Oh what do you do in the summer time...

This past week was a scorcher! Multiple days over 100 degrees isn't normal for the pacific northwest, but we made the best of it! Knowing that my brother and his family just moved to Arizona where the temperature has been well over 115 degrees made this week seem like a cool breeze, kind of. But what do we do when it's summer, warm and wonderful outside?? YES! We go to the creek!!

No longer do we go to the newt pond. We decided the last time we were there that if we couldn't see the water because it was completely covered by any type of vegetative growth, it wasn't okay for us to be murking around in it. Boy was I relieved when our oldest agreed without complaint!

With the seasonal change into deep summer, our focus has changed also. We no longer catch newts, er, salamanders, but go for CRAWDADS! The Big Guy Lowe and our oldest son are the hunters!

Our middle son's job was to tend the crawdads without hurting them or letting them go.

He was also our official snail hunter.


Our youngest son was the morale booster when the crawdads were elusive,


the camp manager when food/treats were needed,

and the general overseer of the entire trip.

He did a great job as everyone filled their responsibilities to their fullest!


The hunters caught 9 live crawdads that day (and a few that were not so alive), three fish and more snails than I cared to count!

At the end of our trip, all of them were released back to their homes.


We had to go back soon though to make sure the skills of our oldest son were staying in peak condition. Enter our good friends the Crumb Crunchers! Whenever we are in need of friends, the crunchers come through. Our memories of the creek will always be laced with fun times and this family!

Who wouldn't like a girl that isn't afraid to do more than get a toe wet on a hot day?

Now, this is a picture from a past creek trip, but I just remembered it and had to include it! Friends that can get dirty without hesitation. Dear to our hearts!

Our oldest was grateful for a young apprentice and the chance to have help catching more crawdads. I believe they caught four that day! Plenty of reason for a celebratory swim! Ahhhh summer!