Tubing - Wet & Wild!

Today is our last day in Lincoln and we finished our short visit with a big splash. Karen and Bill own a boat and we went to a nearby lake to swim and go tubing. The lake is called Branched Oak and is a state recreation area. Even though it was a Friday and the day after the 4th, it wasn't too crowded. We arrived around 11:00 and the boys helped Bill launch the boat while Karen and I waited on the beach for them to bring the boat over. Soon Chris, Amber (his girlfriend) and Amber's friend, mother and aunt showed up too.

We took turns going out on the boat and riding the large inner tube. The water was choppy, so it was a rough ride both on and off the boat, but it was still a lot of fun. We found one part of the lake that wasn't as choppy and Bill promised to take it easy on me. I got on the tube with Zach and Dave and proceeded to bounce along in the wake of the boat. It was a thrill ride especially when we turned and Bill accelerated (with Karen's prompting). Then we would slide toward the opposite end and hang on like crazy. At one point, when the boat slowed down, I was too close to the front of the tube, and slid face forward into the water.

We spent several hours out there accumulating varying degrees of sunburn depending on the person and the amount of sunscreen applied. We headed back home around 3:00 to shower and go out for an early dinner. We ate at Golden Corral which is an all you can eat buffet of just about any type of salad, food, and dessert you can think of. There was prime rib, steak, chicken, fish, Chinese, Mexican, homemade mashed potatoes, yeast rolls, corn bread, garlic cheese bread, deviled eggs, a chocolate fountain and even cotton candy. It was hard to decide what to eat!

After so many late nights, everyone is pretty tired and only Zach and David remain awake watching a movie. The rest of us are either in bed or on our way there before 11:00 p.m. Tomorrow we'll leave some time in the morning. Our destination is Colorado Springs which is one of my favorite cities. But for now, my pillow is calling my name.