Finally, photos

Last year I posted about being inspired to create a couple of end tables out at the camper. We hope to add a deck this summer and these will add some color and be functional, too.

We found a little red side table in Lanesboro at a vintage shop. I think we paid $25 for it, which is high, but Lanesboro is a tourist town and when I tried to bargain, the guy told me he had just put it out and he knew he could get that price. He was right, so I bought it.

I brought it home and wiped it down with a damp cloth and then just let it sit for a few weeks. As is my usual style, I knew it would eventually tell me what I should do with it. At the same time, I was collecting a few Minnesota themed items, digging things out of boxes, picking up a vintage postcard here, and an old wooden fishing lure there, thinking they might have something to do with the table, or perhaps another project for out at the camper.

Now we will flash back to about 1999 or 2000; Rob and I watched a lot of HGTV. Keep in mind that this was before the home improvement and DIY craze; we did it because we had bought an old (1952) house that needed updating and we couldn't afford to hire the work done. There was an episode (not sure of the show) where a family in California turned their garage into a family room. (Not uncommon, Minnesotans -- square footage is at a premium out there.) Anyway, they did it in a 50s diner theme, with black and white checkered flooring, chrome and hot rods. So cool. They had a bar with bar stools in one area of the room, and they placed diner-style paper placemats, flatware, etc. as if they were place settings, added a few Hot Wheels cars for color, and poured an epoxy resin over all of it.

It. Was. Genius.

Rob and I have mentioned that dozens of times to each other -- it was unique, fairly simple, inexpensive, and a conversation piece. But I never had the project to try it on.

Until we found the red table.

The epoxy is a mess. Two different jugs that you mix together. I was surprised because it was more expensive than I had expected, although still affordable in the overall project budget; I got ours at Menards. There are small containers for smaller projects; the tables required 2 of the biggest kits they carried.

Tips for working with epoxy resin:

Lay newspaper everywhere. Multiple layers.
Be somewhere that is well ventilated but where the objects can dry without being disturbed by insects, dust or debris (so outside is not recommended).
Buy several measuring cups and rubber spatulas at the dollar store. You will not be able to clean this stuff up.
Be patient, follow directions, and DON'T PANIC. (Thank you Douglas Adams).

Rob built a frame for the table edges so that the resin would build up and stay in place rather than running off the table edge. He used scrap wood and covered it with duct tape so the resin would not stick to the tape. He clamped the corners and I got to work. It took several layers -- I would mix, pour, let dry, and repeat. Allowing adequate drying time meant it took a couple of days.

I placed the items haphazardly, as if they might have just been casually tossed there, and the result was this:

Not great photos, but you can sort of see in the top one that the wooden fishing lure actually sticks out from the surface a little bit. The paint is the color that was on it -- it had a few splashed of beige and brown paints but I strategically covered up some of those spots and left it alone. The company hasn't done any testing o how the epoxy holds up in cold weather, but this one made it through the winter last year in the shed at the campsite. It is maybe a little yellowed, but for this application, I am okay with that.

Next up? Its companion piece, a French Provincial nightstand I found for $10 at a garage sale. The color is Superior Blue, for our lovely lake, and I did the same trick again, only this time it required a lot of sanding and mucking about with prepping.

This one has a bobber on it, a photo of my paternal grandparents' lake cabin, a vintage postcard of Rochester's own Plummer building, a rock that I picked up at Kris's place after she died, a Mayo keychain, and a birchbark postcard that was sent by my grandma to her parents in the early 1940s. The card is curved and sticks out a bit from the surface -- the curved one is the original. I added a photocopy of the writing on the back as well -- that is that darker brown rectangle on the left. The bobber sticks out a bit, too, but I like that it has some dimension.

SoI did have the table done in time for the party, as mentioned in the entry I linked. I just (clearly) took a little longer than expected with sharing this project.

All in all, it was worth the expense of the resin and the time involved -- Maybe by this fall I will be able to post a picture of the two tables on the deck next to the camper!

