Summer at Cedar Rapids Lodge comes to an end!

      Where did the summer go?  All of a sudden it's Labor Day weekend...the last days for the pool...potlucks are over for the season...the last weekend for kids at the resort!
      It was an awesome summer for fishing...and continues into the fall...

 

Patsy's northern last week...

 

Her sister, Mem's big bass...both fish released!

 

Chris' giant northern last week...released!

 

Grandson, Calvin, and Grandpa the Great with their catch...consumed for dinner that night!

 

The candy counter supply is much smaller than this photo taken in June!  

 

We will miss all the decorated cabins...until next year!

With the resort season winding down...I find more time to...

 

Bake with this guy...

 

and his sister...

 

making blue muffins that don't last long on the plate!

I also will enjoy more time to play when grandkids visit...

 

Lucien couldn't wait to show me his missing teeth!

We treasure the grandkid pictures...

 

Youngest, Calli, had her first DQ cone...

 

And was very sad when it was done!  Can you see her tears?  Awww...

 I look forward to sewing and creating...

Samples of projects I hope to find time for this winter!

We continue the journey of building a home/cabin/reunion house/quilt retreat...

 

Lumber delivery yesterday...

 

Walkout basement and view of the lake!

 

We made our last batch of these...and they were a hit!

 

The resort dog, Wrigley, on her 10th birthday...she was upside down with excitement!

Thank you, Patsy, for sharing this beautiful sunrise last week...

 

And her sunset was equally beautiful!

In 2 days, we begin our 28th year at Cedar Rapids Lodge...where did the years go?  We treasure the memories and look forward to many more years at this beautiful piece of heaven!

 

Our first summer...1988...feeding the ducks...feels like yesterday!

It's not too early to plan your family vacation for 2015!  We are filling up fast!  Give us a call and come make your own memories!  

Happy Labor Day!

Family...Fun...Excitement at Cedar Rapids Lodge!

     Summer at Cedar Rapids Lodge has been awesome!  The weather is beautiful, the fish are biting, but the most important part of our summer is that Grandpa the Great has been here for most of it!

 

We're blessed to have him...and our grandkids love him!  He mows, he chats with the guests, he's the king of crossword puzzles...and he even catches a fish once in awhile!

We just finished a very busy 2 weeks, but such a fun time with lots of relatives here...grandson Calvin had a carpetball tournament and it was a huge success!

 

Baby George got caught practicing before the tournament!

 

Eli celebrates his first win in the preliminaries!

 

Henry works his magic on his ball toss!

 

Eli can't look when his brother is competing!

 

Love this picture!  Shaking hands after their match!

And...the winner is...Anna!  She got a milkshake and she was so excited!

We had the annual "Margie's Fish Fry" on Thursday night...my aunt fries the fish(with a little help) and we all meet for dinner.  Debbie always orders a cake and this year we celebrated 3 new guests in the family...

 

Charlotte...George...Piper...now their vacation memories start and Piper was only 2 weeks old!  It was baby heaven at the resort with all of them here for 2 weeks!

Earlier in the week, my cousin and her daughters helped the kids tie dye their own t-shirts...

 

And now I have a new photo for the 2015 brochure!!  We might have to make this a new kids' activity...if my cousins will come every week and help with the craft!

Now it's August 1st...the weather is beautiful...we still have some wonderful families coming in August and September to vacation with us!  While we keep busy with all the resort activity, we are drawing up plans to build a lake home for our "retirement"....with absolutely no plan to quit our day jobs!!  Here's the progress so far...

 

The landscape is being shaped for a home with a walkout basement...and you can see the beautiful sunset from this view too!

 

We took Steve's Dad over last night to see the work so far...I love this picture of Steve walking with his Dad up the incline where the house will sit....very soon!

 

In the meantime...we continue our summer season, providing vacations for all the great families who will come yet this year...and plan new projects around the resort for the 2015 season!

And....we never tire of this view each and every evening!