Fun at the JAWs' House

After spending the night at Jotham's and Dana's house we met up with one of Damon's old friends, Huck, who lives in Palo Alto. We went to the park with his family and our kids got some great outdoor time. After lunch we headed out again to visit Jed and Joette at their house before returning to Damon's parents' that night. It was quite a day, that took quite a toll: we left a sippy cup and nightlight at Jotham's, our travel wipes container at Huck's, and a pacifier at Jed's. We had to make a stop at Target before heading north again.

Jed and Joette have a lake in their backyard! It's a manmade lake in the center of their housing development. When their neighbors moved, Jed and Joette bought their paddleboat. They keep it tied up at a gate in their backyard and anytime they want they can step out for a little trip around the lake.

One great part of the lake is that it's really just a few feet deep. Gunnar and Holly wore life jackets, but we were at ease knowing any rescue attempts would be relatively easy since both Damon and I could stand in the water. (Fortunately, we all came back dry.)

Off we go! The kids also took turns paddling. I'm sure we looked pretty comical switching places on the boat. We tried to at least do it by the side where Damon or I could hold on and keep us a bit more steady. Steering was a bit of a challenge, but eventually we made our way back to the right gate.  Then Jed and Damon took Christian, Kiera, and Anya.

Maggie, er, Cupcake the Clown, got some one-on-one time with Cotton Candy for some clown training.  They did her hair in fun pony tail and Joette gave Maggie a few new tricks.

Here's Cotton Candy at our house in July 2010.

Then Maggie got to practice face painting with Joette giving pointers. 

This tiger was a big improvement over her first attempt on Christmas day.

Maggie also did this butterfly on Kiera's face.

 

We wish we could have spent more time with the JAWs. We're excited to have them living closer (14 hours! It's all relative; San Antonio and Colorado were much further) and hope to see them more in the next few years.