The fish are biting....and the resort grandkids!

May proved to be a wonderful month for fishing.  Lots of big walleyes were caught and released...this one lost his battle...

Kris caught this 29.5" walleye and took it home to mount!

This was Hayden's first boat ride...and wow, he's eyeing the big walleye caught & released!

Evelyn was one of our first fisherpersons...with a big northern!

I got to go to my first dance recital for a granddaughter!

Jillian (Belle) poses with Mommy & Daddy and her flowers!  Such fun!

Grandpa John & Sam went fishing together...Grandpa outfishes everyone at 91!!

Papa fishing off the dock with 3 of the grandsons...

The beauty of a freshly mowed lawn, raked beach and fishermen on a peaceful evening.

The first bonfire of the season...roasting marshmallows for s'mores!

These 2 ladies found Grandma the Great's fancy jewelry...and smiled with all their jewels!

Nathan wants you to know that the new Scooper Hero ice cream is pretty good!

Come try some...soon...before he eats it all!



Resort Season Begins...again!

      Wow, the 2012 season is off and running...with a bang!  We welcomed some fishermen on the 17th of May...and then the crowds found us on Memorial weekend!  We had the busiest weekend since we started this journey 25 years ago!  We were so thankful for all the families and fishermen who came up, despite a little rain, and fished...and caught...lots of fish!
      These 2 guys have been fishing together for all of our 25 years...every spring and fall they cruise the lake and find fish!  Yesterday they were thrilled with this catch...

John & Gene brought in their limit of crappies...here...

and here! 

      Fishing has been awesome!  We pack the fish for the guests and freeze it too...we've been busy wrapping walleyes, bluegills and crappies...the month of June always provides even better fishing!  Bring it on!

      We continue to get new shipments of sweatshirts and t-shirts for the summer season...here's a couple...

This sweatshirt is available in black, navy and...

moss green.

      Our local model, Jillian, is showing the new hat available in pink, blue and yellow...

You ladies just know you're gonna want one!

      We had some young ice cream technicians visit and try out the flavors to make sure they passed the taste test...

Great niece Rowan thinks the strawberry is top dog!

and granddaughter Monica likes the scooper hero flavor!

     We had fun with a 3 generation photo of Gr & Gr Addler with Sam & Roz & 4 littles...

even Baby Olivia was smiling!

            I took the time to try a new recipe before the season begins....I used these ingredients...

and lots of water...and made this...

laundry detergent!

It's such an easy recipe, but those who have tried it really like the smell and the low suds...we supply detergent in our resort laundry room, so the fact that this costs less than a penny a load was a big reason to try the recipe! 

      I found this picture on my fridge and wanted to share our family in 1987 when we were still in Illinois and had made the decision to move to Minnesota and buy our resort...

We were green!  We had no idea what the Lord had planned for us...25 years later, grown kids, married and 10 grandchildren....we are blessed! 

Have a wonderful summer everyone!  And check back frequently for the whopper fish pictures and all the happenings at the resort!

We're Ready!

I realize it's been a few weeks since I posted...it's long days getting these cabins ready for our guests!  And now we're done!  Cabins have been cleaned for 2 weeks, but all those little things to tweak before the guests arrive....leaky faucets, toilets, installing new lights, upgrading old outlets...the list goes on when you have 13 cabins to groom to their finest for all those vacationing families who can't wait to get here!  So...here's what we've been up to...

Cabin #10 (& #11 to the left) got a new screened porch for the 2012 season!

Here's the view from inside the porch...could make for some late-night chats and games!

Cabin #12 got a brand new kitchen!  Hickory cupboards...with these...

Cute fishy cupboard handles just perfect for a cabin on the lake!

New living room furniture for cabin #12 too!

Cabin #5 got a full-size stove with built-in microwave...and the new fish handles too!

A huge spring project for the guy in charge is uncovering all the boats and getting them tuned up and in the water...and I get to back the boat into the water and drive the trailer back to the resort...woohoo!

This is a tall job and one the lodgemaster won't let me do!  So notice the clean fans!!

My beautiful cactus must be a resort cactus...it always blooms when the season begins!

