Tahoe Vacation

Jill's Journal:
The setting: beautiful, vast Lake Tahoe, Rob’s childhood home. He was born here, grew up here, left for college from here. He later returned for a job (for a year). His family no longer lives here and most of his friends/ties to the community are gone also, but the pull of the Lake is strong (it’s “the Lake,” just like New York City is “the City”). He still considers this “home” and was eager to share it with my family, some of whom had never been here.

The players: Grandpa, aka my Dad. When I was the girls’ ages (and for the next 20+ years), this man was a super-strict father. I never dreamed he’d be such a doting and permissive grandparent who believes his granddaughters can do no wrong! How did that happen? But it's awfully cute.

Beppy, aka my Mom. Beppy is affectionate slang for Beppe, which is Frisian for Grandma. Don’t know where Friesland is? It’s a northern province in the Netherlands, where my Mom was born and bred. Friesland has its own language apart from Dutch. The girls happily tell anyone who asks (and some who don’t) that Beppy is Dutch for Grandma.

Aunt Kristi, aka my sister. I seriously wanted to be an only child, but she was added to the family when I was 5 1/2. She was a contrary child (!) and I think we fought every single day until I moved out after high school. Now she’s my best friend and I can't imagine even having an argument with her.

Kristi’s Adam, aka my brother-in-law. We can’t call him Uncle Adam as the girls have only two uncles, they’re both named Adam, and the other one had the title first! All the names out there in the world and the girls’ only two uncles have the exact same one…crazy. This guy has only been an official part of the family for three years, but he fits right in. Apologies about the second photo…this is supposed to be a family blog, but this picture cracked us all up. Pun most definitely intended.

Uncle Adam, aka my brother. As siblings, our girls are each 21-22 months apart, but Adam and I are nearly 10 years apart. Yet age doesn’t matter when you’re family. Adam and I had to join forces early as it was the only way we could both survive with our contrary sister in the mix!

Us, the usual suspects.

How it happened: Rob’s hope all year had been to spend part of our fall in Tahoe. And one thing I’ve learned from the 20 or so times Rob has taken me to Tahoe (and from meeting former Tahoe friends spread all over the country) is that it’s pointless to fight it. When someone grows up in Tahoe with the pristine lake, pine trees, and fresh mountain air in their blood, they simply want to return again and again (and again).

We’d hemmed and hawed all spring and summer about whether we’d actually make it to Tahoe this fall or next, but then Kristi signed up for a race in Tahoe in mid-September. She mentioned it to Rob and the next thing I knew, we were skipping our plan to spend a month or two in Washington and committed to Tahoe instead! We were thrilled when everyone else decided to come too and make it a family vacation. Rob worked tirelessly to find a place where we could all be together: a campsite for us, a cabin for my parents and brother, and a tent site for my sister and brother-in-law. This is more difficult than it sounds, especially when it also needed to be a place that would allow Kristi and Adam’s two dogs. But somehow, Rob managed to pinpoint Zephyr Cove, Nevada, and it fit the bill.

We’re not a big family, but we have tremendous fun together and genuinely enjoy our time together. Our five days and nights included a campfire every single night, all meals together, the 72-mile drive around the lake, a glorious afternoon on a boat, and laughter, so very much laughter. The girls absolutely loved having seven attentive adults and two dogs at their disposal. In fact, I barely got two words from them all week – my job was reduced to getting them ready for bed at night and getting them out the door in the morning. They were pretty much in heaven with these people they love so much and they hated to say goodbye. Madelyn cried more than once yesterday after everyone left, telling me how much she missed them all.

It was a wonderful time together, one we’ll cherish for years and years to come. I dare say there will even be a few stories emerging from the week that will fall into family lore and be repeated at family gatherings for the next several decades. And that’s part of what makes family so special: shared memories and experiences. We *love* our family and are so blessed to have these special people in our lives.