A Kayak Ride

All things are artificial, for nature is the art of God.

--Thomas Browne

On Wednesday I pushed my kayak off the sandy shore and paddled across Black Bay to the opposite shore. My eldest daughter accompanied me in a long, blue kayak, a stark contrast to my short red one. We wore jeans. Fleeces. Tennis shoes. It was cold and gray, and ode, perhaps, to our proximity to the Canadian border, a country whose very mention, fairly or not, conjures up visions of cold. It was a lengthy kayak ride considering the late afternoon hour, but the water was still and quiet, the wind having finally dissipated and moved on to a more easterly location, and it was too wonderful to do anything but paddle, then drift and then observe and take in our surroundings. 

Opposite from our starting point was a Minnesota state forest. To the east a small island, with a lone inhabitant, and beyond the island, a swampish shore. To the west was a small channel, which days earlier had taken our party, by pontoon boat, into the larger areas of Lake Vermillion, but was quiet that day, with a few lone fisherman braving the cold of the weekday, and none making their way into Black Bay, on the northern most end of the lake. 

Though we had seen scant boat traffic throughout the week since our arrival the Saturday prior, that Wednesday saw none. We paddled to a small rock island and floated, breathing in the smells of the lake and the pine trees and the crisp air. The slight breeze ruffled leaves on birch trees, creating a quiet, rhythmic duet with the waves licking the sides of our boats. 

Eventually it was time to turn back. Dinner, overlooking the lake, was to be eaten, campfires to be made and inky, pitch black night skies with bright, glowing stars were to be enjoyed, as they had been the nights prior. But we didn't feel particularly hurried or rushed. We took our time, exploring another rock island and, eventually, paddling and drifting our way back to our home base.

The week was a great one, one with lots of excitement (tubing!) and lots of relaxing (morning coffee on the pier), but that kayak ride was a standout moment, and one I won't soon forget.

Differing Personalities

My kids are different. Really different.

Upon arriving at our hotel in Appleton last weekend, Hank and Elisabeth chucked their bags wherever they could find floor space and immediately began to pester Joe about going down to the pool.



Not Madeleine.

No, she methodically got the lay of the land, organized who was sleeping in which rooms and which beds and, once she had staked out her spot, carefully unpacked her things and arranged them on the ledge behind her bed. When she realized Elisabeth had no interest in doing the same, Madeleine, muttering under her breath all the while, carefully unpacked Elisabeth's doll and arranged her things on her half of the ledge behind their bed.



Madeleine also set out her diary and a pen on the desk in her room and then, when she realized Joe was still figuring out that evening's hockey schedule and Hank and Elisabeth were still whining about possibly not being able to swim until later in the evening, Madeleine promptly kicked back and relaxed in her newly organized room.



Madeleine is a girl after my own heart. That's all I'm sayin'.

Good Tired

If I were to compose a blog post right now the theme would most definitely be "I am tired."

In a good way, though. In a way that only a fun, truly relaxing time with my family and good friends can be. Less than twenty-four hours ago we packed up our van, pointed the van north for about an hour and unloaded in a spacious four-bedroom condo at a waterpark resort that we shared with some good friends of ours. Everyone gets along well, kids, adults, and everyone feels comfortable with each other. It made for a fun and relaxing time of trips down the water slides, corralling kids in baby pools and talking and chatting with one another.

I took nary a picture, save a few of a few of the kids in a post-swimming bath, but I'm not going to post those. I feel exhausted right now from staying up too late talking and laughing, but I also feel mentally recharged and really ready to get back into the swing of laundry, cleaning the house and schooling the children.

A mini-vacation was just what the doctor ordered, I think-- though after I get a good night's sleep!

Family Getaway

Last weekend capped of the end of our summer weekends away and while I'm glad to be home, we had a really fun weekend. Every year our church reserves this really great location right on a lake in Wisconsin's Northwoods. There are actually three buildings: a main house, a big kitchen house (with a few bedrooms off the back) and a dormitory building. This year we had about sixty people attend, and the buildings were easily able to accommodate our group.

What do we do there? Well, we eat. A lot. Everyone brings food and there's always way too much, but we sure have fun sampling other families favorite recipes while we're there. We play a lot of cards (Sheep's Head mostly). During the day we fish,



we kayak,



we read, chat and laugh. We play on the dock,



we rent a pontoon boat and go tubing and, of course, jump off the pontoon.



