Oh, The weather Outside is Frightful...

Still no snow and Sunday we awoke to the sounds of thunder.  Can't imagine the snow mounds that would have been created if the roughly three inches of rain would have  been snow.  It appears we will be mowing the lawn rather than shoveling the drive way.  Either way we are staying busy.  Ella had a sleep over Friday night and stayed up way later than Amy and I did. Saturday morning we were back in the gym for Grace and the little dribblers and then Ella's volunteer project came to fruition.  She had a wonderful brainstorm a month ago to make fleece blankets for foster homes.  She rounded up about 8 other girls and filled the floor space in the house with Fleece tie blankets.  With only a short break for pizza and calloused hands from cutting the girls cranked out about 14 beautiful fleece blankets and didn't stop giggling the whole time.  It was really great to see the girls thinking of others in the holiday season.  Sophia had a meet in Fond Du Lac so we headed down there to watch her team take first place by only 0.05 points.  We meet Grandpa and Grandma down there to cheer her on.  Sunday was a rainy day and slow morning, but Packer game slowly turned to holiday music cookie baking.  With peaceful notes carried on sweet smells the house felt like Christmas even if the weather outside was frightfully April.  Grace got a start on the wrapping and now all the gifts are under the tree and ready for the Holidays!  She did exclaim at one point "Oh well, I am screwed" catching Amy and I off guard, as she cut the paper too short.  She was allowed to say it once more before we had a short conversation about crass language and the Latin derivation of vulgar.

Los Ninos in an El Nino

 
Another great month of frenetic action.  The weather has been crazy warm with the El Nino winter so we aren't making many plans that involve snow but that hasn't stopped us from hanging lights on the house and getting the new place into full Christmas decoration mode.  Grace has become the resident expert on lights having spent some time on the ladder in the front of the house with me and then helping Amy in the backyard with the lower trees.  She is Chief Untangler of Lighting Operations...should have called her "CULiO" for short.  We did head out into the 'tree cutting' forest last weekend and cut an 16 foot tree into a 12 foot tree and then into a house sized 8 foot tree.  It was decorate with all the kids ornaments and the wide spaces in the branches and slender shape have it made it our favorite tree of all, it really is beautiful.  There were Christmas singing programs for the younger two, fortunately back to back and we spent a couple of hours singing carols ourselves as we rang the bell at the grocery store for the Red Kettle campaign.  Ella has started jazz band and with Grace continuing on guitar by next year we should have a nice little musical volunteer session.  Saint Nick made his appearance with much argumentation about which day he comes...night of the 5th or the early morning of the 5th...there was warm socks and candy when he did finally arrive along with the Herbie the elf on the shelf.  Each morning becomes a hunting game for where the elf is hidden and what mischief he got into while the kids slept.

Dancin' and Dribblin'

The weather was beautiful, but out activity was actually a little more indoor than expected.  Merrick and Grace headed out to Neon Nights on Friday night for an all school dance.  The danced the Nae Nae and gobbled up hotdogs, pizza, chips and rootbeer floats.  With sweaty heads from running chaotically with their friends the ended the night with a gambling lesson.  The won exactly zero items in the fundraising raffle.  The older two stayed home and backed up some Chocolate chip cookies...because the 34 pounds of candy still left over from last weekend's halloween trick or treating wasn't quite enough sweets in the house.  Saturday morning Grace had "Little Dribblers" with 6,000 other kids all of which had grumpy parents because the floor was just refinished and coffee wasn't allowed in the gym.  We spent a good chunk of time running errands and the general domestic chores helped to turn the afternoon into evening.  Sunday was more house chores and general odds and ends around the garage.  The kids ran in the nice fall weather with the neighbor kids and we added two more bruised up hips to the ever growing list.  Another one for Ella and the ripstick and one for Merrick who crashed into the hockey net while playing baseball with his friend.