While I was gone ...

Bullet points for the sake of expediency.

* We got 5 nights in the camper in 2 different campgrounds. Last night's adventures will merit a post of their own later. Be afraid. Be very afraid.
* A visit from a dear friend was a good thing. Funny how things can change in 21 years.
* Load 3 of camping laundry is in the washer now. Camping: when your regular Mt. Washmore is just not a challenge anymore.
* Starting the bedtime routine this week. Bed at 8:30 tonight if I'm lucky. (For me and the kids. See bullet #1. Details to follow.)
* Vet appointment for Pippa. Antibiotics for a bacterial infection in an anal sac (ewwwww) and steroid drops for an eye condition. Every day. For the rest of her life. Because it's fun to wrestle her to the ground, pin her, and hold her little applehead in one place so I can get the drops in each little bulgy eye. But I love her, I really do.
* Got tons of reading done this week. The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith is worth the read. I got through 1, 2 and 3. Going back to the library for more. The Cry of the Dove is hard to get into ... she shifts time and place so quickly, and the characters ran together at first. Once I figured out how it all fit together, though, I enjoyed it. Some of the prose is lyrical and I found myself thinking, "I wish I had written that." Surprising and emotional.


* Also read a generous helping of People magazine. I found a couple older ones in the laundry room at one campground and bought a couple, too. Mind candy. Yummy.
* Did not miss the television all week. The kids didn't mention it or video games all week. In all honesty, they never pine for electronics when we camp, but I was glad nonetheless.
And a bonus, non-bulleted point:
I did not watch 1 minute of Olympic coverage. Nothing. Since the '94 Dream Team and the cynicism I developed as a result of the time-honored tradition of amateur Olympians being smashed to smithereens by a bunch of professional athletes crowing and preening about their prowess while humiliating teams of actual amateurs who had worked so hard to reach the Olympics, I just can't stomach it. So I didn't watch it. And I didn't miss it. And I don't feel bad about it.
So take that, NBC. And IOC. And USOC. 'Cause I know you were all waiting with bated breath to hear what I thought of it.

Live from Itasca State Park

I can't get cell phone reception here, but our campsite here at Itasca is part of a pilot program in which some sites have free wireless internet access. We are having a great week and we are, indeed, unplugged for the most part. We've been listening to CDs in the camper and playing games, hiking in the park, and generally enjoying ourselves. I LOVE this place. Rob took a picture of me at the table -- I just had a shower and these are my pj's -- sorry if TMI.


We took a lake cruise yesterday and saw this Great Blue Heron -- I am loving the 18x zoom on my camera!

And here is the lake with some wild rice along the shore.



The weekend at our friends' cabin was lovely. It rained all day Saturday, which was really only a disappointment because the kids wanted to be swimming, but Sunday was gorgeous and we got a ride in the boat, a chance to swim, and we were having so much fun we stayed a little late and didn't get to Itasca until 6 PM. We did end up with one of the non-reservable campsites (there were only 4 left) and we are here for the week. We are hoping my brother will join us Thursday.

The highlight of Saturday was Garrett's big catch -- a 3.5 pound largemouth bass. He caught it right off the dock with a lure called a Chatter Frog. The guy at Wal-Mart in Stillwater guaranteed the fish were hitting on them all over the state. Garrett was so proud -- and the fish tasted great.


The sun is setting, the boys have come in from their bicycle tag game, and the loons will be calling from the lake soon.

Good night.

Unplugged

We are on the road starting tomorrow. Looking forward to a week or more of: no TV, no Wii, no cell phone reception, no computer ...

Just me, my boys, the dog, a pile of books and trashy magazines, and a great big



Later!

Rained out

Evan's soccer game was rained out Saturday morning. Despite that, we loaded up the pop up and 3 extra kids and headed to a campground/resort about 45 minutes away. We had 2 cars (because the van max is 7 passengers). We got to the campground, set up the bare minimum, and headed to the pool. We'd been there about an hour and a half and it started raining, so we packed everyone up and headed back to the camper.

