Fathers Day Wknd at the Cabin: June 14 & 15

We headed up to the cabin in Central Minn last weekend to relax and enjoy the weekend together.

Abby had a great time playing with her cousins from sun up to sun down.

Grandma, Uncle Chad, Abby, Evan & Emma played a game of baseball.

The three amigos also played in the sandbox together building castles and knocking them down.




Grandma & Grandpa have a power wheels Jeep for the kids to cruise in.
Abby displays her mechanical aptitude here, getting under the hood to tune 'er up.

Peeking thru a tree on the water's edge.

Joe & Chad went 4-wheeling on Saturday and Evan was glad to help wash up the machines when they came back a muddy mess.

Abby lent a hand too.

Evan found some caterpillars and built them a little home.

Their names were Inchy, Green Goblin, and Peter Parker.

Abby & Emma shared a soak in the tub to get the dirt, grime, and bug spray off of themselves.

In a wee bit of bad luck, we have learned that Miss Abigail is a bit sensitive to bug bites.
Since one does not wear bug spray ON THEIR EYE that is where the mosquito managed to bite her. And the bite swelled up to a big ol' lump.

Didn't slow her down too much...but looked pretty rough!

Mid-day Break: Muskie Opener June 7

Saturday was muskie opener, which makes for many many hours on the water in hopes of landing a monster! Our Great Muskie Hunter (a/k/a Daddy) came in for a lunch break between the morning & evening fishing sessions. After a bite to eat, we decided to go out on the pontoon to relax for a few hours.

Abby wanted to bust out the Barbie pole to see if she could land a muskie of her own. (Or a sunny.)

You may not be surprised to learn that she can very clearly say the word "muskie"...and it is almost always preceeded by the descriptor "BIG muskie."

Here Abby & Joe stand at the point looking for some fishies. The bait of choice? Leaves from a nearby tree and cheerios.

GOT ONE!

Grandma helped take all the fishies off the hook.

Abby would give each one a kiss before letting them go.

Abby can reel in by herself.

(not too shabby for a two-year old!)

Here Grandpa is supervising.

She really concentrates while reeling. (even grunts a little with the effort!)

Abby's B/F/F Haley was along for the adventure too!

A day on the lake: June 1

Some friends dropped in while passing through and we were able to talk them into going for a cruise with us...we had a grea ttime visiting and catching up...all while catching some rays!

The Klepperich family... Breanna's first boat ride!

Aaron & Justin

Later that day we met up with our neighbors and went across the lake to the new restaurant on the lake. Very nice!

Here's Jack smiling sweetly....don't let him fool you!

Abby with her shades on.

Me with the three rugrats.

Abby's Birthday: May 25

Abby turned TWO on Sunday May 25th!

We were all excited for the big day, and planned to enjoy family time together to celebrate.

First thing in the morning, I snapped a couple quick shots of Abby next to her crabapple tree which we planted last year to mark her first birthday.

(Check out the goofy smirk with Nuk!)


The forecast called for rain in the afternoon (little did we know what was to come!) so we headed down to the MN Zoo right away that morning. We had a fabulous time. Saw all our faves...monkeys, cows, sharks.

Monkeys (no wise cracks....the monkeys are in the cage BEHIND the three of us.)
Turtles.


My favorite is the bald eagle, but Abby would not hold still for a photo.

On a horsey wagon on the way to the Farm.

We fed the goats.
Abby got to drive a TRACTOR.

She made her own sound effects. Grrrrrr r rrrr rr rrrrrrrrrrr.

Check out the Little Farmer...Old McAbby.

We got home and played outside for a while. The sky was getting real dark in one direction and was still bright and clear in another direction. In the not good...very odd way. Weird. Joe went down to the dock to cover the boats and as he was on his way back up the driveway the tornado sirens started going off. I grabbed Abby out of the sandbox and we headed inside.

I was going to make Abby spaghetti for dinner (her fave) and right as I was getting that going the storm hit and we lost our power. So instead, Abby got to have COLD Chef Boyardee out of the can, mandarin oranges, and a banana for her birthday dinner.

And the hail hammered away outside.

We did not know it until we were able to catch some news on our little battery TV, but a tornado passed through Hugo, the town just south of us...causing some very extreme damage. Peoples homes were destroyed.

After the storm passed, we actually went outside, to play with the hail.

and the puddles.

The neighbor boys came over to say hi and check on us. We invited them to join us as we sang happy birthday & ate cupcakes. (Note the sparkler shaped like a number 2...a souvenir from Grandma & Grandpa's trip to Alaska. Abby was very impressed!)

All in all a very memorable birthday for Miss Abby.

We were beyond stunned later that night when we heard about the 2-year-old boy in Hugo who didn't survive. Here we were celebrating our two year old and another family just a few miles away lost theirs. Made us very emotional, greatful, ashamed, & humbled all at the same time.