Swenson Family Reunion- Tahoe

The Swenson Family Reunion was in Tahoe this year. All 19 cousins, 12 aunts and uncles, 1 grandma, 1 grandpa, and 2 dogs stayed at the Hodge Podge Lodge and loved it. I love that the kids got to know their cousins so much more. Even Joy who just barely turned two years old remembers her cousins names. We went to the beach, went for a hike, went on pony rides, relaxed and just enjoyed being with each other. There was an olympic theme, as this summer the olympics took place in England. Everyone was broken up into teams and had to compete in events. In the evening there was an awards ceremony complete with medals. We look forward to the next reunion and can't wait to see each other again. 

Burgoyne Family Reunion 2012

We were so lucky this summer to see so much family. Nate and Heidi came out to visit from Hawaii with their children Kezia, Ivy, Elysse, and Soul, as did Grandma Kay. Uncle Brad and his dog Sophie drove from Ukiah. We went to the Folsom Zoo, swam in our neighbor's swimming pool, went to the lake, played in the backyard, had a cousins birthday party complete with pinata and ice cream cake, and went for a hike. We also had some run ins with wasps. Our friends let them borrow their Volvo while here in Sacramento. It took a couple of wasp bites and some screaming girls before we realized that wasps had made full use of the car that had been otherwise unused for a couple of months. Uncle Nate saved the day with his mad extermination skills, but not until after filming a geico commercial. The next day at the zoo Aunt Heidi stuck her hand right into a wasp nest, after that the wasps were swarming the entire zoo. Aside from that good times were had and memories made. Thanks for the visit everyone.

Leila's First Backpacking Trip

For Leila's 8th birthday back in November she received a backpacking bag and a promise to go backpacking this summer. We had a fabulous time and hope to make this a tradition when all of the kids turn eight. We chose Lassen National Park because that has been Leila's school class name for 1st, 2nd, and now 3rd grade. It is a peaceful park that is not overcrowded. We enjoyed seeing more animal tracks on parts of the trails than human's. 

When Leila was asked in the evening after the first day of hiking, "Well, Leila, is it everything that you expected?", she responded that she was not expecting the food to be so tasty. And that she was not expecting to get so close to a dear. She was refering to the deer that ran into us on the way to Lassen. The deer seemed to be ok, she just got back up and ran into the woods. The damage to the car was side mirror knocked off and a few dents to the side of the car.

Getting ready for our hike. That is Leila's pack next to her. She carried her own sleeping bag,
clothing, sleeping pad, tent pegs and some water. She did awesome!

The start of the trail. 

We hadn't realized that we would be hiking through cinders for the first 5 miles, which is essentually sand. Behind us is cinder cone. It erupted approximately during the 1650s. 

Taking a rest.

Painted Dunes. After our little rest Leila had so much energy. She went full steam ahead and we had to work to catch up to her. This is one of Sam's favorite pictures. Nature is a great place for kids to be.

We loved finding trail markers. We are headed to Snag Lake.

And we made it! We had met up with a group of backpackers back at cinder cone that had told us of the perfect place to set up camp on a little penninsula on the other side of Snag Lake. We took their advice and were not dissapointed. It was so lovely and well worth the added extra mile to our trip. 

Dinner on the first night. Macaroni and Cheese and a Thai Soup.
These freeze dried meals have gotten quite tasty.

Leila filling the wash basin to wash our dishes a little ways up from the water. Washing dishes was surprisingly one of the most relaxing things to do up there. Collecting water, using the sand and small stones as a scrubby. 

The water filtering team.
The water was some of the freshest I have ever tasted. 

Sam and Leila were sound asleep and snoring by 6:30 the first night. Erica followed soon after the sun
went down a couple of hours later. 

Leila trying to stay warm the next morning. 

Breakfast time. Oatmeal with dried fruit. Delicious!

Ready for a little day hike. On the agenda for the day: relax and enjoy nature.

Sam and Erica enjoying the morning. 

This is one of my favorite pics.
A girl and her dad. What more could one want?

Erica and her darling adventurous daughter, Leila. 

day hike

Erica took a snooze by a snowmelt runoff mountain stream.
Leila took a dip in the stream.

Leila drying out her "swimwear".

Various animal tracks. It was really cool to see all of the animal tracks
 leading up to the water all around the lake. 

Leila thoughtfully offered to take a picture of Sam and I snuggled on a log waiting for the sun to go down.

We watched the sun go down and then were waiting for the stars to come out. It wasn't too long before we realized that there were several animals waiting for us to move away from the water. As soon as we got in our tent there was much wildlife heard outside our tent. I grew to love the sounds outside our tent. As a girl mostly raised in cities I had always been a bit frightened by what was lurking outside the tent. After being educated on safety and then just relaxing I really loved all of those sounds. This was a big step for me, although I am not quite ready to venture out to Glacier National Park just yet. 

The next day we packed up and took a new route out of the park. This route was longer in distance,
but located further away from the volcano and therefore had more vegetation and less sand.

hiking through a field of wildflowers.

The last few miles we were entertained by Sam's scouting backpacking days. 

Sam took off his belt for the last couple of miles and "pulled" Leila behind him.
She was doing awesome, this just gave her that extra boost.

Fanatastic Lava Beds found behind Leila's kool aid smile. 

You know that you have been outside of civilization for a while when you think
bear boxes are luxurious and bathrooms... beyond luxurious.

We had such an amazing trip. It was about 15 miles total. We came back feeling rejuvinated and eager to start planning our next adventure. A special thanks to Grandma Swenson for taking Lucy, Amelia, and Joy on their own adventures back at home.

4th of July 2012

Our 4th was filled with filled with great times. We woke up early to go to the church building for a flag raising ceremony, Primary childrens' parade and delicious pancake breakfast. We quickly left to meet up with friends- Hannah and Jenna at the neighborhood parade. Leila and Amelia rode their scooters, Lucy and Joy rode in the wagon. Lucy was fantastic at waving her American flag. After a teeny rest we headed to the Sacramento airport to pick up Grandma Swenson. We were so lucky to have her here for the holiday and then to stay on for a few days while Leila, Sam, and Erica went backpacking. The evening brought a neighborhood swim party and BBQ at our neighbor's pool followed with fireworks in the front. We were all exhausted at bedtime, but had a fabulous time. 

Fairy Tale Town with Cousins!

We were so blessed to have Matt and Amy and their gorgeous, sweet, fun children live near us for a few years here in the Sacramento area. We miss them dearly, but are also so thankful to have had this time with them. The girls love their cousins dearly. Fairy Tale Town was a favorite place for Todd and Eve and pretty much everyone- who doesn't love Fairy Tale Town? We were glad to share this time with them.