Six boys in the camper at this point, and believe it or not, it was fine. They played Yahtzee and colored on some big Spiderman posters I had picked up on a whim. Rob started dinner and things were going okay (if wet) and all of a sudden a sheriff's car came by with lights and siren going. They sent us to the main building where we stood around for awhile, waiting for the tornado warning to expire. There was a group having a potluck (the storm shelter is also a community room that can be rented) and they offered to share so all the boys had some food. (Read: chocolate dipped strawberries, pound cake, and Cheetos LOL).

We got back to the camper, Rob cooked some hot dogs, everyone ate some more, and we went to sleep. It rained ALL NIGHT. Thunder and lightning periodically, but rain all night. Like 4 inches of rain. By morning the canvas was soaked and starting to leak. Rob went and looked at the weather report on TV in the main building and determined that it was going to continue to rain all day.

Six kids and 2 adults in a pop up camper sounded like a recipe for disaster, so we packed up and were on the way back to town by 9:30 AM.

All is well, the camper is popped up in the driveway, it is STILL raining, and I will attack Mt. Washmore later. It was fun, but I sincerely hope for better weather next time.

And I have to add that in all the years I have camped, I don't recall ever having to go to the campground shelter because of a tornado warning. So now I can cross that off the bucket list. LOL

What a weekend!

We had a ball camping with the whole family. Set up the camper and tried out the never-before used screen room. Loved it. Note the palm tree that lights up and the bar just visible inside. Unfortunately it took 4 adults to put it up, so until we have a little more practice or can bribe camp neighbors with beer it probably won't get used a lot this year.



That's the whole fan-damly, as it were. What a crew. We did have fun, even trying to get that many people and dogs to look in one direction at the same time.



Evan, Garrett and their cousin Haylie climbed a big hill in the campground. Here they are celebrating their ascent.



And I realized I haven't posted any pictures of Evan playing soccer yet this season, so here he is practicing tonight.

More adventures this weekend, so I probably won't be in again until Monday or later.

Bar cabinet

Here it is -- the large open middle section is where the glasses will hang. Sorry, the only glass I had in the house was the white one that is hard to see. The open space at the bottom left will be a small drawer eventually. The sides have pictures of my favorite cocktails along with recipes for them -- they are Bloody Mary, Cosmopolitan, Mojito, and Pina Colada (which I actually prefer to drink without the alcohol).

On the door is the recipe for a Margarita along with a picture of a palm tree and the words, "It's 5 o'clock somewhere." The handle was a sample I ordered when we were redoing the kitchen a few years back and I loved it but at $13 apiece it wasn't economically feasible. I didn't even know Rob still had it and I think it looks great. (I adhered the margarita and recipe before having a full plan for that door. Once I decided on the rest, the words ended up being partially hidden by the handle. Not ideal, but oh well.)

We are in the process of loading up. Rob is putting the bikes on the rack and I am going to get all the food as soon as I'm done here.

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As an aside, Sam is doing great after his surgery. The family is much relieved and waiting for the pathology report. I know they would appreciate your continued thoughts and prayers. Thank you.

Have a good weekend, everybody.

Bar Open

Did I mention the cute little tropical-looking sign Rob bought for me a couple of weeks ago? Well, in keeping with the alcoholic theme I realized I had picked up a stemware rack at the dollar store last fall. We have some plastic wine glasses and margarita glasses in the camper and I thought if Rob could build me a simple box using the rack it would free up cupboard space while we were camped.

When I cleaned the camper a few weeks ago I pulled out the cocktail shaker we received as a gift years ago (haven't used it, partly because it looks like a penguin ... not sure why) and stuck it in the cupboard. (I have a rhubarb martini recipe from Jamie Oliver, so now I have a reason to use it.)

