End of the Vacation

The last morning of the vacation, we had what may have been the most memorable moment.  Grandpa unveiled his long-awaited water-walking contraption!  He had envisioned building some kind of a platform or trampoline for the kids, but he ended up being limited by availability of supplies, time, and willing water-walking participants.  However, his creation was impressive nonetheless!  Using PVC pipe, pool noodles, mesh netting that he sewed by hand, and an abundance of duct tape, his idea came to life!

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Susie was the sole volunteer, but she lost her nerve after a tentative attempt. 

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So Grandpa decided to give it a whirl himself.  He started off on top…

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…But ended up going for a bit of a swim and needing to paddle himself back ashore. 

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But my Dad has never let a little water dampen his ingenuity.  We had a blast trying it out!  He has grand plans for his contraption, which is now in pieces in our garage.  He’ll give it a second life in our pool on his next visit!

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Following the water-walking-test, we packed up and left the lake behind.  We said our goodbyes and gave our hugs.  It was such a wonderful week together!

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After parting with my California family, we made our way home.  We stopped at a military museum and got to look at old bunkers, re-created WWI trenches, inert IEDs, tanks, uniforms, and more.  It made quite an impression on us all.  It was definitely a worthwhile stop!

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