But, more than anything else we just relax. We attended for the first time last summer and after two years we're hooked-- we'll definitely be going back again next year!

Quick Escape

After Joe and I dropped Madeleine off at camp, we treated ourselves to two nights at the Northernaire in Three Lakes, Wisconsin.

Joe had two words in mind when he found out we were headed to northern Wisconsin: supper club. How can I explain the concept of a supper club to those from out of state? Wikipedia does an average job, but still, there are aspects lacking on the Wiki page. And Joe, growing up in northern Wisconsin, is much more adept than I at spotting a real, live Wisconsin supper club. So Sunday night we found a place up in Eagle River that identified itself as a supper club and we both had decent steaks (quintessential supper club fair) and Joe had a whiskey old fashioned and, luckily, the supper club was well situated with a dining room full of windows overlooking one of the area's many lakes.

Monday we explored Three Lakes and Eagle River a bit more on foot but by noon we were out in a 14-foot Mirro Craft with a 25-horsepower outboard motor (in other words a small fishing boat w/one of those motors you steer with your hand, not a steering wheel) exploring the twenty-eight lake chain. We did not make it to all twenty-eight lakes. In fact, I think we only made it to seven or eight of the lakes, but we had such a fun afternoon. Straight away we ran into some loons floating around one of the lakes and they seemed completely unphased by our arrival, no matter how close we got.



Of course we cruised on over to the lake where Madeleine's camp is located and tried to spy on our little girl but, while we saw campers, we didn't see our camper but, still, I was able to snap some shots of the camp from the lake view.





At some point we stopped to eat our sandwiches in one of the lesser-traveled channels though, to be honest, most of the lakes were pretty empty in general.





Later that evening we sampled another supper club, though this one was far and away more the sort of thing I always envision when I hear the term supper club. Maybe that's because, in my mind, I'm still stuck on the idea that supper club=1985, so I'm always a tad disappointed to see the modernization of an old-fashioned supper club. This second supper club was, in all respects, still serving its clientele of the eighties and Joe and I were able to satisfy our supper club craving for the next two, three years (or more!). After that we saw Public Enemies (not very good, but fun since it was filmed in Wisconsin) and then back to our hotel to fall asleep to the sounds of loons out on the lake.

A very peaceful and much needed escape!

Countdown

A busy next few days loom. Lots of preparations to make as different factions of our family move in different directions for various chunks of time. But, for today, I contemplate pharmacy runs for last minute odds and ends and a sleepover Madeleine has planned tonight with B_____. Today errands and laundry, tomorrow packing and, if there is time, maybe a trip down to Milwaukee's lakefront for the air and water show.

Joe misses out on all of this. Taking a few days off of work means lots of busy days prior. I don't expect to see much, if any, of him in the next few days. I can't decide if it's better to be cooped up in an office for sixteen hours or to be here with three kids doing laundry and running errands. Some days the office wins out, but on busy days like these have been for Joe I feel blessed to be sitting in my living room near an open window with actual real, fresh air filling my lungs and know that no matter what's on my plate today in just a few short days I will escape it all and be somewhere where no laundry or errands await (or kids either, for that matter!).

Camp

Tomorrow morning Madeleine leaves for her first sleep away camp. Granted the camp is only two nights long but still... it's sleep away camp! It's over five hours away from here so the other moms whose girls are going and I are staying at a hotel/spa ten minutes away from the camp (yeah, yeah, how lame and overprotective are we?). I'm looking forward to a girls weekend of relaxing, reading, and chatting.

The reason I share this, though, is that I won't be blogging. At least I don't think I'll be blogging. Not that I've been terribly great about posting every day anyway, but I didn't want to get the Walnut Grove trip properly documented before I forget it all but that, like my home-schooling posts, basement "after" posts, and others, I'm sure, will have to wait until later. With me it's always later, isn't it. Hm.

Walnut Grove Trip: Saturday Morning

We woke Saturday morning relatively early considering our late night of swimming and we were on the road by 9 a.m. or so.  Our destination was the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum but on the way we serendipitously stopped for some much needed gas.  That decision was fortuitous not because of the gas that was about $.25 cheaper a gallon than in Wisconsin, but because while we were there we looked through some brochures we had in hand and decided that, since it was so close, we'd take an unplanned detour and tour the Sod House on the Prairie, which ended up being one of the highlights of our trip.

