gene.

Mary, taking my kids out for a tour of the reservoir.  Somehow Zeke was coaxed into jumping in, followed shortly by Hallee, then Sophie.  Zeke, though brave, was shocked by the cold and soon started to cry.

Look at those kids, clinging to the sides of the canoe.  I love the expressions on their faces, showcasing the shock and awe.  (Poor Zeke.)

Zeke brought his soccer ball along and spent hours, practicing his various kicks every day at camp.  He kept begging for me to take him to the big field near the entrance to the campground (but quite a way from our site) so that we could play a real game of soccer.  He finally got his chance when Uncle Noodles came up for the night on Tuesday.  Newel loaded all of the cousins into the bed of his truck and drove them over to the field, were we played soccer, followed by a rousing game of cousin freeze tag.  Somehow the mosquitoes were thick at the field (they were nearly non-existent at our campsite) so I was glad that I brought along by backpack, loaded with no less than three varieties of insect repellent.

Back from the field games,

During the week we roasted marshmallows, Starburst, and even salt water taffy on the fire.

Hal and Aunt Mary around our fire.

We spent Wednesday at Silver Lake Flat Reservoir, accessed by a little dirt road that literally leads to the tops of the mountains.  It was at a higher elevation, so cooler than Tibble, but it was still a warm day and the kids immediately got into the water.

Cute little Hal.

The cousins, playing on the shore of Silver Lake Reservoir.

Gretha, Ruthie, and Zoe, out on the canoe.

Sophie, Hal, and Zeke--Zeke was trying to feed all of the ducks that came to see him.

He collected all of the fallen goldfish crackers and pretzels from the beach and cycled them to the ducks.

Mary, Karen, and I took some of the kids on a walk around the reservoir.  On that walk I spotted this little beauty--a hastily lashed together log raft--which ushered in hours of fun and utter hilarity.

Zoe, Anni, and Gretha, testing the flotation capability of our newly acquired raft.

The first plan: have Peiter and Arden pull the raft to the other side of the reservoir where we were staged.  That failed, so the older girls just waded near the shoreline, dragging the raft all the way around the reservoir.  That took a while, but produced a high volume of laughter.

Little girl's turn on the raft: Maya, Sophie, Hal, and Phoebe.

Zeke donned the life vest because he wanted to go for a "real swim."  He loves water and has no fear.

After some mud-slinging, the girls groomed each other in a futile attempt to get clean.

Zeke and Jake taking their turn on the raft.

Jake and Mr. Zeke, looking manly as always.

Wednesday night, Hallee pioneered a multi-taffy roast.  Obviously she enjoyed the endeavor.

Uncle Phil with a very dirty little Rose.

Since we are a one-car family right now, Casey had dropped the kids and I off at Karen's house on Monday to pack into her van (already loaded with her stuff and kids).  Somehow we fit all of that stuff into the van.  It was pretty hilarious.