Vacation To Monkey Island

Chris' Thoughts:

So we just got back from a vacation to Monkey Island. No joke, that's the actual name of the place. We had a wonderful time, so much so that Dad slashed one of his tires in a ruse to stay an extra day or two. It was a real pleasure to be in a place where cell phone coverage was intermittent at best - where we could spend uninterrupted time enjoying each other's company.

Bobby and Debbie let us crash at their hotel (though we might have technically exceeded the fire code statute), and Mom and Dad stayed just outside of town. While the room was large for hotel standards (3 bedroom, 3 bath with a full kitchen), that space quickly disappeared with 10 of us bunking there overnight. But here's the funny thing: it was absolutely wonderful to be so close to loved ones. It was a thrill to wake up and watch cartoons with Josh, color with the girls, and act like a little boy with an older brother.

My only regret is that more of us weren't able to make it.

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Kira's Thoughts:

I will let the pictures show you what we did on vacation and just focus on the things that are most important to me.

Before we left I was so excited for Ella to get to play with her cousin Gretchen. I thought they would really enjoy spending time together but I was so impressed to see all the kids spend time with Ella. Josh was always considerate of Ella and Ella always had a smile for him. Elizabeth said that Ella was her baby and Christine would bring toys to Ella and show her how to play with them. I thought it was sweet to see the older kids interact with her even though she was a baby.

I was also amazed at how well we could fit into a small space. It got me thinking about a talk that Pres. Kimball gave about family. In it he discussed going to visit a family where he was so comfortable that it didn't seem to matter that the rug was torn or there weren't enough bedrooms for all in the house. That was how it was for us on vacation. It didn't seem to matter that there weren't enough beds for all the kids or that Ella was sleeping in the bathroom. We were just comfortable being together.