The Sod House on the Prairie isn't connected to anything Laura Ingalls Wilder, at least not officially and, really, until we got there we weren't quite sure what it was.  It rests on an ordinary Minnesota working farm that just happens to be owned by a history buff.  In the 1980s, I believe, the history buff decided he wanted to make a sod house as it would have been made in the time of the early settlers.  He set about doing research, finding untouched sod and began his project.

What stands there today is a roomy sod house, an outhouse, a sod dugout house (much like what the Ingalls family lived in when they first settled in Walnut Grove), and a small log cabin.  These buildings are surrounded by natural prairie grass (but for the path that's been mown for easier walking; surely the owners don't want tourists getting lost in the prairie grass on their farm like Laura and Carrie Ingalls did in one of the Little House books).

First on the self-guided tour wass the sod house. 

The inside was rife with dresses, aprons, bonnets, and other prairie-wear and the kids wasted no time donning the trappings of prairie life in the late 1800s.

The inside was so fun and interesting too.  Not only could you see what the inside of a sod house might have looked like, but unlike most historical sites, you could touch, sit, and explore the furnishings and pretend you were living in that house.

Incidentally, the stove Madeleine is slaving away over in the photo above is the same stove Dad said he had in his childhood home in the 1940s only miles away on a farm in this part of Minnesota.

After leaving the sod house, we continued on down the path towards the sod dugout.

Diana and I both agreed that if we'd had to live for any considerable amount of time in a sod dugout, chances were good our families wouldn't have made it.  Dirt floors, ample room for mice, snakes and who knows what else to get in, not even to mention the time and effort to create heat, food, clothing, etc. I just can't imagine.

I don't know if you can get an idea from the picture above, but that one room and loft was about the size of the dugout house the Ingalls family moved into just outside of Walnut Grove (the book correlation is On the Banks of Plum Creek ).  At that time I believe the Ingalls family consisted of Pa, Ma, Mary, Laura and Carrie, which is the exact size of my family.  That room the kids are standing in was NOT large.  Oh, and Madeleine took a dim view of the idea that a bed might simply have ropes tied across for a mattress.

We had such a fun time exploring these homes, imagining what life was like for the people that lived in homes like them and, luckily, talking to the owners of the farm about how the homes came to be built and even about their appearance in a History Channel show called "Save Our History" (they appeared in an episode titled "Frontier Homes").

An unplanned stop, but like many other things in life, it's often the unplanned events that are the most notable, and that was true in this case.

Walnut Grove Trip: Friday

We left last Friday after the final day of Vacation Bible School around 12:30 p.m.; it was a late start for the four hundred forty-six mile trip from our home to Walnut Grove, Minnesota, one of the Laura Ingalls Wilder sites.  

The trip out was uneventful.  Not serene, not terribly quiet, but relatively uneventful nonetheless.  We stopped the van at this lock and dam on the Mississippi River and the kids were entertained for a few minutes by a rather large ship waiting its turn for the water level to be evened out. 

And then, serenity.  Dad and Diana loaded Madeleine and Hank into their car for the remainder of the trip while Joe and I easily chatted with Elisabeth.  We arrived in Sleepy Eye, Minnesota-- the closest we could find a hotel with availability to Walnut Grove-- around 9 p.m. Friday night and while cars were unloaded, hotel rooms checked into, and plans made for the following day, the kids and I (and later the remaining adults) jumped into the indoor pool and hot tub to unwind.

When Madeleine was 2.5 years old she could easily swim with water wings and, if prompted by an adult standing in the pool below her with open arms, would jump into the awaiting arms.  When Hank was 2.5 years old nothing could coax him into jumping into the pool, waiting arms or not.  Now Elisabeth is 2.5 years old and that girl the the craziest of the three.  Not only can she swim easily with water wings, she can twirl around in the water, point her toes out of the water, swim where ever she wants to go and she jumps.  Goodness gracious does she jump.  She cares not whether there is an adult anywhere near her and, in fact, an adult that's too close might to told to "just go 'way; I do it myfelf."  She does leaping jumps, twirling jumps, and cannonballs.  In fact she does any kind of jump Madeleine and Hank do and she does it with no hesitation.

