July

July has been very eventful for my family and I. On the tenth we went white water rafting in Harper's Ferry. It was interesting because the water was down due to the heat we have had lately. Since we couldn't put everyone in the large raft my uncle and I both rode in duckies. They are single person rafts that are similar to kayaks. At first I was terrified. I thought I was going to fall off and then I wouldn't know what to do because I was all alone. I kept thinking, "Why did I sign myself up for this?" Once the BTI guys had all of our rafts loaded up, we got the speech about what to do when we are on the water. It made me feel a little better but I was still a bit nervous. Next we all loaded onto the bus that would take us to where we would get into the river. There was one guide that was very obnoxious. He told about twenty jokes on the way there and they were the cheesy ones that are not very funny. I do not think a second went by that he wasn't talking.

Once we got to the river, the BTI guys unloaded our rafts and got us ready to go out into the water. Once we were out in the river, the guides showed us how we were to get back onto the raft if we were to fall off. They then asked us if we wanted to jump into the river and practice getting back onto the raft. Of course, I am not a big fan of water that I can not see the bottom of so I said no. There was no way I was going to jump in the water if I did not have to. My cousin and mom both jumped in. I was not surprised about my cousin, but I was about my mom. She is more scared of murky water then I am. The my uncle went in. It was funny because he could not get back in. It also scared me because he canoes all the time, and if he couldn't get back in then what was I going to do if I fell in?

Once everyone was ready we started down river. At that point I was scared and excited at the same time. After about the first twenty minutes I really was getting the hang of it. I was getting less and less scared and starting to have more fun. By the end of the trip I did not really want to be done. I never thought that I would have that much fun rafting but I really did, and I thing that anyone who hasn't done it should really try it. It is just one of those experiences that I will never forget.

On the fifteenth and sixteenth, we went to Hershey Park. The first day we planed to stay at the water park all day. My uncle got our family a private cabana that comes with free drinks and a private grill. There were lots of cool things about it like when you order something from the grill they bring it to your cabana so you don' t have to go get it. The cabana also had a private entrance to the lazy river so there were no waiting in lines every time we wanted to cool off. It was a very relaxing day until we decided to ride the Fahrenheit. I road with my cousin and when it was over she was so scared she was crying. I was smiling because it is a serious rush. She told me that she was never going to ride it ever again and I just laughed because I know she had fun she was just not expecting it to be such a thrill. The next ride we got on was the Wildcat. I love the older rides because they are the classics. The fact that they are so old and rickety is what makes them so fun. Right before we left we road the Fahrenheit one more time. It is an awesome ride.

That night we stayed at a Marriott. They are so fancy I almost could not believe it. We only stayed there because my aunt stays there when she travels for work. The bathroom had real granite counters and the room had a closet in the wall. It was the nicest hotel I had ever stayed in.

The next day we had a private cabana again so that when we got hot after riding rides we could come back and cool off. The first ride we got on was the Storm runner. What surprised me the most was that there was practically no line and we were on the ride within five minutes. Next we got on The Great Bear. The line was about fifteen minutes and it was the longest line we waited in all day. After that we road the Super Duper Looper. There was no line and we got right on. It was funny to ride the older rides after the newer ones because they were kind of lame compared to the new ones. We road some more rides and then we went back to the cabana and got in the wave pool. It was nice to relax after being in the heat for so long. after a while of cooling off we road a few more rides and then headed to chocolate world. After buying some sweets we headed home.

On Saturday I headed to Citi Corp. to play some mudd volleyball. This is the third year in a row that I have played there, but I was really tiered from being in the sun for two days straight. This year our team name was The Muddy Lamas. Something about it being lucky for Dave and Mandy. I guess they were right because we ended up winning the tournament. It was a lot of fun but by the end I was whopped. As soon as i got a shower and dinner I passed out. That is the most tiered I think I have been in a really long time. Anyway, July has been very eventful so far and I still have Zack's birthday party to look forward to. That should be interesting.