Camping

I went camping in Red Lake Falls this weekend with Andrea, Kirk, Katie, Adam, and Pete. For those of you unaware, when I say camping I also mean tubing. By tubing, I don't mean the kind of tubing where you are pulled at a high speed behind a boat on a lake. I am referring to the kind where you sit in a tube, tie your tube to your friends' tubes and tie those tubes around a smaller tube with a cooler full of beverages on it. Then you float around on a river for several hours. Since my mom is originally from Red Lake Falls we have been doing this since I was pretty young. Well, I should say we have gone tubing. We didn't camp there. This is what I planned for Andrea's bachellorette party back in 2008, and we went last summer as well.

I arrived late on Friday, around dark, because I attended my classmate's funeral in the morning. This worked out fine, because by the time I arrived the camp was already set up and all I had to do was inflate my air mattress and crack open my beverage of choice! I shared a tent with Katie and Adam and I burst out laughing when I saw their nice arrangement. . .

It looks like a real bedroom! Mine wasn't quite as nice. . .

It was sprinkling for awhile, but fortunately it passed and we were able to stay up late by the fire.

Although I rarely carry an umbrella, I happened to have mine in my purse! Yeahh!

We got up and went on the river on Saturday morning. The water was pretty high and fast, so the route took around two hours. Pete had to work in the morning, so he arrived after lunch, still in his bank outfit, and we gave him provisions immediately.

I should mention that we were celebrating Katie's 25th birthday, which is July 25. Her golden birthday! Mine golden birthday occurred when I was 4, before I was aware of what a golden birthday was, and I always wished I had experienced it! Haha, oh well, I'm not scarred for life or anything!

We went tubing again in the afternoon, and it was a good time. It was really hot and we made several stops at little sand bars and islands, which turn into party spots on weekends.

This is just a shot from camping. Of course, I didn't bring my camera on the river so you will have to use your imagination for those.

On Sunday, I was at the farm and got the pleasure of watching my dad in action with his new bulldozer he bought recently.

He demonstrated tree removal by pushing down a tree, just for my amusement! (Don't be alarmed. The woods around the farm are filled with old trees that are rotting and dying. Most of them were planted when the house was built, over 100 years ago. The one he knocked down had lived its life.)

There it goes!

On Sunday evening, my parents went out for a long-distance run. Their golden retriever, Wallace, also known as Walter, Wally, or Wal, usually runs with them. Wal loves water. The first day he lived with us last summer we were amused to find out that he liked to splash his feet in his water dish. We got out the old turtle sandbox and filled it with water and he sloshed around in it like a wallowing swine. He goes in the creek and puts his head under water and wags it around. He even loves to be sprayed with the hose! He opens his mouth and lets you spray him in the face with the jet setting!

My dad decided to push himself on Sunday and instead of going home early, Wally stayed with him. When he got back to the yard he was breathing very heavily and frothing like a race horse. My mom was worried about him so she decided to spray him to cool him down. What followed was one of the most hilarious displays of dog behavior I have ever seen!

He laid down in the turtle and enjoyed a shower of ice cold hose water.

Soon his leg was hanging out over the edge. When the pool was full enough he started lapping up the water and dunking his head under. Although I've seen him enjoy water, I've never seen a display quite so extreme! I took around 20 pictures of it!

Justin wasn't able to come camping because he had to work until Saturday in South Dakota, but he had a fun weekend as well. He went to the ND State Fair in Minot and saw a concert on Sunday night.

That is Justin and our friend Jason. They saw Eric Church, who is a younger country singer. I saw him a few years ago when he was still an opening act, and I think he's pretty attractive! I wonder if Justin and Jason agree?