Hmmmm.  This was supposed to be a short post since it was a short day, vacation-wise.  

Vacation

We just got back last night from a short but very, very sweet vacation.  The destination?  Laura Ingalls Wilder country.  We splashed in Plum Creek and we saw the pageant but saying those things and looking at their website won't do them justice; they each deserve their own post, complete with pictures.

But, as you might guess, I have clothes to unpack and wash, groceries to buy and children who have dearly missed their block friends and want to play, play, play.  But the posts relaying the vacation will be coming.  They have to; the whole trip was too much fun not to share!

Landmark Birthday Celebrations

We arrived home yesterday afternoon following a glorious three night stay at the Landmark in Door County. The weekend was nothing other than the very definition of relaxing. We endured a blizzard while there; being snowed in on vacation can only contribute to the relaxation, no?

While there I took no pictures, swam more than intended (being snowed in can be a bit limiting) and celebrated both Dad and Diana's birthdays. We also added a new card game to our stock of favorites: Poker. I also read a lovely book: Atonement by Ian McEwan.

And now we're back. Time to re-learn how to endure low wind chills without the aide of a one hundred and two degree hot tub to warm us, back to teaching the addition of three digit numbers with carrying and time to face the dreaded task of unpacking.

Birthday Wrap-Up, Part Two

I didn't take many pictures this past weekend. No, actually I did, but I took them all Saturday evening while out in the lobby opening presents and eating cake. I took pictures of nothing else. Pretty lame, right?

We got to Door County Friday night a lot later than we typically do since Hank wanted to attend his last soccer practice of the season and that didn't end until 5 p.m. I think we rolled into the Landmark's parking lot around 8:30 p.m. The big kids headed over to the big pool with Grandfather while Superdad and I (well, OK, Superdad mostly) unloaded the ridiculous amount of things we'd crammed into the van.

That pretty much summed out the rest of the weekend as well. Our agenda was to simply make the kids happy, and that involved lots and lots of swimming. The entire assembled group, however, equaled about twenty people, and as you might imagine not everyone wanted to swim, so in the mid-afternoon a cutthroat game of Sheepshead began, with different players rotating in and out, paused for dinner, cake and presents and then resumed until the wee hours of the morning. Shopping, napping and running took place as well, depending on whims.

The festivities for the kids took place Saturday evening in the lobby of our building, which I can't say enough great things about. It's spacious, the views are incredible and somehow, despite the vaulted ceilings, skylights and floor to ceiling windows, also manages to feel cozy and homey. As always, we chose a condo right off the lobby, so taking cake and presents to the lobby is an easy feat and makes for a completely relaxing, enjoyable time (as does the restaurant and its pizza delivery service).

First up, pizza, salad, Jello (a special request from the birthday boy which Super Grandma obliged) and Izzes.


After pizza it was present time. We followed birthday order and since Elisabeth's birthday is two days before Hank's birthday, she goes first. Here she is with all her loot.


And here she is when asked, "How old are you, Elisabeth?"


Elisabeth was way too cute opening her presents this year. Upon opening each new package she would loudly say, "Awwwww." Here she is opening her loot. As you can see, she had quite a few helpers.


And then it was Hank's turn. Poor boy, it's hard to practice patience at your own birthday party, for Pete's sake and not be able to open your presents right away and then, when it is your turn, have your mother direct you to just sit still so she can take a few pictures. It's brutal. But he did it. He forced a smile and everything.


And finally opening his presents...


Then cake. Elisabeth first, again, with her mocha torte. In our family we have always, always put one extra candle on the birthday cake for good luck. I can't believe it, but I forgot to do it for Elisabeth this year so here she is with one candle for each year and no good luck. Bad, bad mommy. She doesn't seem to notice though.

And then it's Hank turn with a chocolate cake with chocolate frosting made by Diana. She did not forget the extra candle for good luck. Look what the punk did though. After we sang "Happy Birthday" Superdad's family-- the Ukrainian side-- always sings a Ukrainian birthday song and then "Sto Lat," a Polish birthday song (Superdad's Ukrainian grandmother spent most of her childhood living in Poland) immediately following, a fact Hank is well aware of. Apparently he just had quite enough of being patient because one second into the Ukrainian version (which I can't link because Ukrainian uses a Cyrillic alphabet) he blew out his candles. But ha ha, Hank, you missed one!