The candy counter is stocked and the ice cream is in the freezer...it's been sampled and approved for the guests!

The coffee counter is ready for all those early morning fishermen sharing their stories...

The new clothes and merchandise are stocked and ready for browsing customers...

There's a new game in the game room!

And THE BASEBALL GAME IS BACK!!!

And the cookies are on the table in the cabins...waiting for our first guests to arrive...TODAY!

The Seidel boys are coming for some guy time...and we can't wait to greet them!

Don't you need a vacation at this place??  If you do, go HERE and find out what cabins are open for the summer.  We'd love to show you around!  And share our cookies with you!

It's almost May....more new clothes...and a new toy!

The spring work has begun!  5 cabins cleaned and only 8 to go!  That's how I plan my journey to the new resort season each year.  Getting all the cabins cleaned is such a great feeling.  Steve's spring work consists of finishing up all the projects we voted to do last fall...and wow, we have alot to do!  We stress every year and we always get done...so on to our 25th season at Cedar Rapids Lodge!

We see the UPS guy alot in the spring.  He delivers most of our clothes and gift items for the lodge.  Here's a few new ones...

Looks blue but is really lavender/periwinkle...nylon 1/4 zip

This one is a bright pink.

There's also white!  And for the men....

A dark grey.  I think I should have ordered more than I did!

After many years...of contemplation...the Lodgemaster got a new tractor!  He's very excited and has been practicing his moves!  Here it is on arrival day...

Mr. Bobcat, Duane, is unloading it.

And here's the happy owner!  I really need to learn to drive this thing...looks like fun!

When our spring work is done, we look forward to welcoming all our guests...and watching them enjoy the summer...like this

And making friends...

And memories!

If you're looking for memories, try us!  You won't be disappointed.

Here's to warm weather and friends!

I miss you, Mom!

     I lost my Mom just a couple of weeks ago.  I've wanted to write this post for several days, but just kept finding reasons to wait...looking for pictures, writing the story in my head, just missing her so much that it hurt to write about it. 
     My Mom was a beautiful lady who was just a young girl when she met Dad and got married at 17!  She grew into an adult while raising 8, yes 8, children.  I was the oldest and only one of 2 girls...the rest were boys...and wow, was our household busy.  Here's one calm photo that I remember...

Can you just imagine her getting all these kids ready for a family picture?  I could start sweating thinking about getting ready and lining up the little ones to tie shoes, tuck in shirts, comb hair and wipe off dirty faces...for one of our only family pictures in my life!

We all have funny memories of going anywhere together when we were little....we drove a 9 passenger station wagon with 10 people...so someone was always touching someone or pushing or wrestling...no seatbelts back then!  Dad would come to a stoplight and look over at people staring into our car...so he would hold up all 10 fingers to save them trying to count!

When there's 8 kids in your family, you don't go out to eat very often....and when we did, the trip usually started out as a leisurely drive(with 8 kids mind you) and Dad always ended up at the Dairy Queen or McDonalds...he would let us know ahead of time if it was McDonalds so we could decide if we wanted a burger or fries...that's right, not both!  Burgers were 18 cents and fries were 12 cents, so we learned to negotiate with a sibling for half their burger and we would share half of our fries...and we were happy!

I know most of you raised in the 50s and 60s have the same kind of stories....and we probably didn't have much money, but I don't think we had a clue...those were just good times.

My Dad died 10 years ago and Mom has missed him everyday since then.  Now they are together and dancing in heaven...and someday I will see them again...now to share just a few memories of my Mom...

Here's my Mom as a Grandma at 39!  With my daughter, Jen, in 1974.

Me, my sister and Mom about 15 years ago at our resort.

Mom & Dad striking a pose at the resort in the "magazine eyes" glasses.

Dad and Mom...they did everything together...she lost her best friend when he was gone!

Mom and I a few years ago when we visited in Illinois.

This picture is a treasure, taken just 2 months ago.  It's four generations of my family...Mom, me, my daugher, Jen, and her daughter, Jillian....

I miss you Mom!  Save a place for me....we'll chat again one day.