Mid-July, we took our first family trip to Lake Tahoe. We loaded up our baby boy for the ten and a half hour car ride. Colin was a champ. He slept on and off the whole way there and back, and he didn't throw a fit when forced to eat in the back seat of the car, public parks, or a Denny's restaurant. (Yes, with my hooter hider on, I became one of those people!) I've been going to Lake Tahoe my whole life and didn't want to miss out this year, even with Colin being so little. We tried to relax and not become too stressed out by traveling with a newborn. Our mission was mostly accomplished. I am not going to lie...it was challenging at times. Kevin and I took turns stressing out and getting snippy (ok...the snippy part was mainly me!). The trip wasn't quite the "vacation" of years past. There were no lazy beach days and few afternoon naps. However, our time together with our family and the memories made were priceless. The extra effort was worth it. I love that we were able to continue my family traditions and also start new ones with Colin!
We went to the beach a few times throughout the week. We never stayed long because we were worried about Colin getting sunburnt and/ or dehydrated, but beach days in Tahoe cannot be missed. It's so beautiful there!
On day 2, we all went into Virginia City, an old western town. Uncle Herb, my dad, and the rest of the Gaebel family took a guided tram tour of the city. Liam and the AZ Whalens enjoyed a gun show and mined for gold.
Most nights, we cooked dinner together and enjoyed evenings "in" talking, playing games, and being silly. One night we took a walk down to the beach to enjoy the sunset and beautiful evening views.
On our last day in Tahoe, Kevin took the plunge. For the first time ever (after being harassed by Alyssa for two years), Kevin took the leap off the dock into the freezing cold Tahoe water. The picture is of Alyssa on the left, Kev in the middle, and me on the right. Mom was the photog and babysitter. Earlier in the week, all the AZ Whalens (including 2 year old Molly) also jumped off the dock!
Reliving an old childhood memory, we went down the magic carpet slide. It really was as fun as we remembered! :) It was the perfect way to wrap up our last night in Lake Tahoe.
I know it will be tough to travel to Tahoe again next year with one-year old (probably tougher than this year), but I hope we always make the extra effort to take those important family trips...even if they are no longer "vacations" for Kevin and me. If we become home bodies and start complaining that things are too hard to do with kiddos...kick our butts for us, will ya?
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