The weekend was perfect in almost every possible way. I always have a great time in Door County, but I think this may have been my favorite time yet.

We capped of our visit with a night with just the five of us and Sunday night and Monday morning we had the Landmark to ourselves, it seemed. The pool temperature had been cranked up and we just had the best time playing in the pool for a few hours, all by ourselves, Monday morning. Even Elisabeth, usually not a huge fan of swimming, was floating around and splashing and playing in the warm pool water. Leaving Monday afternoon was sad, as it always is but is the sadness is somewhat tempered with the knowledge that we'll go back again. Soon, I hope!

Adirondack Trip, Part 1

I was going to summarize our trip for my blog in one measly post but while going through my pictures I realized so much happened on our six day trip that surely I could milk our adventures for at least a few days.

First off, here's where we were. My mom's family has lived in that area for generations; ancestors of mine have been there at least since the mid-1800s. In the early 1920s my great-grandfather built a home for his wife and three daughters, the middle of whom was my grandmother on my mom's side. That house still stands and is still in the family. Going there is literally like stepping back in time; re-reading old letters, looking through eighty-year-old magazines and watching my kids play with some of the same toys their ancestors did.

Lots of excitement from Superdad and the kids (and me too!) even before the trip. One of the highlights, especially for little Hank, was the trip there. Even waiting at O'Hare, an awful experience for anyone over four, became an adventure.


The first few days were quiet. We had the house to ourselves and the boys busied themselves with household tasks. Superdad's favorite task was introducing Hank to the woodshed and teaching him to split wood.


We all climbed our first mountain on Thursday. The summit of Hadley Mountain, our chosen destination, is about 2,700 feet. A fun climb, and a great day.


On the top of Hadley Madeleine reminded me that she'd inquired not too long ago if there were any places left on earth were man's presence wasn't visible. I told her I was sure there were, but couldn't pinpoint just where.

Her answer? The top of Hadley!

Au Revoir!

Today we're off. By plane, this time, instead of car, which is our usual way. Assuming, of course, that the cog that is the Chicago Tollway allows us to reach O'Hare before our flight leaves.

Our destination?

Some hints:

We'll be sleeping in the house my great-grandfather built... the house is close to a famous horse race track... we'll see Sixty-five and various cousins while we're there...

Give up?

We'll be in upstate New York, near the Adirondack Mountains (in the foothills, actually).

More to share on our return, I'm sure.

Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH

I still remember reading this book as a child. It was assigned reading in sixth grade over our Christmas break. That was the year my family and I went to St. Barthélemy in the French West Indies. Beaches are, and always have been, one of my favorite reading spots. The warm sand and the hot sun are the most inviting combination to pleasurable reading that I can imagine. I felt that way when I was twelve, just as I do today, and I easily recall reading this book while hearing the ocean waves crashing just a few feet away. Mostly though, I recall loving this book.

Imagine my delight when Madeleine and Hank decided on this book for a family read. I'm not sure who looked forward to reading it the most: the kids or me, but it's safe to say we all loved it and all got swept up into the rats' lives, daring escapes and the plight of the industrious Mrs. Frisby and her sick son.

Madeleine and Hank won't remember reading Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH on the beach, feeling the hot sun while Justin directed his rat friends out of Nimh or hearing the tumbling surf as the Frisbys' cinder block home was moved, but they will recall (I hope!) lying in our living room on Major Book Nights, munching on popcorn and discussing, after the reading of the book's final pages, who the two rats left behind could have possibly been.

Happy Campers

Superdad and I talked to the happy campers last night. I think it's now safe to say that I miss them more than they miss me.

me: So, Hank, are you having fun?

Hank: (sounds distracted) Yep.

me: What have you been doing?

Hank: I don't know. Do you want to talk to Madeleine?

Madeleine: Hi, Mom.

me: Hi, sweetie! Are you having fun?

Madeleine: Yep.

me: Well, what have you been doing?

Madeleine: I don't know.

Our conversation, though longer than my conversation with Hank, yielded about the same amount of information. It was time for Superdad to take a turn querying the distracted campers.

