Epic Washington Vacation Part I: Ensign Ranch

For those of you who don't know- I'm from Washington.

...Sort of.

I moved there when I was like 3, and then my family moved to Boise, Idaho when I was 16.

While Boise is my home, Scott and I tagged along with my family to an intense see-all vacation of Washington state. We're still on this vacation, but I haven't had time to sit for more that a minute or I would have updated earlier.

So much has happened, I thought I'd start talking about it now so I won't be so overwhelmed by the details later.

We started here:

The newsie jump Scott is doing adequately describes the happiness found in this place.

We spent most of our time doing stuff like this:

(I'm not ashamed that I slept like this for hours. It was heaven)

Ensign Ranch is a place where a lot of church's and organizations go to camp, and home to many family reunions. We usually stay in a cabin but this year ended up in the RV of a family friends, and a tent.

It was pretty unfortunate that we ended up close to where the showers and flushable toilets were though. We have a lot of fun messing with the people that need to go in, what our families lovingly call, the "Port-a-Crappers."

When an innocent and vulnerable person needs to relieve themselves in said crapper, it's tradition to surprise them by throwing Frisbees or footballs at it in hopes that the shock will make them jump and get whatever is coming out of their body, on to their body. It's a crude joke that is only okay on the ranch. Once, our friend ran his bike full speed into a crapper while my mom was in there.

This year was Scott's first time at the ranch, and I think only my dad dared go in the port-a-crapper, which meant Scott HAD to be initiated and triple-dog dared to throw something at his father-in-laws place of business. We had a log, and not much time so this is what happened:

Yeah, you better run!

Anyway, the rest of us held it until we got to the "Big House" (home to flushable toilets) to avoid being attacked so there aren't anymore stories from such things.

Like I said, it's a shame.

Father to the port-a-crapper ambush idea, and all other bathroom humor is Matt. AKA Heavy D when he used to be on the radio. Him, his wife Pam, and their kids have been friends with us forever. I have an urge to write a big long discourse about Uncle Matt, but I feel like the picture says it all:

If we told jokes that Matt tells, my mother would frown disapprovingly and send us to our room. But when Matt tells them, you've never seen her laugh so hard. Scott was worried because he and I share a distaste for bathroom humor, but like I said- when Matt says it, it's hilarious.

The two days we spent on the ranch were full of canoeing, and bike riding, rope swings and card games sprinkled with peanut M&M's. One of the most fun things we did this year though, was try our hand at the ropes course.

(You can go ahead and laugh at this picture. I couldn't get up the 15 foot wall and was so freaked out that by the time I got down, I realized I was crying. This is probably the most epic ropes course picture ever taken though)

This is my family

(minus the blonde- who belongs to Heavy D and wife)

That crazy lot in the picture above has seen many more adventures, but you'll have to wait for Part II- which may or may not come sooner than you think.