Halloween Candy Economy

It took some time to get the hair and make-up just right but in the end the Zombie Bride and Vampire Girl were ready to tackle to 'mean' wet streets of our new neighboorhood.  Grace's hair was tangled and teased to great heights, but unbeknownst to her the rain knocked it down pretty quick.  Not a heavy rain, just enough to become annoyingly damp. The kids had been off school for the third day so they were plenty rested and little rain wasn't going to slow them down.  We headed out to pound the doors and avoid the crowds.  There were so many people in the roads that it was unsafe to drive, although a few tried.  We were back in the house with socks and shoes so wet that they wouldn't dry before the week begins, but it was minor compared to the pounds of candy that the girls scored.  Somewhere along the line Grace even scored a full sized Three Musketters bar...like the holy grail of treating.  Sadly she doesnt like three musketters bars and gladly traded Ella for a small package of gummy bears..all are happy in the great economy of Halloween candy trading.  Now the task is to get it all eaten before the Christmas candy starts to appear.

Apples, grapes, strawberries oh my!!

Friday night had great intentions for fire, but the temperatures dipped and the wind picked up and after a long week our ambitions were spent.  Saturday was Merrick's last football game and his team racked up a solid win, and I was pumped to get an autograph from my favorite player.  The morning was cool but all in all a beautiful fall day.  The afternoon found us enroute to Baird's creek for a hike but we stopped on the way to test the slab of newly laid asphalt close to the house.  The girls packed thier ripsticks and attakced the smooth ribbon until it attacked back.  Ella caugth a rock and hit hard, bruising her thigh.  It impacted our hike a little too and given her soreness she opted to cut the hike short.  Until we found a great off trail bridge across the creek that just had to be crossed.  All four of us made it safely across with a chorus of giggles .  We were awarded with a vine of wild grapes.  It is a outing that we don't find something to forage on while we wander through the woods.  The smells were the wonderful moist cool smells of fall and the leaves were approaching peak colors.  The olefactory overload continued as Amy spent time on Sunday making another batch of applesauce, from the apples that were picked a couple weeks back, this time with strawberries added from a spring harvest.  It was excellent with some granola added!!

Walk to School Day

Ella walked to school with the neighbor girl and by sheer coincidence I was working in town and was able to walk with the other three kids on walk to school day.  We parked about half way between the middle school and elementary school and the car was barely stopped before Sophia was fifteen feet ahead and ignoring me the way only a middle schooler can.  She headed right and we headed left.  Merrick and Grace and I giggled and chatted in the crisp morning sun and I didn't embarass them until we were on the school grounds and with the music bumping I started a little dance move.  It wasn't a stanky leg or nae nae just a good old fanshioned rump shaker.  They quickly told me to stop.  We walked all of three blocks but our arrival was similiar to the end of a marathon.  Loud music, banannas, granola bars and even bottled water.  It was wonderful and over the top all at the same time.

Picture Perfect Time-travlers

We started our weekend off with a bang...or at least an excellent pizza.  The venue was small and the booth was a tight fight for our tribe of six, but birthday pizza is what we needed and GNP had been on our radar for a while.  Only five of us made home, having left Sophia at the Y for an overnight lock in.  The early morning found us packed up and on the road heading north.  We hit a Culvers on the way for lunch and I was given my first senior citizen discount..the cashier actually added it because he felt bad our bill was so high and was trying to help out...just the cost of traveling with a tribe of six.  Our destination was Pictured rocks.  Luckily Amy had everyone pack their winter jackets because with a wind on the lake, enough to create3-4' waves, it was plenty cool as we enjoyed the perpetual beauty of the National lake shore and the beginnings of autumnal colors.  We had an early dinner (and poor at that) before heading to the hotel for some bone warming hot tub time and cool dips in the pool.  The pool deck was almost entirely ours and made a perfect place for Amy's birthday cake and gifts.  We slept hard and eat a filling breakfast before hitting some of the local antique and gifts shops and then doing a short hike to Wagner falls and then a longer hike towards Chapel rock.  The crisp air was perfect for a walk in the woods.  We played a couple of rounds of trivia each sharing tid-bits they had learned on the boat or interesting points they remembered from the trip thus far, like we made four wrong turns before time traveling back home late sunday afternoon.  The kids were getting a kick out of the changing time zones and we laughed that we were time travelers.  The leaves change, the time changes but out adventuring fun together is quite constant.