Inspiration struck yesterday afternoon, and I sketched a rough outline for Rob, asking if he could build me a cabinet to hold the glasses, the penguin, and our other drink accessories. Always eager to (in his own words) "sacrifice some wood," he agreed and set to work.

It is in pieces now, and ready to be painted. I can not wait to post pictures. Everybody will want to party at our camper. I guarantee it. Pictures later in the week, as soon as it's finished.

Lest you think otherwise

Aforementioned retired neighbor is a nice guy. Honestly, he has never complained about my weeds (at least not to my face). Having dealt with the neighbors from hell in California, I can live with this guy.

And I sold out today and used a weed killer. (I know, corn gluten. Whatever.) I had the stuff in the garage and the means to do it. ***Miraculous occurrence ahead*** We moved into this house in 1997. That's 11 years ago. When we bought it the outside spigot on the front of the house had no handle. It had to be turned on and off with a wrench. Rob told me it was no big deal and we bought a replacement spigot the day we closed, in the giant $500 Menard's shopping spree that included paint, drop cloths, and our wonderful Weber kettle grill. I mentioned it last night as I was leaving for a meeting, kind of in a teasing way. Since we already had the evil chemicals I figured I could use them. (And to be frank, there is really no other option. The whole yard is clover, dandelions, Creeping Charlie, and crabgrass.) The container hooks up to the hose, but I hate fiddling with the wrench. Lo and behold, when I got home I discovered my darling husband had installed the new spigot. Never mind that he was congratulating himself as though he had found a cure for cancer or a way to lasting world peace, he did get the job done. LOL

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Here's a recap of my week:

Monday: chaperoned Evan's class trip to the Minnesota Zoo, Evan had soccer in the evening
Tuesday: volunteered at school in the morning, spent the afternoon in the driveway vacuuming and cleaning out the minivan. (It looks amazing!), Garrett had baseball in the evening
Wednesday: volunteered for DFL in morning, tried to clean a little in the house and finish up the car, Evan had soccer in evening
Thursday: volunteered at school in morning, had lunch out with Rob and Spencer, spent the afternoon supervising field day for the K-3rd grades at a park near the school (and got sunburned despite the hat, sunglasses, 50 SPF lotion, and standing in the shade for most of the day), Garrett had baseball in evening
Friday: ran to the library, dollar store and grocery store with Spencer this morning, then had a volunteer thing get canceled (woo hoo!) so I ran to buy a storage thing for food when we camp (the 60 gallon Rubbermaid tote wasn't working so well), and found tires for the camper. Installation was FREE (helLO), so we had them put on and ran to get covers for the tires (the sun is really hard on them). While out we stopped for lemon garlic chicken kabobs at our favorite butcher and tzatziki sauce at a little place nearby. Rob fired up the grill when we got home, I made some rice and some veggie kabobs, and we had a lovely dinner. A quick walk on the shores of Silver Lake helped us wear the boys and the dog out. We still try to practice the physical exhaustion theory of parenting. LOL It works.

So there you have it. A week in the life. It feels good, though -- a less busy week is ahead (not as much volunteering, I hope). It's a good thing because I have lots to do in preparation for the inaugural camping trip of 2008. Hard to believe it's only a week away.

A touch of summer

I ran into the grocery store last night for a couple of items. Spencer was with me and as we walked in we spotted a red-haired woman in bright pink pants and a lime green shirt. I love that color combination so I told her she reminded me of summer and watermelon in those bright colors. As I drew closer, I realized she was wearing pink-framed glasses, carrying a pink, white and green striped handbag, she had green sandals on that were imprinted with pink flamingos, and the shirt was embroidered with flamingos and palm trees.

We did our shopping and ended up in the checkout line right behind her, where I told her she should be carrying a margarita and she replied that she wished they had margaritas at the store. I have been saying this for years, people. I have witnesses. LOL

Then she pulled her wallet out of her handbag and it was pink, too. Even the sparkly earrings in her double-pierced ears were pink and white. Not bad for a woman who looked old enough to be a very cool grandma.

