Thinking of you, Dad!

      Today is May 26th....my Dad was born on this day in 1932!  He was a twin with older siblings and his birth was the first time his Mom had babies in a hospital....that was a long time ago!  My dad has been gone for almost 9 years.  Wow, do I miss him!

      He was awesome...and he got more awesome the older he got!  When I was a kid, he worked alot and we didn't get to see him alot.  He worked nights for awhile, then he worked second shift...both were tough schedules to try and spend time with 8 kids!  I remember when my sister was born, I already had 4 younger brothers at home and Dad had to take me to town to buy my 1st Communion dress while my Mom was in the hospital.  It was pretty funny, but he did a great job.  Back then, Dads just didn't have much to do with shopping, especially for little girls.

      When I got married and we started having kids, he was a fun grandpa, spending time with our kids and teaching them all to drive when they were 10-12 years old!  Yes, he was crazy!  He could fix anything, or so I thought.  He loved tinkering with lawn mowers like his Dad had before him.  I remember almost every time we went to visit my grandparents, we hauled a mower in our car and traded it out for another one that my grandpa had fixed...probably from the last time we had been there.

      When we bought the resort, I had a built-in garage sale buyer.  He and Mom delighted in going to garage sales and I think almost every vaccuum cleaner in each of our cabins was bought at those sales and hauled up here from Illinois.  It seems Dad got sick when all the cabins had their vaccuums!  His job was done! 

      So, happy birthday, Dad.  I miss your smile, your love and your great sense of humor.  You would have loved all these nine little grandchildren that we have been blessed with.  We tell them stories about their great grandpa!

      Here's a picture of Dad & Mom, doing one of their favorite activities at the resort!

Fishing 2010...

These celebrities were on the lake yesterday and caught the biggest fish so far!  They said I could identify them...Randy caught the fish on the eve of his 50th birthday!  Brother Greg netted the fish...Dad Mel provided the boat.  It was a family affair!  These guys have been fishing our lake for many years and usually bring in several big catches during their vacation.  This northern measured 35+ inches and was released...they intend to catch it again when they come back in June.

And...by the way....Happy 50th Birthday Randy!

Ahoy, Matey!

      Our life just got alot busier yesterday with the arrival of our first guests!  We only have 2 cabins rented right now, but as the week goes on, we have guests arriving almost daily...by the weekend we'll have one empty cabin!  We are so thankful for our guests...and we look forward to a very busy summer.

      This past week, we got a delivery of a much-anticipated "toy" that will soon be inhabited by many kids at a time...a pirate ship!  We had seen the ship on the website of some friends who also own a resort and the journey began to order it and get it built.  The 3 "pirates" delivered the boat on a flatbed trailer in pieces and quickly had it put together.  They humored me and posed for photos so I could journal the ship's trip to our playground.

      Our Bemidji grandkids came out that night to break it in...and gave their approval...even the little girlie liked climbing around inside...and she's short enough to walk all over inside the ship without bending over. 

      Every pirate who comes to the resort will need to come in the lodge for their eye patch and tattoo before boarding the ship!  It's pirate policy!

      Enjoy the pictures....and we look forward to christening this ship...probably with apple juice several times over the summer!

Here's the crew who delivered the ship and built it!

              Pieces laid out for construction....and building the sides of the galley.

Nearly finished...but at this point we realized that the ship would need to be moved to make room for all the swings, slide, ladder and gangplank....so we stopped for the day.....

                              The finished ship....ready for these guys....

                                                         and girls....

First Guests of 2010....

Well, here's our first guests for the summer season!  Mel & Randy & Greg Ammon...being greeted by our grandson, Nathan.  My thoughts are that Nathan will know everyone each week within an hour of their arrival. 

So...beware, guests!  Nathan asks alot of questions but he's harmless!

Our guests were greeted by warm weather and enough northerns for their first fish dinner.  These guys love northerns and don't even fish for walleyes!

They will fish a few days, go home, and return in June with their spouses and children/grandchildren.

Hey, Mel....it's 5 o'clock!!

Order Your Sweatshirt!....Sneak Peak at New Products....

      Happy Fishing Opener Day!  Did you make a cake?  Presents?  No?  Neither did we!  But...we do have a variety of new sweatshirts to show you...now, if you like the excitement of walking into the lodge when you arrive and seeing all the new colors, just quit reading and "x-out" of this page....are you still there?  You can't stand it, can you?

      Last year, I ordered these awesome pastel hooded zip sweatshirts...and they sold out very early...so...I re-ordered this year and have lots!  But....if you bought one last year, I'm sure you fell in love with it like I did and want a different color this year.  So...if these are what you're looking for, call or email and I will hold one for you.  The sizes run pretty true...it's a thin, cool-feeling sweatshirt that washes up beautifully.  The colors are lime green w/pink stitching, yellow w/aqua stitching, pink w/aqua stitching and aqua w/pink stitching.  The colors are featured here:

These zip jackets come in coral or black...pockets and band bottom:

These hockey sweats are heavy weight; very popular:

This year we have "photo" t-shirts for kids & adults:

More sweats & t's coming...check back...and give us a call or

email if you want to "reserve" your souvenir!

