Life is always better on water

Last week I was all over the place! The lake, the river, the fair, the movies... I don't think I sat down once from Wednesday-Sunday! When I don't have anything going on, I pout. Then when I have too much going on, I pout. Do you have the same problem?

Aaaaanyways!

Despite running around like a chicken with my head cut off I had a TON of fun and would do it in second! Also... notice how two of the big events had something to do with water? I love water. (If you hadn't already guessed). I always have!

Okoboji at dusk

In 2008 when one of my best friends married her husband, a new tradition was hatched... An annual weekend that my friend dubbed, "Friends Weekend." She would gather all her closest friends and drag them up to her husband's family's lakehouse. The tradition spurred from her husband's annual "Man's Weekend" and she decided she wanted a weekend of her own for her closest friends.

Since then we have carved out two days in the summer to head three hours north to one of the best lakes in Iowa. Lake Okoboji!

There's something very calming about watching the wake from the back of a boat!

Okoboji is a part of the chain of lakes in NW Iowa known as the Iowa Great Lakes. It's a natural body of water and is some of the cleanest lake water I have ever seen. The great lakes are a glacial "pothole" and are a remnant of the most recent ice age 13,000 years ago. Like many of the lakes in Minnesota, these lakes are all glacial water, which makes the water so clean. Okoboji is one of the three lakes in the world considered to be a "blue water" lake. The other two are Lake Louise in Canada and Lake Geneva in Switzerland.

Pretty, pretty water :)

Okoboji is also full of deep water, which makes it perfect for motor boating (our favorite pastime!) swimming, and water skiing. The deepest part of the lake is over 130 feet deep and it is the second deepest lake in Iowa, next to Spirit Lake, which is also a part of the Great Lakes chain.

We like to go fast!

Okoboji is one of the prettiest places in Iowa and also one of the most fun! There's an amusement park, amazing nightlife and best of all, some of the greatest people. It's known around Iowa as a place to party, which we have... many times. As we have gotten older though, we prefer to party at the lakehouse. Give me some sweats, some aloe (for the burn I always seem to get), a beer and a campfire and I will be a happy, happy girl.

All my best girlfriends in one of my favorite places in the world. Life is good.

When we do party one of our favorite bars up there is the Barefoot Bar, which has been open about 10 years now and is an Okoboji must-see. Like it's name says, shoes are optional and swim attire is encouraged. We were at Barefoot both days, but on the first night there was a Republican campaign stop going on and Herman Cain and Michele Bachman were there. We wanted to see them, but as soon as we stepped off the boat, we knew we were out of place. Everyone was dressed up and we were in swimsuits, cover-ups and holding beers. We hightailed it out of there pretty quick. ;)

Never to worry! We came back the next day to pick up the famous Barefoot plastic cups - gotta stock up on these every year! I also got a really cute new cover-up but I failed to get a picture of me in it. I did, however, get a picture of my drink. (I know, lush).

Mmmmm, margarita on a hot day...

We also have a tradition of finding a trampoline and a slide on the lake. The trampoline is my absolute favorite, and I refuse to go home without jumping on one. We did find one, but totally forgot to take pictures! We did however, get pictures going down the slide...

It is instinct for me to plug my nose!

Getting out is a little rough...

The second day we were at the lake us girls shopped in the morning, while the boys were playing golf. On this shopping trip we all decided we needed matching bracelets that matched the color of our swimsuits.

Cute!

Due to everyone's busy schedules we have a hard time figuring out the when of this trip each summer, but so far we have always made it happen. I truly hope we can keep the tradition going!

Until next year! See ya later, Boji!

What tradition do you look forward to most with your girlfriends?