The Miller Memoirs

August 14-16, 2008 ~ Featherville

Day 1

We have been able to go with my sister to the cabin now for three years running. We have a fabulous time every time we go! This year we spent our first day hanging around the cabin, playing in the stream, culvert, tree house, and riding four wheelers!

Hailey getting her feet wet in the stream by the cabin.

Jacob getting his feet wet!

Amber getting more than her feet wet!

Every time we would drive our four wheelers through the stream the kids would beg to get off and play. It was really hot, so it must have felt nice to get wet (even in their clothes)!

Jacob's favorite thing to do is to throw rocks, so when the girls were playing in the tree house, Jacob spent his time throwing rocks, and playing in the dirt.

Here Jacob finds himself in the dirt once again! (Not much of a surprise!)

Danner and Amber peering at me from the tree house.

The tree house is so much fun, but it can be scary too! The ladder to get up into the tree house is that board with the metal pegs. One of the pegs wobbles. My father-in-law built the tree house a couple of summers ago (with the help of all the other men in the family). He did a fabulous job, and the kids love it! It is such a fun thing for the kids. My girls love to play like they are Jack and Annie from the Magic Tree House Series. They told Grandma Jo that they needed books in the tree house, so they could go on adventures. I am not quite sure if she believes them or not. I am getting more comfortable with my kids being in the tree house, because they are getting better at safety precautions.

Hailey holding on to the "ladder" of the tree house! Fun times!

Day 2 ~ Boat

The second day of our excursion was spent on the boat. We had such a great time skiing, and tubing! My sister was so kind to have brought her boat, so we could spend some time on the water!

Amber was hilarious! She would constantly signal for us to go faster; however, when we did speed up, she would start getting scared and want to get off. One time I was on the tube with her, and I kept trying to convince her to not hold up her finger; however, my efforts were to no avail...she soon was able to get her signal across that she wanted to go faster, and not even 10 seconds after the increase in speed she wanted to get off.

Hailey and Easton were definitely crazy tubers! They let Uncle Dave do just about anything. In fact, sometimes we would look back to see the two of them taunting Dave for more. One time (thinking it would be funny) they both jumped off of the tube! They said it was so much fun; however, I didn't see either of them do it again!

Hailey was a little bit nervous about getting up on skis. Dave got in the water with her to help her get started, and after that she seemed like a natural. Amber also tried to get up on skis. She was so close to succeeding, but I think it exhausted her--after the second time trying she decided to take a rest before she tried again.

This is Hailey's second time on skis. She had to concentrate hard! We were so proud of her for trying!

Bryan amazes me while he wake boards. I love to watch him!

This is Bryan clearing the wake. I wish I would have gotten a better shot! It was way fun to watch! My sister and brother-in-law also showed great talent on a wake board; however, I was a different story entirely. I was thrilled when I managed to stay on top of the water for more than a minute without a major crash. I could never figure out which foot to put forward, so I spent a great deal of time switching feet while I was up. I had no idea how I was managing to switch my feet back and forth, but every time my edge caught...well, let's just say that my face became acquainted with the water! Actually, I feel this trip was probably one of my best experiences on a wake board. I was thrilled to stay up as long as I did (which still wasn't that long, but longer than I ever had).

Jakey was so fun on the boat! He was a good sport cheering on everybody else as they took turns getting in the water. He also rode on the tube for awhile, and he was hilarious. I kept thinking he was going to get upset, but all he ever did was throw his head back and laugh. In fact, while he was in the tube the girls wanted to go faster, so we put Jacob back in the boat, and he threw a fit that he wasn't in the tube anymore. He was really funny!

Jacob also liked to play in the water a lot. Every time we stopped the boat to change from tube to wake board, or ski, etc... He would insistently point at the water and want to swim. He had some good times swimming with his sisters and daddy.

Day 3 ~ Culvert

One of our favorite things to do while at the ranch (Featherville) is to swim in the culvert. We love to ride through the tube, jump off the tube, and swim in the water hole. It's quite a novelty actually!

Hailey jumping off the tube!

Jumping off the tube is loads of fun! Hailey, Amber, and Easton did this for what seemed like forever. By the time I remembered to get my camera out, they were done jumping. I could only convince Hailey to go off one more time!

Danner, Ava, and Bryan riding through the tube! (Ava doesn't look too happy, but usually this is a huge success!)

Riding through the tube is a huge process! We first block off the front of the tube with boards, so that when we remove the boards, there is a lot of pressure built, and the person going through the tube goes much faster with the pressure.