2017 FAMILY FLOAT TRIP

Forty-seven of us went down the Niangua very grateful for the cool temperature of the water and strangely only one canoe was in our “fleet.”  Our fleet with the one canoe was actually 7 six-man rafts and 6 kayaks.  We had the Shipley kids and teenagers in tents plus the Matt Thompson family and the Kevin Punch family and Rosario; the cabin dwellers were Nancy and Deborha at NRO and David & Linda & Jon and girls at Riverside Cabins.  The RV’ers at NRO were Grandpa and Grandma Sweetie, the Cornells, Linda & Susan and boys, Rick & Jeanne, and Kathy and Terry.   We had fewer fishermen and fewer golfers.  Two shoppers went to Osage Beach and a 6 went to Lebanon for a movie and shopping.  We had a few sprinkles of rain, and we had the heat and humidity making us thankful for fans, the river, and air conditioned campers.

Jon brought us steak and chicken breasts on the grill; Terry brought the cream can that we cooked without the cream can (it was just as delicious); Matt brought the potatoes, carrots and onions; Aunt Marjorie had the garden beans and squash; and Donna sent us more bucketfuls from the garden that we all divvied up (along with the deer jerky).   And Nita brought the brownies.

There were several highlights this year.  This seemed to be the year of the gnats.  Everything was tried to combat them: bug spray aftershave, fans,  hand fans, and paper plate fans.  We are hoping for a good hard frost this winter so we don’t see those next year!  I lost count of how many jumped off the mud bank and splashed into the river.   Even  Maggie  jumped.  Nancy seemed to have been siting by a nest of ants in her raft  at takeoff and “ants in my pants” brought many new meanings to her.  Thank goodness ants are easy to drown!  Tasha videoed several of the jumps and posted on FB.  Another poignant moment was Bob and Barbara Burns sitting down with the Sweeties as all are in failing health.  Barbara asked that we remember Bob in prayer as currently he has every other day trips to the doctor for treatments.

Those attending this year were

Grandpa and Grandma Sweetie

Rick & Jeanne, Deborha and Abigail, Nancy, Garret, Cora and Chris, Bonny, Lela, Kate and Tasha, Matt, Jessica, Haden, Elle, Annie and Trey

Wayne, Allen, Waylon, Wyatt, Kaci

David & Linda, Jon, Leah, Maggie, Kevin, Allison, Elliot, and Levi

Steve & Donna, Eliza

Terry & Kathy, Tess, Jenni, Jesse, Brandon, Janet, Hayden, April, Jessica

Marjorie, Joe & Nita

Ruth, Tommy & Amanda (with wedding pictures to show)

Russ & Linda, Susan, Kyle and Clay

Larry & Carolyn Rotrammel (shared the delicious homemade potato chips)

Picture below is from one of the two buses that took us to put in the river.