Another Montana family vacation has come and gone and once again, it didn't disappoint. Well, actually it did when my in-laws had to go home because my father in law pulled his back :(
We whiled away the hours splashing in the lake, eating delicious foods, and taking walks. Since a picture is worth a thousand words, I'll keep my words to a minimum while trying to provide a brief description. Enjoy......
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| Here's where it all begins: Camp Tuffit on Lake Mary Ronan in beautiful Montana. The rest of the family has been going for decades while I've only gone for the past 3 years. I think I'm just the first one to blog about it! |
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| My Autumn after a brisk swim in the lake. |
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| Autumn playing on the clothesline. When technology isn't an option, kids get inventive. |
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| Autumn in B&W. |
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| Every year I have a new favorite activity. Last year it was catching crawdads after dark, this year it was feeding this family of little ducks. |
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| We caught a frog.....and let it go! |
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| Our home away from home, Sunset! The outdoor fridge is sooooo ghetto, but it prevents taking up space in the cabin, so we like it :) |
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| Cayla is growing up way too fast. I can't believe she's going to be in the youth group this fall. Where did my 5 lb. newborn go? |
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| Autumn with her grumpy face on! |
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| My honey, relaxing! |
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| Virginia and Caitlin adding braids and flowers to their hair. |
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| Gorgeous girls! |
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| This is Cayla's "people of Wal-Mart" look. Swim top, pajama pants, flip-flops and a hoodie. I accept no responsibility for her fashion sense.....or lack thereof :) |
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| The Crawdad Cafe serves the best pancakes, cheeseburgers, and milkshakes. Located in the center of the camp, it's a fantastic treat when you don't want to have to do your own cooking! |
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| Steve catching up with grandma. |
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| Lazy dog. He loves it up there. He's with his family 24/7, he gets to take long walks, enjoy incredible wild life, and catch any number of things that 20+ people drop on the ground :) |
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| Sydney and Cayla taking it easy before the heat of the day kicks in and they rush to the lake. |
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| Super Chuck! |
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| Another view of Super Chuck. Cape is courtesy of Arizona's pajamas :) |
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| I'm usually on the other side of the camera, but someone suggested I change places. So I did.....for ONE shot :) |
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| If you look closely, you'll catch a glimpse of one of the many deer we saw throughout the week. A few wandered into camp, but more on that later. |
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| Tech alley. This is one of the few spots where wi-fi is available. Surprisingly, the kids did NOT spend all their time here! |
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| My mother in law hanging out in tech alley, being annoyed that I 'demanded' a picture! ha ha |
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| Grandma has been going to the camp since approximately 1955. The actual date is still up for debate. The world may never know! |
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| Sydney, Autumn, and Virginia being silly with mustache stickers and faux glasses. |
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| Joe, with his glass eye! |
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| Grandma and Tanner. |
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| Andrea, Kevin, and Tanner. |
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| Tanner's birthday celebration. We have to get inventive with gift-wrap :) |
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| He received a few gifts that were identical! |
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| Auntie Barb giving him birthday spankings :) |
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| Tanner, opening Barb and Jim's gift. Balloons filled with cash. It was a huge hit! |
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| Autumn and Uncle Kevin. |
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| Chuck, smelling breakfast! |
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| Yes! We hold the bowl for him. He's part great dane and they have to have their food elevated because they're so tall - it digests easier! At home he has a custom stand......we don't bring it with us :) |
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| Yeah.....he eats a lot! |
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| Distant shot of a deer galloping past our cabin. |
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| A close up of the shot above. She was beautiful.....and fast! |
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| This furry little critter was making his way to the side of the road during one of our many walks. |
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| Cory, outside our cabin. |
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| Our clothesline. It's pretty redneck, but it gets the job done. There's nothing fancy about this vacation, so if you're looking for the Taj Mahal.........this ain't it! |
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| Argus, hanging out at camp. He was mesmerized by the bees and even enjoyed tasting a few. Getting stung didn't seem to deter him! |
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| Chuck and Argus relaxing on our porch. Don't we look like the Clampetts out on our porch with the fridge, and the dogs?! lol |
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| The old piano, where we were both entertained and tortured. Everyone is welcome to play, regardless of talent. |
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| Phalon, Ben, and Caitlin eating snacks from the camp store, and trying to beat the heat under the shade. |
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| The wall of my in-laws cabin has some amusing paintings on the exterior. |
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| The dock! |
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| Autumn and Sydney. |
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| Signs like this hang all over the camp. Some are funny, some are informative, but all are amusing and part of the camp's history. |
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| The big fish over the public pool table. |
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| Cory and Cayla, deflating the rafts before packing up to go home. Always bittersweet when it's time to leave, but ooooooh the memories we make! |
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| Another shot of lazy dog Chuck. I love that boy! |
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| Cayla! |
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| The camp's mailbox. Very appropriate! |
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| One of the many signs hanging around the camp. |
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| Yep - another one. I've intended to get pictures of all of them each year, and this year I finally succeeded. |
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| This is an oar.....what's left of one :) |
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| I don't know who makes them, but they sure are fun. |
So, that's it! A fun week, filled with dozens of outings, and plenty of time to visit with family. I look forward to it every year, and I'm already making plans for 2014.