Falling Back into life

The school weeks are starting to feel routine now but we are still adjusting to efficiently using our weekend time.  So far sleeping in has been a good start as everyone adjusts to the earlier mornings and the general toll of real life daily school.  Saturday we were able to watch Merrick's team dominant on the football
field winning by four touchdowns.  We then headed over to St. Norberts in the afternoon, after the normal two house yard chores, for their open house.  There were bounce houses and live music but as is the nature of kids, Grace and Ella, found most of their entertainment swinging on the long leaves of a riverbank willow and then bouncing on a floating pier.  Amy and I kept a close eye when Ella had attracted two boys to the pier.  The were seemingly ignoring her but the well trained parent eye they were stealing sideways glances as often as the could.  Ella said she didn't notice them, but again to the trained eye......The food stands got their due as we munched on cookie dough and cupcakes before collecting pocket fulls of horse chestnuts to keep, really just for the sake of keeping. We headed over to a friends house for awhile to help him celebrate his birthday and then with empty bellies quickly decided massive burgers were needed.  The temperature was cooling be eating on the patio was still the summer thing to do.  Grace stayed warm by using the whole patio for her postprandial dancing.  Always important to have a show with a good dinner.  It took until Sunday before we were able to get Amy out on her new roller blades and the sun was shinning and the leaves had yet to fall and cover the Fox River Trail.  We put almost two miles on the little wheels before heading back home.

By Jimminy I hear Crickets!!

If you still hear crickets then summer isn't over.  The crickets are chirping but school has started and we and the dog days are giving way to indian summer.  The tomatoes have taken off and quickly overgrown our small impromtu plot at the new place. The kids have all started their respective schools and it is going as well as we can hope for with a couple of bumps.  Ella is in cross country for the school, but the organization leaves something to be desired.  Grace has started guitar lessons and working on her rock persona.  Merrick is in the middle of his football season and has been named offensive player of the week three times and was able to lead the team cheer (I believe that we will win) after the last practice.  Sophia is continuing to work on her gymnastics routine and will start competetions this fall.  We were able to sneak out for fishing at our standard spot and then walked to a new ice cream place.  It used to be a the house were the lock operator lived.  Between the high wind and high temperatures the kids ended up wearing most of their cones.  The girls had no direction to turn as the wind either blew ice cream on to them or if they turned their backs blew their hair into the ice cream.  We did have storm come through that sent us to the basement...Merrick and Ella decided to be extra prepared.  I don't recall why Ella has a mustache....everyday is a slumberparty mixed with a snowday at our house.

 

Back to Boot!!

It is a staple, a tradition and the older two have been planning for a year for Boot Lake.  We headed off on our Wednesday migration towards the Nicolet.  It was a different feel this year.  The park service had started taking reservations rather than first come first serve, it worked out fine in the end and will be even easier next year, but caused some last minute stress this year as we were not sure if we would find sites.  Also in the mix was a trip back to GB to visit Ella's School and meet with the realtor.  That too didn't matter much as the weather had been rainy and unexcpectantly cold.  We were left with two days of great swimming.  The kids played on the tube as Dave zipped them around the lake, made sand castles and wrestled in the waves.  We did load up the canoe late one morning and paddle over to a rope swing across the beach.  The kids were tentative but all giggles when they came off rope into the clear water.  I suspect that too will be a yearly tradition now.  It had a been a few days in camp so we also took that oportunity to suds up our hair and get our camp smell back to civilized amounts.   Just in time of course for the trip to the candy store.  The kids loaded up on candy including candy cigarettes and then spent time asking me to buy them lighters so they could light their own.  After looking for at the second store for a four pack of lighers, I bought them a single one to share.  Sophia and Ella then proceded to stand at the end of our campsite and light up their cigarettes to confuse our neighbors.  We continued our summer goal of making fire.  Both Merrick and Grace were able to get a flame going with flint and steel, but alas the two stick method has still alluded us. We spent alot of time worrying about battery life as I didn't have a nut tightened on the camper and ended up setting up with an incomplete charge.  We did get out to do a little fishing and Merrick scored a rock bass, but the wind was too much for canoe fishing.  We had a great family night around the fire playing "treasure island" in which someone has a theme and the others have to determine the pattern.  Merrick required people to bring something that started with the first letter of the month they were born.  Grace did one that was food but in the order it gets eaten through out the day.  Little geniuses!  Ella and Sophia had the tent to themselves.   We also picked up a big cast iron skillet and made a new favorite tradition of campfire pizza.  It wasn't perfect but it was good enough to know that next year we need enough supplies for two pizzas.

