Monday, August 6, 2007

ICHE Canoe Trip

ICHE sponsored an opportunity for home school families from around the state to exercise, splash each other, sweat, fall in the water, fight the current and fellowship while canoeing down the Fox River.

There were about 40 people in attendance. Our family was able to go and we had a GREAT time.

Martha & Haley

The Johnson Women and Esther from Hungry.
Haley, Martha, Becca, Esther, Bernetta and Gretchen


We all were so glad that Kyle could join us for the weekend.

Mother and Daughter


Ken and Haley


Nathaniel and Matthew

They were the second canoe to come in at the end point. The distance from start to finish was approximately 7 miles. They came from being one of the last canoes launched and took the lead. However being the gentlemen that they are, they allowed the girl's canoe that was competing with them to come in first. =)


The experts in the group: Jason and Lucas

Jason broke his paddle!
Rumor has it that it was broken on the bump on Lucas's head.
We can not confirm this information but either of these two gentlemen are welcome to comment on said rumor.


Kyle and Gretchen
After hearing certain stories about past canoe trips,
Gretchen decided to wear her swimsuit.
They didn't even get wet!


Each family brought a picnic lunch along, and there was lots of visiting and fun afterwards.

There was an intense game of Rook going on at one table. A soccer ball was in motion on and off, and some of the young folks played a couple rounds of "Four Men on a Couch". Or should we say, "Four People on a Picnic Table"?


It was way too uneven to do the traditional girls against guys, so they came up with a creative solution: the Barefeet against the Shoes!


Note the looks of deep concentration on the faces of these highly competitive teams! Everyone was really into it, and there was much less guessing than normal.


It was a tough battle, but the Barefeet won, two out of three. Here are the winning feet. :-)


We had a great day with fresh air, exercise, old friends and new!


To see more pictures of the canoe trip,
(in a couple of days) go to ICHE's website and check their blog.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

A lot of fun it looks like. Go barefeet! Excellent job. That sunset looks spectacular. Although you may be exhausted, you had a great time getting there.

~TD

Anonymous said...

I'll leave a comment about Jason and Lucas because I don't know when they'll get a chance to check this!
A little known fact about the two so-called "experts" is that they were probably the first to fall out of their canoe. Just as they were about to set out, my (not so small) brother jumped in the canoe instead of carefully stepping in, and promptly spilled Lucas out. I was glad I got to see it and I wish I had had my camera handy to catch the moment!
So maybe it was Lucas that hit Jason on the head with his own paddle...
~Melody

The Sisson Clan said...

We also saw evidence (first hand & in person) that the paddle was partially cut right where it broke! Makes us suspicious . . . . . . . .

Anonymous said...

This sounds like there were some interesting and shady dealings going on with one of the canoes. What it is I cannot say, but it seems dubious.*

~TD


*du-bi-ous. Only three fingers! How in the world can such a word only take three fingers. :)

Anonymous said...

I'd love to hear an explanation and directions for this syllable game! I think some of us are missing out? =)

Lisa

Anonymous said...

Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, chapter 10: conversation between Miss Bingly and Darcy. When Mr. Bingley jumps in to correct his sister's error, that is the only explanation and directions.

~TD

Anonymous said...

Well, we are still friends, but regardless of how the paddle was broken, I got the better end of the deal. Lucas had to do most of the paddling. :)

Jason