Jacqueline and I got to spend a week at Dale Hollow Lake on the Kentucky/Tennessee border. We packed up the kids, dog, and enough gear to survive a nuclear winter or to climb on a houseboat with two toddlers and a 150 lb dog for a week and headed for the lake. We met Jacqueline's family down there. After a 20 minute run through on how to operate the boat, we were off. So this is the point I need to explain that I was 'captaining' the boat. By the time we were out of the no wake zone I had doubled my time at the helm of a boat....any boat. This was a 40 foot houseboat. Once I was out of the no wake zone the goal was to find a piece of shore to run the front of the boat up on and then tie the back to some trees. Sure, what could go wrong with this plan.
Fading daylight and the other boat breaking down, the one J's family was staying for the week, were only minor issues. We found a some beach for the night and planned to go back to the marina to meet up with the rest of the family in the morning. The next morning the other boat was ready to go and we set off, again. We found a nice spot for the two boats and had a great week. We spent time swimming and kayaking. The babies LOVED the water. Evan 'swam.' This means Jacqueline blew in his face and pushed him to me. He came up out of the water and wasn't sure what to think. Jacqueline was able to calm me down fast enough. Why did I need calming? I was sure my son was drowning....he wasn't and as soon as I smiled at him he laughed and tried to put his face back to the water. Emily wasn't so sure about putting her face in the water so we didn't push her farther than she wanted to go.
The videos below are when J took the babies tubing behind her uncle's boat. Yep...tubing. Again I need calming down and the kids loved it.
Emily in the Tube...battery was low so videos of them are short.
Evan in the Tube and waving
The kids loved their floating rafts...our boat is in the background