  

Welcome to the Rock

We backpacked on Rock Island.  We packed light and traveled fast.  We didn't need to do either.  We left early in the morning and headed to the tip of the Door to jump on the first of our two ferries that day to cross Death's Door.  Planning on eating on the largest island on our island hopping backpack trip, Washington Island, by noonish.  The meal was a little dissapointing, relatively dirty and run down. We were expecting more of the quantness or even touristy atomosphere as the rest of the door.  Island life is different.  We did make get to tour the lavendar farm on the big island and fill our post lunch gullets with lavendar ice cream.  The temperature was crazy hot and we were sweating like crazy but made it to the second ferry, Kardif, and left the car behind.  We were backpacking the other passengers had wagons, wheelbarrows, coolers and a shower tent.  It wasn't exactly what we expected but didn't detract from the beauty or wonderful history of the island.  We hiked the entire Thordarson trail that circumnavigates the island and is the namesake of the islands last private owner, an icelander, and inventor, with money and plans to create a viking kingdom on the island.  The island has a large viking hall that is open all the time with games to play inside, other smaller buildings contain bocce balls, frisbees, croquet and all manner of lawn games for people to use on the large open space.  It gives the island a strange feeling.  We hiked early to the light house for a tour and Sophia and Ella were sold on the idea of becoming docents in the future.  Planning on living in the lighthouse and giving tours to other visitors.  We made camp after a short hike (0.6 miles) from the ferry to the site near the beach.  Two wonderful afternoons playing in wonderful sand, unseasonably hot temperatures and crystal blue skies.  The lake is really shallow and warm in that area allowing us to walk out a great distant play in waves approaching 1-2 feet.  We had packed light so it was dehydrated meals and ramen noodles, but Amy carried in some smore supplies for the kids. The Sunsets were amazing and we walked to the open fields and watched the sun disappear into the lake.  There was a fly hatched and the fish were surfacing at the water and pinks and oranges darkened into the evening blues.  The kids played monopoly in the Viking Hall until is was too dark to see and we headed towards camp for a fire and games of memory/trivia about the trip as the racoons slowly circled our camp sniffing out scraps of nuttella. The hike was long enough (just barely) for everyone to add another hiking pin to thier packs and although we packed light we are fortunate that memories weigh nothing at all.

Potawatami State Park

 

The week found us at Bay Beach for our now obligatory summer trip on the Zippin Pippin, plenty of smiles and only the single back snapping abrupt stop at the end.  We also so found our second waterless waterfall of the season...making it really just a cliff.  Most importantly however we made it out camping!!  With a bit of luck, Amy found Potawatomi State Park had some openings so we dragged out the camper and flushed out the pink slurry of winterizer and headed north.  It is a great little campground with nice hiking trails and I think we did about a 6 mile loop from our site to a wonderfull pebble beach.  Ella caught one of the few Garder snakes we found basking in the sun. We skipped rocks until our parental fear figured enough time had passed without four kids careening a perfect skipper off another's noggin and then continued on the trail.  Kids were pretty wore out by the time we got back and a wrong turn didn't help the situation but there were plenty of smiles around the campfire.  We did try our hand at making fire from just a stick and board.  It was a sort of goal for the summer and although the summer is still not gone the task is a least making us appreciate the beauty of matches.  Campfires require smores, but Amy stepped it up a notch by creating Smoreos.  A new spin on an old campfire favorite now has oreo cookies in place of antiquated Grahm crackers.  We headed a little deeper into the Door to visit Ron and Jan at another campground and stopped at the iconic PC Junction.  The little train leaves the kitchen carrying our orders to the delight of the kids.  We also poked around a swam awhile at WhiteFish Dunes state park as Potawatami doesn't have a beach to swim at. The water was cold but the kids crashed in the waves and hardly noticed the dangerous rip tide sign.  On the way out we were sidetracked on a beautiful out of the way Cave Point.  This is a series of limestone cliffs overlooking the lake and some teenagers were jumping into what seemed to be dangerously high and turbulent water.  As we hiked the waters edge, scrambling over much lower shelves of dolomite we found an amazing area of beach where hundreds of cairns had been built on the beach.  It was breathtakingly beautiful with some of the spires taller than the kids.  We maneuvered through them and even added a few of our own to the impressionist version of the terra cota army.