Lake Mattoon Wrap Up

Tonight is our last night at the lake and despite some rainy weather conditions, we had a blast! It rained more than we expected, but we still got a beautiful day yesterday that was perfect for lots of fun on the lake. After only three crash landings, I got back up on the skis and did a whole lap around the lake before feeling like my legs were going to fall off. The pictures do the last few days much more justice than any descriptions...so here we go!

Full disclaimer: none of these include Hansel. We're not sure how buoyant he is, so he stayed on dry land.

Billy's stepddad Dave showing the youngins how it's done!

Billy and I out on the sailboat! 

The five days of sailing class I took at Sandy Hill are really coming in handy here

The pictures of Billy and I sailing are misleading in that they make it appear that I'm in charge of things. While I would love to bask in the glory of being an expert sailor, it was really all Billy. He was a great teacher and I had a blast! Definitely a different experience than the little Sunfish I briefly learned how to sail at summer camp circa 2003.

These pictures were also taken before we nearly capsized. It was surprisingly not very scary, and also not Billy's fault. The wind kicked up at a very inconvenient time. We put on a good show for the neighbors! 

Speaking of neighbors, we have the best ones at the lake. Everyone here is either family or have been friends so long they're practically family. Dave's cousin's kids and grandkids have the house right across from us and they are a blast--The Gheres. They have two boys and two girls, all under 13 and all always in motion! They are very rough and tumble kids in the best way. I don't think I've ever seen them watch TV or with an i-anything, they're all always up for anything and very active and outdoorsy. The Ghere clan is great!

Now on to today's pictures. Billy and I skiied together and then Ryan (father of Ghere kids) put on a great show for us barefoot skiing, which I didn't even know was possible. 

The biggest success of the day (in my opinion) was that I got up on the skis on my first try, which is why my hair is actually dry in all the pictures except the last one. Victory!

After lots of coaxing, I finally let go with one hand long enough to grab onto Billy

Billy drops a ski!

Back in the boat

Nope, no skis. Incredible.

Not too shabby, eh? Another great visit to the lake in the books! For anyone wanting an update on our calendar, we'll be leaving for Shawnee National Forest in southern Illinois tomorrow morning, where we'll be camping. Friday we head to Nashville. Sunday we go to Mammoth Cave (KY) and Lexington! After that, our route depends on the weather. Camping in Shenandoah while it rains for two days straight sounds a little less than ideal!