Now...go catch that walleye!  I only hope to post a photo of mine later...

don't hold your breath!

Wedding #4....the Final Countdown!

      Well, we did it...or rather, they did it!  John & Alicia celebrated their wedding on Saturday, May 8th, one week before fishing opener!  That is significant because his parents, that's us, asked that they get married before our resort season started...and we open tomorrow!

      Their wedding was in Janesville, MN, where Alicia's family lives.  The reception was in Mankato, just about 15 minutes from Janesville.  The weekend was a wonderful, happy time.  The ceremony was beautiful....no one fainted....and it didn't rain.  The day before the wedding was cold and rainy all day long.  We had the rehearsal Friday evening and the groom's dinner was a catered meal at Alicia's parents house.  The entire weekend was a memorable time with all our kids and grandkids able to be there.  Our last wedding was 7 years ago when Jen & Marc got married.  Will, the oldest grandson, was a baby....this time, we had 9 grandkids.... I can't wait to see that family photo!!  We should have had someone taking pictures of the photographer trying to get all the kids to look....he took several shots, so we're hoping one turns out for our "wedding wall" in our living room.  It will complete the journey of the weddings of all 4 of our kids.  What memories! 

      I certainly don't have professional photos, but we captured some memorable moments of the weekend.  Enjoy....we sure did!

Congrats, John & Alicia

May 8, 2010

Happy Birthday, Lisa!!

      Today, in Mongolia, is my one and only sister's birthday!  So I have to post this the night before May 13th, so she can get her greeting on time there!  Do you get that?  They are 14 hours ahead of us...I don't want to be late....and in our family we all try to be the first one to wish each other a Happy Birthday....

      So....Happy Birthday, Lisa!  I still remember the day you came home from the hospital...I had 4 younger brothers and then....miracle of miracles, my Mom had a baby girl!  I was 7 and so excited...yes, you heard me right.  I was 7 and I had 4 younger brothers and now a baby sister.  My parents didn't mess around....well, maybe they....well, you figure it out.  They also had 2 more boys after my sister!  But anyway...

      I was the bestest big sister a little girl could have, right Lisa?  I played Barbies when I was 14, because she was 7 and loved them.  We played house, paper dolls, all those fun things together....of course, there was always a brother or 2 thrown into the mix....they always thought whatever we were doing looked like fun!  I had the most fun dressing my sister and fixing her hair.  You see, she had this beautiful naturally curly hair that did anything....and my hair was straight.  She would sit and let me play with her like a doll.  Thanks, Lis, for letting me have that fun!

      When I got married at 20, my sister was a junior bridesmaid in my wedding.  She thought that was way cool!  I did too.  When I started my family at 22, my sister was in high school, but she wasn't too cool to play the part of "Auntie" to my kids.  During her college years, she came to live with us for 6 months and I know my kids thought everyday was a holiday!  Aunt Lisa was there all the time to play...she was always an adventurous kid...6 brothers will do that to you!  She loved hiking, biking, camping, etc. and let my kids experience those things with her, even if it was in a tent in our basement.

      When she got married, I was her maid of honor....or is it matron of honor?  Anyway, she was a beautiful bride.  When I was expecting our 4th child, she was expecting her first.  We shared lots of pregnancy aches and blessings.  She had a girl....I had a boy....and they grew up together for the next 3 years.

      Then, we moved to Minnesota to buy our resort and my sister and her family went to Mongolia as missionaries.  We were on opposite sides of the world, but the same latitude on the globe!  It's truly an effort to stay close when we live so far from each other, but we have managed for 23 years!!  We still get to spend time together almost every year, if only for a few days!  We laugh, we cry, we talk about our kids...and I share my grandkids with her until she gets her own! 

      We're 2 peas in a pod....we even have matching nightgowns!  She calls me from Mongolia and we chat like she's next door!  So, have a happy, blessed, fun birthday, sis. 

      I love you!

Counting Down....

      It's Thursday....in 2 days our youngest is getting married!  We've done this whole process 3 times before....you'd think it would just be a natural "movement"....but, I don't think it is!  It's emotional, exciting, all those adjectives that get a Mother to shed a tear or two.  Oh, my, my eyes are watering up just typing this!  I'm in trouble come Saturday afternoon!  Oh well, I'll use my waterproof mascara...we'll be fine!

      I've kept myself busy along the journey...cleaning cabins, getting the resort ready to open when we get back....filling all those tins with candies and delivering them to John & Alicia.  And today, I'm filling gift bags for the guests staying at the hotel during the wedding weekend.  22 rooms have been reserved by relatives and friends from both families....so we thank them for coming with this little bag of goodies....

Assorted goodies to feed hungry guests...

Tags of Thanks from John & Alicia

Goodies packed, tissue, ribbon...done!