Lake Almanor 2014

Lake Almanor is a magical place. It took away matters from mundane day-to-day life and made me feel tranquil and rejuvenated. Somehow this place figured out how to slow time. We could relax, enjoy each others company, and not have a care in the world about anything else except shooting the breeze with the neighbors -- which happened to be multiple cabins full of extended family.

The Arrival

With a truck bed full of beach gear, personal bags, and lots of FOOD -- we arrive at our cabin and get settled. We anxiously wait for our familial neighbors to drive in from many states. As we meet up, there's always something new to share: a missionary returning home, a newly wed spouse coming for the first time, and even new babies to introduce to the family. We are all genuinely excited to see each other.

Sabbath Day

I loved waking up to the sunrise filtering through the forest trees. As I'd get ready for church, the LDS hymn "For the Beauty of the Earth" would come to mind. Lake Almanor is truly a beautiful scenery and it reminded me how beautiful our world is. 

Starting off vacation with a day to observe the Sabbath was perfect. I loved having the opportunity to spiritually express gratitude and ponder about Jesus Christ amongst many loved ones.

To close off Sunday, all the cousins gathered together for a friendly game of Butts-Up. The parents pulled up chairs around the game to watch and help take care of babies -- thanks!!

This was Calvin's first time being able to join in on the fun -- with Daddy's help, of course :)

Time to Play

There is so much to do at Lake Almanor! Beach, swimming, playground, tennis, soccer, pickle ball, shuffle board, bocci ball, boating, wakeboarding, tubing, relaxing, tanning, reading, etc. You can always find something fun to do at Lake Almanor.

Each morning we walked down and set up camp at our favorite spot on the beach.

Calvin enjoyed all the adventures Almanor had to offer.

He especially had fun playing with his (2nd) cousins in the sand...

...and out in the water.

Calvin also loved visiting the clubhouse to get a delicious treat (at least once).

Family Dinners
Each night, the Green Clan gathered at one of the cabins for dinner. This was a great time to relax, eat some good food and enjoy each others company. 

Except one night we had Adults Night Out: where the younger cousins helped babysit while adults had a night to themselves. This night was so fun! It's always full of laughter and hilarious stories. Hanging out with these guys is never long enough.

Piñata Night

This is definitely a highlight of the week. This year, Calvin finally got the hang of it. And he was pretty good!

Becca, however, tried to figure out how not to damage the bat. Fail.

Calvin liked to help Mom whack the piñata...

...and Dad's, too! Unfortunately, Cal was quite confused and disappointed when the piñata broke and the fun was all done.

Boating

This is our favorite activity at Almanor. We love going out on the water with Uncle Mike. He offers to take whoever wants to go out on the boat to play or to enjoy the scenery. With a family our size, he is literally out driving the boat all day. Uncle Mike has been my driver as I've learned how to wakeboard. I'm so grateful for his patience, kindness, and encouragement as I figured out how to get up on the water and enjoy the ride. Thanks Mike!

This year, however, I was 22 weeks pregnant. So instead of wakeboarding, I was the official photographer. Here are some of my favorite shots:

Jake attempting to jump the wake.

Tyler doing flips and tricks.

Davis looking like a stud.

And Libby falling with style.

Since I couldn't wakeboard, Uncle Mike offered to take me out on a slow tube ride. I'm glad I could do something fun out on the lake. Calvin, however, was not having fun going slow.

So I hopped off and let them go real fast. Calvin loved it! He had the time of his life!

Charlie's Birthday

Charlie was lucky to have his birthday fall on Almanor week! So we surprised him with a birthday party out on a pontoon boat. We spent the day barbecuing, eating birthday cake, swimming in the middle of the lake, reading books, and napping. The day was absolutely perfect.

Calvin refused to go out in the water. The only way we could get him out there was by luring him with a bag of chips...

...and a ball.

Calvin loves hanging out with is Aunties :)

Here's the birthday boy! Calvin is already eyeing the "chwoklate cake."

This kid loves chocolate. Just like his grandpa.

I love capturing moments of Jake being a great Dad :) He's so good with Cal.

*sigh* It was so peaceful and relaxing out in the middle of the lake. We wanted to stay out there forever.

Happy Birthday, Charlie!! Hope it was a good one!

Headed Home

This dreaded day is ignored until the last minute. I hate leaving paradise, but reality is inevitable. This year was especially sad because the annual tradition of the infamous Lake Almanor has come to a close. I am so grateful and honored that I could be a part of the Lake Almanor tradition that Grandma and Grandpa Green began 25 years ago. 

