Bear Lake Reunion

For months, my sisters and I have been planning a Shumway family reunion to celebrate my parents 40th wedding anniversary. The weekend finally came...and it did not disappoint! It was a blast!! All the planning and preparation paid off. We started our weekend on Friday (July 1). Some of us were able to meet up in Lava Hot Springs to enjoy tubing down the river, relaxing in the hot springs, and jumping off all the platforms or cruising down the slides at the pool. (Personally, the river was my favorite! Even when our tube tipped and we were tossed out.)

Dallin

Daniel

Dallin

Daniel

Alisha

Dallin and Daniel

Dallin jumping off the top platform!

Dinner in Lava Hot Springs before heading to Garden City.

That evening, those of us who went to Lava Hot Springs met up with everyone else in Garden City where we stayed at the KOA campgrounds. This was a PERFECT choice! It had something for everyone...tent camping, RV, and cabins. My parents, Krystle and her family all stayed in a larger cabin, which became our hang out spot. The KOA had all the amenities we could need, including TONS of stuff for the kids to do (e.g., jumping pillow, pool, playground, slides, basketball, ping pong, bikes, etc.) By the time we all met up, we focused on setting up camps then heading to bed to rest up for the next day of fun!

Our trusty trailer.

My parents' cabin where we hung out most of the time.

The next day, Michael drove in from Idaho and Krystle and her family finally made their long journey from Texas. Once everyone got there, we headed straight for Bear Lake. We spent the entire day at the lake. I think this was the highlight of the weekend for everyone! Each family had rented and/or brought some water toy to enjoy. We had a pontoon boat with tube, a seadoo, SUP board, etc. We also set up a nice tent cover for those who chose to lounge on the beach. Daniel and Dallin LOVED the seadoo. I think they could have spent the entire day cruising around the lake on it. Jonas just loved driving the pontoon boat with Jeff. He loves any wheel he can get his hands on. Couple that with the gentle rocking of the boat and he was generally asleep within 20 minutes. I simply enjoyed being with my family. Everyone was there except Laurin (who is on a mission in Kansas) and Jenn (Michael's wife, who was coming back from Europe). I also enjoyed the fact that everyone seemed to avoid a sunburn.

We literally could have stayed on the lake for several more hours, but after 6 hours, we packed up and headed into Garden City for some dinner at Le Beaus (a famous burger place with yummy raspberry shakes). That evening, everyone cleaned up for some family pictures before Michael had to go back to Idaho in preparation to pick up Jenn the following day. It may have only been one day, but I loved having all my siblings and parents around. I usually get to see everyone several times a year, but not always at once. I have truly been blessed with the greatest family EVER! I love the fact that my siblings are some of my best friends and my parents have always been my biggest supporters. I have always felt loved and accepted...even when I haven't been my best self. Family is truly what matters in life. These people are the reasons that I am who I am and who I am striving to become.

Dinner at Le Beau's

Amber, Jonas, Jeff, Alisha, Danny, Dallin

Krystle, Camden, Jordan, Nolan

Nichole, Ryan, Kate, Tyler

Scott, Kaia, Mel

Mom and Dad

Grandma with her two babies - Camden and Jonas

The original 5 - Scott, Michael, Nichole, Krystle, Alisha

The Shumway family - 40 years strong!

Grandkids (just missing Laurin) - back row: Camden, Tyler, Amber, Dallin, Jonas
front row: Kaia, Kate, Danny, Nolan

The whole family! (minus Jenn and Laurin)

Sunday (July 3) was our last full day in Garden City. After breakfast, we headed to Minnetonka Cave. The drive to the cave was beautiful and the cave was quite amazing. I love seeing what nature can create. There were several cool cave formations. It is incredible to think that it has taken thousands of years to create what we were able to experience that morning...and all with a simple drop of water. Sometimes that's all it takes - just one small effort or one small act of kindness. Perhaps we may never see the effect that it will have in the world, but those efforts we make and the acts we perform can create beauty in this world.

We finished our cave hike then headed back to the KOA campgrounds to enjoy a relaxing day. All the kids had plenty to do to keep them busy while the adults enjoyed playing card games and chatting. That evening, we had a big dinner with everyone and roasted S'mores. It has been a great weekend! I wish we could do this more often, but as each of us get older, our lives seem to get a little more complicated and schedules are more difficult to coordinate. Still, I'm grateful for this weekend and the memories that were made.
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