Summer Part 6: Cranhill Ranch

Looking back through summer pictures, it's easy to see what a fun, full summer we had.  Many great memories, for sure.  But perhaps the highlight of all highlights was our week at Cran-Hill Ranch.  Joe had the opportunity to serve as a counselor for Remembrance Ranch, which is hosted by Cran-Hill.  So while Joe and his buddy, Casey Koopmans, were working with high-risk youth, Laura and I stayed with the kids at our campsites.  

There are a lot of pictures, so I will try to keep my comments to a minimum.

We actually decided to come the weekend before Remembrance Ranch began to have some time for family camp.

First activity - Claire climbed the rock wall

Slip 'n Slide

Fresh air, fresh fruit

Doesn't get better than that.

The beach

Lots of time spent looking for shells

Hay Ride

Petting zoo

Campfire

Chapel in the Pines

Sidewalk chalk

Running down the hill before bedtime

A bedtime story, and then a good-bye to Dad as he heads to the other end of camp for Remembrance Ranch. We would get to see him briefly each day, which was always a treat, but mostly, he was with his campers.

Naturally, we spent a bit of time in the Craft Shop

Making friends with a monarch in the craft shop

Archery

Claire's bullseye! (in the yellow)

The rodeo

Claire participated in the sack race

And then Claire and Wes (Koopmans) faced off in a jousting match.

And finally, the good ol' tug of war.

Victory!

Glad we were able to see Joe doing the ropes course.

And then back to the rock wall.

Another fun activity was learning to steer the pony rides.

Mid-week, Kate and Ruby joined us for a couple days.

Back to the beach

Love our Cousins!

And of course, throughout the week, we went on a few pony rides.

And another run at the slip 'n slide.  This time Henry was ready to give it a go.

Be still my heart.

What can I say?  Lots of beach time.

Sling shots!

The face of a successful shot!

What a week.  I could have probably posted a couple dozen more pictures, but you get the point.  Crafts, beach, pony rides, games, repeat.  

Admittedly, I was a little nervous going into the week.  Excited, but nervous.  But what a great week it turned out to be.  I was so impressed by our kids.  They were wonderful.  I think we'll be talking about this week for years to come.   We'll be talking about the skunk who made a midnight visit to our campsite, barn store candy runs, monarch caterpillars who came and went, lots of bike rides, me waddling around the pony corral at 6 months pregnant, and so much more. 

Summer Part 5: July Pictures

Summer Rains

Swimming Lessons with Alaina. 

A happy surprise to see her on the first day of class!

4th of July Parade in Grand Haven

Overisel Fireworks

A trip to the ER for an unrelenting tummy ache

Add more fiber to this boy's diet, and he will be as good as new.

A sweet anniversary gift from Mike and Laura.

Giving us the hotel room they had booked for themselves.

11 Years of Marriage

One of Joe's "other loves" - old clock towers. 

And who says there's no such thing as love at first sight?

Speaking of love at first sight...

Our beautiful baby at 20 weeks.

Summer Part 4: The Mud Run

Kalamazoo Mud Run 2018

"Getting Dirty for Clean Water"

Stretching before Dad's big race

Joe is just ambitious (i.e. crazy) enough to do the competitive 5k before he jumps back in line to do the "fun" 5k.  And he seems to smile the whole way through them!

Happy to be spectators


But uh oh...there are thunderstorms in the forecast and we feel a drizzle


Waiting at the finish line.




Once Joe is finished with his two 5K runs, he joins
those participating in the Kid's 1 mile run.

 Personalized T-Shirts from "Grandma Koning"

"If found on ground, please go around."

And wouldn't you know it, as soon as the starting shot was fired for the kid's run, it seems the heavens opened and the rains came.

Joe said it was like no other run.  The Mud Run, mixed with a torrential downpour, became perilous for even the most accomplished runners, let alone a group of kids.  But Joe and I were so proud of our gang.  They made their way through the course and finished, just as officials were calling off the race, telling all runners to get to safety.  The kids (and adults) were slightly traumatized, but mostly, it was character building and memory making.    

Eventually, the storm passed and we were able to get cleaned up and dried off.
In all our Mud Run experiences, this one will be talked about for years to come.