On Memorial Day this year we decided we wanted to go tubing on one of the rivers around here. We opted for the Comal River, since there were no age restrictions, and since we actually tubed that river three years ago when Ella was 2. Two other families came with us - the Andrews and the Johnsons - and I have to say that we had an awesome time! They all thought we were crazy, when we suggested meeting at 8:30 am to drive out there, but we just knew it would be insanely busy later in the day. And when we arrived at the tube rental place, as the first souls there and the sun barely warming up, we thought that maybe we were crazy too! (I would like to say, however, that we were not. It was gorgeous, not too hot, not at all busy, and when we got back to our car to go home the lines were so long that it would have been horrible. So, yea!) OK, so I mentioned that we had a great time. It was awesome! The kids all enjoyed it, and it was such a fun thing to do for Memorial Day. At the beginning of our float we were joking around about the fact that one of us had heard that people drown on the river every year. I mean, this was the most leisurely float ever! I did remember that there was one man-made rapid section that was similar to a water slide, but I had already told them all about it. And it couldn't be too bad, because I had taken Ella on it when she was just 2! Right? So we felt prepared. We got to the rapids, headed on down, got soaked, Ruby cried, but it was all over in just a few seconds. And it was a little bit of excitement! As Ruby and I are righting our tube, I glance back and notice a little head bobbing down the river in a life jacket. Yeah, that was Ella! She and Bryan had flipped as they shot out of the rapids, and Bryan couldn't get his footing on the slippery river bottom to grab Ella without taking her down with him. So she is bobbing right past me, with sheer terror in her eyes, but I have Ruby on my lap and I can't get to her. Our friend Doug jumps off his tube to try to grab her, but the river is fast and slippery and he lost his footing. There are life guards running along the shore watching this unfold, and what do they do? Grab Doug! The grown man! So anyway, Ella was rescued by Bryan in the end, and although she was a little shaken up, she was fine. And says she would still float that river again. Whew! There was actually one more near catastrophe this trip, and that was at this little mini waterfall right after the rapids. I didn't remember this from the last time, and so was completely unprepared for it. Ruby and I are just floating along and I see a drop off. Well, our older kids have already gone off, so I assumed it was fine. Just before getting there, a fisherman on the side of the river says, "Ma'am, you don't want to go down there!" What in the world? So I grab Ruby, jump out of the tube, and am able to make my way to the side of the river. At this point I notice all of our aforementioned older kids. They are gathered together with one tube on a rock in the middle of the river, while their tubes are stuck in an undercurrent at the bottom of the drop off. So here's the story I heard later - they got to the waterfall, went off, all got flipped off their tubes, and Spencer was the only one that was able to get back on his tube. One of the other girls grabs onto Spencer's tube, and the other girl - Ashley - is nowhere to be seen. Well, as Spencer tells it, he sees her under the water, trapped in the undercurrent, reaches down to her, yanks her up and onto his tube, and the three of them paddle away from the waterfall. Spencer was a hero! Ashley and Spencer retold that story the rest of the day, with Spencer just beaming with pride. ("I'm a hero!!") A few days after the float, Ashley brought Spencer a plate of cookies with the following little note. How sweet is that? But honestly, even with these minor events that took place, it was so much fun and we've all said that we would definitely go back and tube again. Hmmm, maybe over the 4th of July!!
