Lake Day - Alaska - New Project

It was finally a warm day in Alaska.

Seventy-one degrees. Not a cloud in the sky. The kind of day Wasilla waits all year for.

Daddy — or Go-Diddy, as Ocean calls him — came in the back door and clapped his hands. “Who wants to go swimming?”

The whole house yelled.

Bitty grabbed her swimsuit. Dassah grabbed her floaties. Nation grabbed the cooler. Ocean grabbed his notebook (“for lake science”). Harbor grabbed the hot dogs. Psalm grabbed the hamburgers. Mom grabbed the towels. Grandpa Malcuit grabbed his chair from the motorhome.

Rowdy grabbed his leash.

“Lake near the house,” Go-Diddy said. “Perfect day. Let’s go.”

The parking area wasn't busy at all and Go-Diddy found a the perfect spot for the truck - right next to the dock. The water was flat and blue, like glass.

They set up on the dock next to the parking area first. Mom laid out the towels. Psalm started the little grill. The smell of hot dogs and hamburgers drifted over the water.

Bitty and Dassah sat on the edge, kicking their feet.

“It’s warm!” Dassah shouted.

“It’s Alaska warm!” Bitty shouted back.

Then Nation pointed. “MOOSE!”

Everyone froze.

Way out across the lake, a big bull moose was swimming. Slow, steady, head up, antlers dripping. He swam all the way from one side to the other, climbed out, shook off, and walked into the trees like nothing happened.

“Did you see that?” Harbor whispered.

Ocean was already writing it down. “Moose crossing. 2:14 p.m. Confirmed.”

Then came the sound. Brrrrrrrrr.

A float plane came low over the trees, tipped its wings, and landed right on the water. It taxied over, spray everywhere, and parked by the far dock.

Go-Diddy laughed. “Only in Alaska.”

He pulled out his drone. “Time for footage.”

He flew it up, up, up. It buzzed over the lake, over the moose trail, over the float plane, over Bitty and Dassah waving from the dock. He took pictures. He took video.

“Smile for the drone, lovely ladies!” he called.

Bitty and Dassah made silly faces.

After hot dogs — two for Harbor, one and a half for Bitty — Go-Diddy dragged the kayaks down.

Bitty rode with Dad. Dassah rode with Mom. Psalm and Nation took the other one. Ocean and Harbor tried to tip each other over and failed, but where they failed, Nation succeeded. With a big smile, he flipped them over like it was nothing and simply said, "Kids these days" as his only reason why. Not to worry, Ocean and Harbor always team up and get him back. After all... they knew his weakness: G-Soccer. One time, Nation was playing G-Soccer with a friend name, "Big Daddy" and right when he was about to score, Ocean put a pillowcase on his head and he and Harbor began to beat him with other pillows. Nation cried - I guess they got carried away a little. Nation remembered that today when he dunked both of his brothers. Round and round they go.
Back to the lake...

They paddled out to the middle of the lake, where the water was deep and cold underneath but warm on top.

“That’s the floating dock!” Dad pointed.

Way out in the lake were the big floating docks. The fun ones.

They tied up the kayaks and climbed on. The dock bobbed under their feet.

Bitty ran and jumped. “CANNONBALL!”

Dassah jumped right after her. “ME TOO!”

They played for an hour. King of the dock. Jump contests. Mom timing how long Ocean could hold his breath. Grandpa Malcuit napping in his chair on the dock next to the parking area, yelling “10 out of 10!” every time someone jumped.

The float plane took off again, right over their heads. Go-Diddy got it all on the drone.

By five o’clock, everyone was sun-pink and tired and happy.

They packed up the kayaks. They packed up the grill. They packed up the towels.

In the truck on the way home, Bitty was leaning on Dad. Dassah was asleep on Mom.

“Best lake day ever,” Bitty said sleepy.

Go-Diddy looked in the rearview mirror at his crew. His lovely ladies. His boogers. All of them.

“You know what the best part was?” he asked.

“What?” Harbor mumbled.

“All of us. Together. No work. No phones. Just hot dogs, hamburgers, a moose, a plane, a drone, and my favorite people in the world.”

Ocean, from the back, said, “Go-Diddy, you’re getting soft.”

Go-Diddy grinned. “Only for you boogers. After all... Slimy Boogers are the best boogers!”

Mom smiled and Dad and they both smiled at their little lovelies in the mirror.

And back in Wasilla, on a perfect 71-degree day with not a cloud in the sky, the Lovely Laws held on the water: love others as yourself — and always share the last hot dog.