Even though we're not visiting Lake Almanor next year, I have a feeling we'll be back. Lake Almanor has been a significant part of our lives and it will always have a special place in our hearts.

Jake's Graduation

Phew! Jake did it. Jake graduated from Brigham Young University! He graduated with a bachelors of arts degree in Spanish and he minored in Business. 

Day 1: Commencement

The main speaker was Ronald A. Rasband
(Senior President of the Presidency of the Seventy of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)

I was so touched by his speech it brought me to tears.  Here is his entire speech. But below I've extracted some of my favorite quotes:

"Your degree is much more than an honor hanging on the wall or a memory to recall with perhaps a sigh of relief. It is a statement that you have persevered and achieved, knowing that your purpose here fits into the Lord’s plan for your life."

"We chose to start our family shortly after we were married, having confidence that we would be blessed in our temporal matters if we put the Lord first."

"Jon said to me he was not interested in me because of my academic credentials. (I don’t think he ever knew my grade point average. That was a good thing!) He told me he was interested be-cause he felt significant character traits he saw exemplified in my life would work well in his busi-ness—character traits such as a strong work ethic and the ability to balance all the life-challenging priorities we were faced with at that time."

"...There is a masterpiece within each one of us, and when spiritually nurtured, carefully mentored, and loyally engaged in building up our families and the Lord’s kingdom, all things are possible."

Since the Commencement occurred during Calvin's nap-time, he was quite grumpy! Luckily, Grandpa Bean (a.k.a. the baby whisperer) walked Cal around for a bit and got him to sleep pronto! He slept through the whole thing.

We are so proud of you, Jake! We're your biggest fans.

Grandma and Grandpa Green enjoyed every minute of it. And they definitely helped us out getting comfortable seats in the handicap section.

Jeff and Jill are so proud of you, Jake! I think my Dad got a little sleepy with Calvin.

Calvin: a grumpy mess. But your parents are SOOO proud of you! 

Our little sleepy-guy didn't want to leave Jake's arms.

Day 2: Convocation

This is the day where Jake lined up, waited his turn, moved his tassel to the other side, listened for his name to be called, walked across the stage, shook important peoples' hands, and officially graduated!! 

This is the part where the speaker asked the graduates to stand if...
1) They lived in another country during college years

2) Can fluently speak another language

3) Got married during college years

4) Had a child during college years

...you are so accomplished!

Jake had a fun time walking with his lil sis.

Calvin was a bit unsure about what was happening. But he saw Jake walk! And Calvin was really excited to spot out his Dad in the sea of blue people.

Jake's proud Grandma and Grandpa Green!

Even though I already walked in April with my Dietetics Program, I dressed up again in my cap and gown and took pictures with Jake! Yay! We've graduated! We're done!! ...well, with our undergrad degrees.

Big shout out to our loving parents. Who helped shape us into the people we are today. Thank you for your love and support.

And thanks to our goofy siblings :) We love you!

Our college experience would not have been the same without our dear friend, Justin Norman. He was Jake's roommate at King Henry when Jake and I continued to date after his mission, then we got engaged, then we got married, and we practically adopted Justin into our family. We morphed him into an amazing soccer goalie/player--family initiation.

Also, he's Calvin's Godfather.

School would have been easy-peasy without this little-guy distracting us so much. But we wouldn't have traded it for the world. Thanks for entering our life, Calvin! We love you so much!

...And one day, you'll be graduating from BYU. Meet us back here in a couple decades. Can't wait to watch YOU walk!

Apparently, this is the spot where Charlie took a photo with his Dad when he graduated from BYU.

The is pretty much how the story goes:

Charlie's Dad drove out from Oroville, CA to Charlie's graduation in Provo, UT. He attended the convocation ceremony (about 2 hours long), took one picture with Charlie afterwards, and then drove back to Oroville, CA. Talk about a short trip! I guess Charlie's Dad isn't a warm and fuzzy kind of guy, but making the effort to come out was a pretty big deal! 

Later that day, we went to a BYU soccer game. Going to BYU soccer games was our FAVORITE activity to do as students. Attending our last BYU soccer game during Jake's graduation was a nice way to say "goodbye" to our student life. 

As we looked out, there was a gorgeous sunset on Jake's favorite building on campus: the IPF (Indoor Practice Facility). We played many soccer games in that building with family and lifelong friends. We'll always have fond memories there.

This is our favorite sign on campus. "Enter to learn. Go forth to serve." That's exactly how we feel about our experience at Brigham Young University. We learned so many things academically and spiritually. Now we are taking what we learned out into the world with the mindset to work hard and to serve others.

Phew! We're done. We are BYU graduates of 2013.