She just made me smile. I want to live in vibrant, splashy color like that, every day.
__________________________________________________________________________________


We picked up the camper from storage last night. It looks great -- no signs of critters getting in, anyway. Will probably open it up in the driveway Sunday to air it out and wipe up any spills (guess who forgot to take out the laundry detergent and the shampoo/conditioner bottles last fall? Oops.).
___________________________________________________________________________________

And Rob is at school. Counting today he's down to 3 days left. I can't honestly tell who is happier, him or me.

Will wonders never cease?

My house is clean.

My laundry room is neat and tidy.

The laundry is done.

I cleaned the dog's kennel and the bedding in it.

I spent a little time in World HQ yesterday and came up with this:



I made the album a while ago. Chipboard covered with patterned paper and Bazzill, then punched with the handy machine at school and put together with pages made out of Bazzill and a comb binding.

I posted at Scrapjazz and asked if anyone had Quickutz and the Tangerine alphabet. Thanks to Lin, who did and was willing to cut my custom title. She even sent me some camping stickers when she mailed the letters and numbers to me.

I inked them with a Cat's Eye Charcoal ink pad and ran them through the Xyron and lined them up using the Creative Memories Titletopia (which apparently they don't sell anymore ... too bad, because it is a great tool). The lines are drawn with a Zig writer and the fire and logs I cut freehand from cardstock scraps.

I am so looking forward to our adventures this summer!

A Very Good Day

I was pretty low when I answered those questions the other day. Thanks to those insightful enough to see it and email me. I appreciate it. It was parenting angst which I shall not dwell on today because it was a perfect day.

This morning we got up and went to a camp near Pepin, Wisconsin to their "Maple Syrup Day." On the way we saw a sign for the birthplace of Laura Ingalls Wilder and took a 14 mile detour to see the site of the Little House in the Big Woods. I loved those books as a child I read them over and over. Laura was my friend, and to walk on the land that she played on as a little girl was surprisingly emotional for me. There is a little reproduction cabin that is open to tourists (although it is empty and not staffed) and we went in and saw the small space in which a family of 4 lived. I could almost see the onions hanging from the rafters and the jars of canned goods on a shelf in the corner.




On to the camp, then, where we got to taste the sap of a sugar maple (the taps look like little spigots and the sap looks like water and was not as sweet as I expected). It takes 40 gallons of sugar maple sap to make just 1 gallon of maple syrup. We ate the syrup on delicious pancakes and if you've never had the real thing I recommend it.



The kids had the opportunity to try archery and climb the big climbing wall, and they made friendship bracelets at the Arts & Crafts area. A total blast. Now all of them want to go to summer camp. We are accepting donations. Email me and I'll give you my PayPal address. LOL






Stopped at LARK Toys for a birthday gift and then home to Rochester where I checked my email and found that my candidate for Chair had prevailed in a contested election at our DFL County Convention. Plus a really awesome guy was elected Affirmative Action Representative and I think he is going to do amazing things to draw in some of the immigrant and minority community members which are underrepresented in our party.

Off to a birthday party at Quarry Hill Nature Center, and to see the "Creatures of the Deep" exhibit, which ends Monday, March 31. It is awesome. I have never even imagined a turtle 16 feet wide.




We stopped at the grocery store for avocado and lettuce and all the ingredients for Dirt Dessert, and we are home now, getting ready to have BLTs (with avocado) and oven fries for dinner. A quiet evening together for all of us and possibly a glass of wine with my husband after the kids are in bed.

I saw 2 robins today as we were driving in Wisconsin, the temps today climbed to near 50 degrees, the snow is almost gone, and I feel spring is on its way.

A very good day, indeed.

Need a house cleaner?

