Stephenson Family Reunion (July 2015)

We haven't had a family reunion with extended family for a looong time, so when I found out my Aunt D'Anna was hosting a reunion over the 4th of July weekend we decided we had to go!

D'Anna and Scott have an amazing property in the mountains of Northern California near the Donner Pass. They host youth conferences all summer long and have a big area for tents and an outdoor kitchen. The idea of camping for THREE nights had me worried, but we prepared for the worst and hoped for the best.

We left early in the morning on July 2nd and drove all the way there in one day. The girls did great and I read to Dan (The Great Influenza, a book we had been working on for a long time). Olive would roam the car when we stopped for gas and she discovered Dan's stash of gummy worms:

We made it in the late afternoon after finding it with no google maps (they don't have cell reception there; it was nice to be totally unplugged for a few days!). We chatted with cousins I haven't seen in years and explored the property. My parents got there soon after, followed my Alisa and Matt. We set up our tents close together so our kids could be near each other ALL the time.

We spent the next few days playing and swimming and getting to know our extended family a little better! Olive loved the horse swings:

And Alta and Ellie were obsessed with this rope swing. It was the best rope swing I've ever seen - it went SO high! I wish I had a picture that did it justice, but I don't.

It gave me major butterflies, but I did it:

Alta and Ellie liked the lower part of the ropes course, but never braved the upper part. Here's Dan just hanging out:

 Playing with cousins, both new and old:

There were many hours spent swimming and canoeing too. Olive thought she was big enough to paddle and got really mad if she wasn't in the canoe with everyone.

There was also a zipline that went over the lake. Dan got me to do it once, and I think Alta did it a few times. She said it was fun but a little scary. I can't remember if Ellie every tried it. No pictures though.

And hanging around outside the tents:

 And the best part was that the camping was actually very successful! I brought the iPad with white noise and Olive took decent naps during the day in her pack n play, and everyone slept really well at night. It made me want to take more camping trips; it was surprisingly fun!

Just waking up:

Most people left the morning of the 4th, but we had already planned on staying an extra day to make the long drive worth it. We wanted to spend some time at Lake Tahoe and made the hour or so drive that morning along with Matt and Lisa and my parents. It was the 4th of July so it was totally crazy as expected, but we lucked out because it started pouring rain. Everyone left the beach and we found a parking spot and hung out in the car.

 As soon as the rain stopped we ran down to the beach. Dan had brought his free diving stuff and was determined to use it, so the kids all played at the beach for probably an hour. It was freezing but they didn't seem to mind.

Olive with Grandpa:

 Ellie directing the building of a river:

Olive wasn't bothered by the cold at all:

Seeing how far they could go before they got too cold:

 Back from his dive:

 Those are a little big, Olive:

 Dan, Ellie, Olive and me out on a sandbar. Tahoe is gorgeous even when it's overcast and cloudy.

My parents started the drive home to Utah right after this, but the Fogts stayed with us and we camped one more night. On the way back to the property we stopped at the Donner Pass Memorial and learned some pioneer history, then grabbed some hot dogs to roast for dinner that night. (During the reunion, all our meals had been planned and we each had a turn helping the camp cook prepare them, which was SO nice. But we were on our own that last night and enjoyed spending time with just our two families around the campfire.)

We said good-bye to the Fogts the next morning and drove home. It was a short trip but fun and worth the drive!