Superdad: Hi, Madeleine! How are you?

Madeleine response somehow necessitates giving Hank the phone.

Superdad: Hi, Hank! How are you?

The conversation then ends. Superdad is left hanging only to hear Hank yell, "I want two hot dogs" and then Superdad can tell, by hearing Hank's voice in the distance, that he has set the phone down and walked away.

Punks.

Vacation, II

We're back from our too short vacation. Well, at least three of us are, anyway.

We had a fantastic time in (drum roll, please)... Door County! Really, I don't know why we all love it so much up there. I've grown so accustomed to our fall and winter birthday trips that I've fallen in love with the gorgeous views, the relaxed atmosphere and, of course, the swimming. We never have a bad time, we always seem to be successful at leaving any stressful thoughts or problems behind us when we get there and we never seem to run out of things to do.

This trip was no exception, but the only problem was I didn't really take many (or any) pictures. I'm quite certain, however, that the reverse would have been true had I had a new Nikon D40 in hand (hint, hint).

We rode horses, visited and toured a beautiful old lighthouse, swam (or course) grilled fabulously delicious bacon cheddar burgars, played a lot of cards and board games and made trips into a couple of the sweet little towns for ice cream and window shopping.

The only downers were leaving and, even more sad, dropping Madeleine and Hank off in Green Bay for a week (!) of camping with Super Grandpa, Super Grandma (Superdad's parents) and their cousins. Superdad, Elisabeth and I will join them on Friday (hopefully early Friday; again, hint, hint!)

It's good to be home though I don't quite know what I'm going to do with myself with only Elisabeth to occupy me for the week. Any ideas?

Vacation

I'm writing this in the lobby of one of my favorite places on earth; anyone have any guess where that could be...?

Home Schooling Convention, II

We're back from our first foray into home schooling, and it was very, very interesting. A lot of it I'd already learned from various books, but we also gleaned some interesting tips (like how to get a World Wildlife Fund approved backyard habitat; a project we're interested in attempting this summer) and learned about some great local clubs, like a young writer's club, where the kids work on their compositions, read them aloud and critique each other (actually there's a lot more to it than that; I'm trying to simplify, but it sounded incredibly, incredibly appealing) and a chess club, divided by skill, not by age.

I can't do the conference justice in one short post, but if I wasn't excited before (which I was, ridiculously so), I am now. Every time I hear or read about home schooling, the more I learn and the more excited I get about the opportunities we're going to have.

On the way home from Oshkosh this afternoon I was sitting in the back of the van reading Madeleine and Hank a newly purchased "textbook" about the Ice Age and Madeleine and Hank kept yelling, "Keep reading, keep reading!" and about halfway through I said to Madeleine, "This is a lot of what 'school' is going to be like for you next year. This is one of the texts we're going to use next year for ancient history." Madeleine's eyes practically popped out of her head. She was astounded to realize she could learn history sitting on the sofa while reading a story. She had interesting, insightful questions but, best of all, she was excited about the book and all the interesting things she was learning.

Home Schooling Convention

Today begins a new era of my life: the home schooling era. Oh sure, we made the decision awhile ago, but after we got over our initial reservations and somewhat less than confidently spread the word (what will people think) I sort of forgot about it in terms of how it will actually affect my life.

Yes, I've been reading a lot about it, and I've been getting ridiculously excited about the opportunities we're going to have but I haven't been living it. Madeleine is still at school and home schooling seemed far off in the future.

Until today, that is. In a few short hours Superdad and I are joining the home schooling mix; we're heading off to a home school conference in Oshkosh, Wisconsin where we'll join eight hundred other home schoolers, from across the home schooling spectrum, coming from all over the state to take part in workshops and a curriculum fair.

This weekend we'll have a chance to put our new ideas and theories to the test as we pour over math and history texts. Tomorrow we will learn the how-tos of home schooling, legally speaking. This weekend we'll be jumping in. This weekend we'll be home schoolers.

In addition, all three kids are staying with my in-laws and Superdad and I are staying in a hotel with a pool for two whole nights.

I'm excited about what we might learn and meeting other home schoolers. It should be a great weekend.

Oh, and did I mention we'd be child free more almost forty-eight hours?