I started cleaning house today for money. Right now it's just for one friend but one morning a week will give me some "fun money" and help her keep her life under control. It's a win-win. I don't know that I'll take it any further than that, but I made great money in college hiring myself out as a part-time cleaning lady. I like seeing the results of my work and I love the flexibility, so who knows ... Plus, as mentioned previously, I ROCK at housecleaning.

In other news, we closed up the camper for the year tonight. I emptied the Porta-Potti and rinsed it out well, we put the linens into the storage compartments, and made sure everything was working. Don't want to put it away for the winter knowing there is something that needs fixing.

I feel good that it's done, but a little sad, too. It's fun to know that it will be there for us in the spring, though, ready for new adventures with 3 boys and a little pug.

Getting the linens back into the camper opens up another giant tote for me. This is good because I need some containers in which to haul all of my stuff to the church for the rummage sale. I hope to get through that stuff Saturday, pinning outfits together and sorting through things one more time before sending it out the door to be useful for someone else.

Evan had me come and pick him up from school this afternoon, complaining of a tummyache and a headache. It was 3:20 when he called and school is out at 3:35, but he didn't want to ride the bus home. I gave him Tylenol and 2 hours later he had a temp of 100.6. (Of course I neglected to take his temp right after school.) It looks like he'll be home tomorrow and I am hoping it's just some little 24 hour bug.

I started recording Rob's reading assignments on the computer the other day. Puts my "golden voice" LOL to good use, I guess. Reading stuff written in academic style is a lot harder than when it's written for broadcast style, though. Those academics don't like to limit their sentences to 20 words or less. I had several spots where I croaked the last word of a sentence because I was all out of air and hadn't had a good point in the sentence to take a breath. Plus some of the words they use -- oligopoly? Honestly, who can say that cold without a rehearsal? I totally goofed it up. Oh well. He said it worked fine in the car the other day and I am glad to be of some help. The other students on his team asked if I was angling for a BMW. Of course, they don't know that I would NEVER ask for a BMW -- I want a 1959 Cadillac. LOL I am nothing if not unique. Or odd. Or eccentric. I embrace these terms.

So it's Wednesday and today I found myself thinking, "Oh, it's Wednesday -- West Wing night." Oops. That show has been off the air for 2 years. I miss it a lot. I may have to invest in the entire show DVDs. Only about $300 ... well, maybe for my birthday.

There you have it. Randomness at its finest. Have a great Thursday, all. I am off to tuck my sick child in and get some sleep, too.

Fall is in the air

We camped this weekend and were most grateful to have a furnace. It got down to 32 degrees Fahrenheit Saturday morning!

We attended the Minnesota Renaissance Festival on Saturday, where little Miss Pippa was the star of the day. People loved her. So did a fawn pug puppy named Dieter. LOL She was unimpressed.

We're back home now, and I have tackled "Mount Washmore" as FlyLady calls it. I hope to be done tomorrow evening. It is BAD.

And I thought I would update on my progress on the list (okay, and add a few things) from last week:

-copy recipes onto index cards and place in album
-paint back of scrap shelves with magnetic paint
-finish door jambs on main floor
-stain trim in basement
-hang suspended ceiling and install tiles in basement bath
-sort and organize photos
-sort and organize family history stuff
-sew bathrobes for kids
-sew table skirts for scrap room
-finish sweatshirt for Mom
-finish sweatshirt for Nancy
-choose photos, have them printed and laminated to create border for hallway
-mail envelope to Sally with Henry's paperwork
-print family group sheets for Aunt Ida to have them proofed and corrected
-write thank you notes for the Ohio trip
-make cards for Sally for her birthday
-add trim to baking cabinet
-sand / paint baking cabinet before obtaining solid surface top
-stain hot tub
-tear up hallway carpet
-remove tile from entry and bath
-stain arbor
-stain front door trim
-stain back door trim
-hang wood blind in family room
-paint hallway
-finish surf painting for kids' room
-finish bedroom curtains
-work on decorating idea book

Okay, it doesn't look like a lot, but remember I had to pack for camping and I babysat some friends' kids, and I DID manage to get enough evidence together to prove Rob is eligible for membership in a special group of a genealogical society in Ohio. Which isn't a big deal except it gives me access to more resources and if our kids or other descendants want to join later they will only have to document their link to us. So.

