We’ve reached that part of the summer when the end is beginning to appear in sight. I always have mixed feelings at this time of the year. I like the return to routine and the chance for new habits that September offers. But I love and will miss the freedom, fun, and warmth of summer on the Sunshine Coast. It’s also the time of year when we start to realize all the things we haven’t yet done! That said, we have a few weeks left and we’ve already packed a lot into our summer holidays.
When I’ve chatted with people about our summer so far my usual response is that it’s been “full”. Busy isn’t quite the right word because we’ve had a fair amount of downtime but every day has had something, big or small.
We finished out July with a lot of family time. We celebrated Peter’s dad’s 70th birthday with a family weekend which included four generations. We had yummy food and carnival games and almost all of the family were able to make it.
We then went almost directly into a few days spent with my brother, his wife, and their three kids. We had planned a 3-day camping trip together but ended up spending the first night at a cabin in Pender Harbour due to rainy weather.
We then did 2 more nights together at a campsite on Hotel Lake, also here on the Coast. None of us had ever camped at this spot before but it had availability of 2 sites side by side over the precise dates that worked for all 9 of us so we opted to go for it. For Peter and I, who are used to kayaking and hiking into campsites, this was very deluxe camping. Every site had electricity! And drinkable water! The sites weren’t very private and it was fascinating to see the set-ups others brought. The campers next to us brought their slow cooker and I’m convinced one site had a mini fridge. It was very much a community vibe though with several of the campers returning year after year (One woman told us she’d been camping there for 50 years!) There was a musical jam night and a pancake breakfast.
It was nice being right on the lake and we had lots of fun with inflatables and paddleboards, including creating a flotilla for all 9 of us to make it across the lake to a local rope swing.
And, of course, the highlight was time spent together. My girls adore their teenage cousins, who are endlessly patient and enthusiastic. They braided hair, jumped off docks, paddled together and even had a cousin tent. (For one night, at least – night two Pearl and Rose were back with mom and dad!)
And some random, fun time photos from the last few weeks:
Karissa Reads Books 
Oh man, cousins are the best. I had an unfortunate breakup with my favorite cousins about 20 years ago. Then, this summer, our oldest cousin actually died. I hadn’t seen her in a long time and it was very sad, but her funeral brought everyone back together. Now I’m seeing those two cousins favorite cousins that I had the breakup with somewhat regularly! And we’re texting, too! (I originally wrote the word again, and then had to delete it because I forgot we didn’t have cell phones back then, LOL.) I feel bad, but the break wasn’t over something trivial. There was some dangerous stuff going on that I had to separate myself from. Anyway, I hope Rose and Pearl cherish all their time with cousins and get to do it again soon.
I’m so happy that you are reconnecting with your cousins. Cousin relationships seem so special and unique. I have zero first cousins and always wanted that cliche movie style extended family with big affectionate get togethers. My girls have older cousins, same age cousins, and a recently born baby cousin so they really get to experience it all!
You have no first cousins? Are both your parents only children? Or did their siblings have zero children?