Come Sail Away

Come Sail Away
Day 3: July 16
It might be better to dub the day "Chicken on Charts" day and if I can get my hands on the O'Neil boys re-written version of the song that the kids (with the exception of Owen) sang over and over again, I will post it here!

Tuesday was a day to remember love and family in different ways. We were lucky to spend Rob and Liz's anniversary with them last year and repeated the honor this year. I was a bit later getting wildflowers together, so there was no surprise to greet them, but will not forget to post Elizabeth's friend Mary's beautiful rendition of "Make You Feel My Love" (for those that can't see that video, here's Dylan's version). I can't tell you how fortunate we feel to have celebrated this special day with them for several years in a row. Something tells me that no matter who this day is spent with in the future, they will always be surrounded by people that love them!

Project Time!

In addition to the anniversary tradition, there is the Josh and Rob project tradition. This year's project was erecting a tarp ceiling in case of rain. Several ancient tent poles and car brace tie ons later and a sturdy shelter was built to protect from the rain and sun. Even the weather was intimidated by the shelter and the rain stayed away the whole day. The children played together and fished, catching sunnys almost the moment the line went into the water.

Fishermen

After a solid project done, we headed for some beaching and boating. Different crews of children went out exploring on the boat with Josh and Rob
while others played on the beach with Elizabeth and I. The St. Lawrence seaway is an astonishing river with huge ocean liners sliding over the water next to power boats. After heading in to lunch, we then went to the point of the peninsula where we heard there was a large rock for jumping. Jumpy rock, as the place was dubbed, became the run
away favorite of the whole vacation. Several rocks were amazing to jump off of into the cool, clear water. All of the kids loved it and could not get enough!

Our big plan that night was to go into Clayton take a boat ride at the Antique Boat Museum. On Tuesday nights after the museum closes they have boats that people can take out and boat rides for people to take so people can get to know boating and the river. We went and signed up for a later hour and had plenty of time for dinner. We found our way to Koffee Kove a local eatery that was just perfect for our needs. Simple, yummy food with great hometown feel service, in all a perfect place to celebrate a great vacation.

After filling our bellies, we headed back to the Antique Boat Museum. The O'Neils got a ride in the Roseboom while the Farrells landed in the Margaret G. Being out in the St. Lawrence on a sailboat was an amazing feeling. Our boat guide was a young, but experienced sailor who had spent most of his summers sailing on the St. Lawrence and playing in the water. When we were finished we took a moment to appreciate the amazing sunset and then headed back to collapse into our beds, the adults finding the way to sit at the fire and enjoy another night.

Boaters

Jumpy Rock

A quick note: Later in the day, we got some devastating news from family. While we were able to continue our vacation, our thoughts and hearts ached and were with family.