Family and Fishing

Our son Eric and our grandchildren, Kylie, 10, and John, 5, visited us this week, camping for two nights in their pop-up tent trailer.



Tuesday morning we all played golf at the Walsenburg Golf Club, which is here at Lathrop State Park. It was the first time in over 10 years that John and I had played golf. We played a scramble, or best ball, format, meaning we all received the same score. Kylie and I hit straight down the middle, but at times it was like we were playing croquet. Eric and John sometimes hit into the rough. All of us were able to play from the ball location that was best for each shot, so the game went much more quickly than it would have under different circumstances. We all decided we would rather play 5, 6 of 7 holes, rather than 9. Here are Kylie, grandson John and I out on the course. (Grandson John was club boy or ball boy, he didn't actually play golf.)



After lunch it was time to go fishing! This time it was me that ran the errands but didn't fish. Those fishing had really good luck, keeping 5 of the 8 rainbow trout they caught in the two hours we were on the shore of Martin Lake here in the park. I kept busy taking the pliers from one place to another so they could remove the fish hook from the fish's mouth.

Kylie and her dad sat on this rock outcropping.



Sometimes grandson John fished with Papa John.



Kylie caught the first fish that was a keeper.



Soon Papa had a good one.



Kylie and John are cheering after four fish were on the stringer.



Here are all of the successful anglers gloating over their catches.



At our age, you would expect us to put our feet up for the rest of the day, wouldn't you? But no, when it was time for dinner, Kylie convinced first Papa, then Nana, to play softball with her. Do you know how hard it is to try and hit a ball when you are wearing bifocals?



Wednesday morning, John and I played with Kylie and John while Eric packed up their camp site to go home. The kids enjoyed the swings.



Then we walked up to the park's amphitheater and asked Kylie to entertain us. It was such a joy to watch her perform the evening news, complete with the commercials, news, weather, traffic, and sports. She has obviously paid attention when the TV was on at home, because she knew exactly how it is done. She even changed her appearance and her voice for each new personality. It was such fun!



Next it was John's turn to entertain us. He stood on the stage for a while, then with that cute grin, he proclaimed, "I have no idea what to do!" We applauded and told him that was fine, too.



One of the real advantages of spending time here in Colorado is that we get to see Eric and his family. This was the third time in three weeks. We're grateful for that.