Yeah, I am off to do laundry and get my kids to finish their homework, then it's grading math papers and calling potential volunteers for the book fair. Have a good week, all!

Camping weekend #3

Which reminds me that I still need to blog about weekend #2 so I remember it.

Anyway, we camped at a place near Wabasha, MN (home of "Grumpy Old Men"). Beautiful pine woods -- much more like Northern Minnesota than most places around here. I LOVED it. Well, except that it had trailers that looked like they'd been there since Elvis was on top of the charts or earlier, the sites were pretty close together, a seasonal camper across the road didn't appreciate that I asked him to turn down the goat-roper music he was playing (I didn't use that turn of phrase with him), and at this particular spot alcoholic beverages are not appreciated.

Uhhhh, excuse me? Seriously. They were gonna get mad if I, a person over 21 years of age, consumed a legal beverage on my campsite? Guess how fast Rob and I pulled out our Rolling Rocks. Hey, they didn't say they were prohibited.

Oh, and there was all this ... god stuff. Bible quotes in the store, a big sign advertising the Jesus channel on the radio, Bible quotes in the map/rules document, a church service every Sunday. I don't mind if you have a belief system. Actually, I rather respect and admire people who do and who live their lives by their beliefs. But honestly, you are a business. I don't need you to shove your belief system down my unwilling throat. And so, next time I want to camp near Wabasha, I will NOT choose you.

Anyway, the point of the weekend was the Leukemia fundraiser at the Lake City Yacht Club. They have members give sailboat rides for a fee and all the proceeds go to leukemia research. I sailed on little boats with my grandparents at their lake cabin as a child. I loved it, and I wanted my kids to have a chance to experience it, too. I made reservations a couple of weeks ago through the Chamber of Commerce. Easy.

Little did I know we would end up on a 32 footer (far bigger than anything I had ever sailed on before) with 2 of the most wonderful, kind people we could have hoped to meet. Elliott and Katie were awesome -- they let the kids steer, hang their feet in the water off the back, explore the cabin, hug the mast and look waaaaay up to the top, help with the ropes -- it was terrific. They had a great time and I did too, although I missed my grandpa Keith terribly the whole time. He would have loved to see my kids scampering all over the deck, hanging off the side to look at the water upside down while the spray splashed their faces ...

It was a gorgeous day and we were out on the boat for an hour and a half. Well worth the $60 we paid. I can hardly wait until next year.

Here are the pix:

Weekend!

My dad is still here. Garrett had the first game in his baseball tournament tonight and they won 14-8 so he plays tomorrow at 2.

We are going to try to get to a car show in Lake City first thing in the morning.

Only 2 1/2 hours until the last Potter book is released. I haven't written much about that series here, but I am a huge fan. Not sure if I can wait to read it out loud with Rob (as we have done with all the other books). The suspense is killing me.

Dad brought the Porta-Potti and those dishes down for me, so I got those in the camper tonight, along with the cast iron cookware my grandma sent. Awesome stuff. I had to buy lard today so I could season the pans. I have never bought lard in my life. I was kinda grossed out by the whole idea.

The weather has been marvelous, we made a morning run to Quarry Hill Nature Center today, we scored a pre-made dinner and dessert from my friend Stacy for tonight (her freezer got left open and a bunch of stuff thawed out) and I can make a crock-pot pot roast for dinner tomorrow. I really like Presto Cuisine for those days when you're in a pinch.

Okay, I am off to grab a beverage and relax ... if anybody wants links to anything above leave me a comment and I'll get to it Monday.

Later, peeps.

