Camping on Burton Island

We spent last weekend camping with the McKenna-Wasser family on Burton Island, Lake Champlain, Vermont. The trip was planned for Friday to Sunday. Friday was a magical day. We took Mike's boat over to the island and setup camp. The weather was perfect, so we took the kids tubing and wake surfing. We had a wonderful dinner. Saturday, we went fishing and water skiing. The kids caught plenty of fish to keep them smiling! The forecast for Saturday night and Sunday was all rain, so we packed up and headed to Stowe around 6pm. We enjoyed spending Sunday in Stowe, eating bagels, walking the quiet path with Boo and attending the Lamoille County Fair.

Surf Camp in Cocoa Beach

We spent the first two weeks of July in Florida with Mom and Paul's family. The kids attended surf camp for a week and had a blast. Helen and Sam learned to surf very quickly and at the end of the week were having incredible rides. The waves were small so Gianni decided to spend the week learning to do tricks; this earned him the award of "Most Creative Surfer" from the instructors. See photos of his antics.

Another Two Weeks in Nicaragua

We took a group of 7 to Granada, Nicaragua for two weeks. We studied Spanish at Casa Xalteva and went on many adventures. Hear the tales and see all the photos at casaxalteva09.blogspot.com.

The best way to learn about our adventure is to go to our blog.
Trip blog: casaxalteva09.blogspot.com
Photos: picasaweb.google.com/kjannke/casaxalteva2009

Willey Range Traverse

On May 31st, Gianni and I climbed three 4,000 footers in one day. It was quite the trip, our most challenging day hike to date. After summitting Mt. Tom we hiked the Willey Range Trail over Mt. Field and Mt. Willey. It was an 8 hour day, covering 7.5 miles. In the end, the rain hit us hard making it an even more memorable experience. Gianni made it to the car with more energy that I did. Scary!

Pequot Cyclists Annual Picnic Ride

On June 7th we did the annual picnic ride with the Pequot Cyclists and Grandpa Tom. Gianni rode hard and fast for 16 miles. He is getting stronger. The food and company was wonderful afterwards.

AMC Trail Work on the Willard Trail

We spent May 30th working on the Willard Trail in Crawford Notch with the AMC family group. We put in a 6 hour day, complete with a hail storm. Of course, Gianni had a blast and worked as hard as any adult. The trail still has a long way to go, but we have made some progress over the last 3 years.

Cape Weekend for Paul's 40th

We spent the weekend of May 23rd at my brothers new house on Cape Cod. We surprised him when he arrived. The kids spent a relaxing weekend together and inaugurated the boating season. We celebrated birthdays for Paul, Sammy and Helen.