Eagle Bluff

We have an awesome environmental learning center not far from our home. I must admit we have not taken advantage of this as we should.

But thanks to some friends, over the weekend Garrett, Evan and Rob got to participate in their Summer Celebration. They had a blast.

Here is Evan in the treetop rope course.




And Garrett on the archery range.




They really had a wonderful time, the staff was awesome, and we will definitely go back.

More on camping later in the week.

$16.04

That is how much I spent on this very cool camping accessory. So very cool.

While we were camping our incredible pop up had one of these just outside it.

We could see the lights in the dark from a long way away.

I absolutely love it.



And now, I feel like I am bringing California with me everywhere I go.

Not exactly the same, but a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do.....

Waaah

I threw out my back on Tuesday while I was scrubbing the bathroom floor. Tried to lift the bucket to move it and clearly it was a bad choice. I spent most of the afternoon on my bed, writhing in pain. (Okay, not writhing -- because that hurt too much. Trying to be as still as possible is more accurate.)

I am fine -- 2 days later it is better, but I am still feeling it.

Oh -- and yesterday the kids and I lost the keys to the camper.

I would ask what else could go wrong but I don't want to know.

All you Catholics out there, please say a prayer to St. Anthony to help a girl out.

Thanks.

Camping, Episode 1

Friday afternoon we got to the campground, checked in, and got started. We got everything set up. Started to fix dinner. Realized we had forgotten the dog's food. Rob and Garrett go to town to get food for her. I stay to begin slicing veggies for the Hobo dinners. Realize too late that Rob has his and my cell phones, the potatoes, the onions, the seasoning for the hamburger, and the mandoline (okay, well, I have the old version of this. Now I need this one. It is awesome.) Anyway, he has all the stuff I need. Lovely. I peel and slice the carrots and do random other prep work while I wait. They come back, we eat, all is well. It is warm out and we decide to leave the A/C on, both for the cooling and the white noise when we go to bed. Rob mistakenly believes the thermostat runs the furnace and the A/C. Not so. We are freezing but there is a lot of noise outside so we snuggle up closer.

Saturday morning Rob made scrambled eggs and sausage. As we begin cleanup in the camper and dishes outside on the picnic table, I realize Spencer wet his bed. He hasn't done this in a LONG time and I guess he was just exhausted. I strip the fitted sheet off the mattress, grab the wet sleeping bag and jammies, and finish cleaning everything else up. Rob and I leave the kids quietly playing Uno at the table while we run to the office to do our 2 loads of laundry.

When we come back, the table is sitting about 3 inches too low. On closer inspection we see the post that holds it up has been pushed WAY down into its housing. Pulling it out, we see ... daylight. Yep, there is a HOLE in the bottom of our camper, which we have owned less than 48 hours. Of course we still don't know the whole story. Chances are no one will ever give it to us straight.

The rest of the weekend (after the yelling, that is) goes fine. Hotter than hell, but fine. We figure out the A/C is not set to a specific temperature with the thermostat, but runs on a dial that turns from "a little cold" to "oh my goodness hell just froze over." (That's apparently where we had it set Friday night. LOL)

I promised pictures. I didn't take many, but here are the high- and low- lights.

The kids in front of the camper.


Rob by the campfire making little pies for dessert.


The housing for the table support post. The large round part is supposed to sit on top of the smaller piece. The large piece sits flush to the floor with the other piece going into the floor to hold the post.


This is the new housing for the table support. It is a cone shape and should give us more stability when we use the table. (It was awfully wobbly before it broke.) There is a piece of wood on the underside of the camper now to cover up the hole and keep any critters from creeping in.


So it was the general amount of drama that we provide everywhere we go. All is well now, I got some mending done in the camper tonight (a zipper needed fixing), and we have most everything we need to go again. Which we are, Friday afternoon. Woo hoo. And we will be bringing along all of the cast iron cookware my grandma sent us. Anybody have a good recipe for ebelskiver?