A Cabin in Wisconsin

Monday, August 28

We are in a very nice cabin somewhere in Wisconsin on a lake called Peterenwell. We are out in the wilds, hardly any towns, cranberry bogs. There are plenty of houses but I think they are all seasonal cabins and almost nobody is home. Unusual for this part of the world this is not a natural lake; there’s a dam at one end. 

We left yesterday (Sunday, August 27th). It took us about 3 and a half hours to get here. We brought the pontoon boat but didn’t put it in the water until this morning. We got here around 4, with Suzanne and Kris not far behind. Sarah and Erik and the boys went to a Loons game (soccer) so they didn’t get here until late.

 

This cabin is big! 6 bedrooms, 3 full baths. We have 5 dogs with us, our 3, plus Mika and Kris’s dog Otis. All the dogs are small and old except Sophie, who is small and young. It didn’t take long for Sophie and Otis to become new best friends. Kris hadn’t seen Otis play like that in a long time. She was a little worried that it was too much for him, but he did ok. And he sure was happy wrestling around with Sophie, playing doggie tag and hide and seek. I think Harper was glad to have another dog entertain Sophie for awhile, although sometimes she jumped in too.

 

Lee made dinner last night, mushrooms and Swiss chard and polenta. We are not going to run out of food, that’s for sure. Everyone brought enough food to feed an army.

The moon over the lake was beautiful last night.

In the morning I went for a short run. Initially I was a little apprehensive since it’s so remote, but I didn’t see anything, only two cars, and one man walking his dog. No bears I’ve decided since there are just regular trash cans. Lots of deer, however!

Then Lee and I launched the boat. There’s a boat ramp really close to the house but it’s really narrow; we barely fit. We are not at all sure we can get the boat back out there. There’s another ramp across the lake. A farther drive but maybe it will be better.

Here’s a funny story for you. Kirby still wears a diaper at night but is getting really good at putting on his clothes. He can also take off his nighttime diaper by himself because they are pull-ups, and put on his underpants. This morning he and Leo got up before their parents, and Lee made them breakfast. When Sarah got up she asked Kirby what he did with his diaper. He didn’t know. Parents and grand parents looked around; no diaper. After breakfast Kirby had to go potty. When he pulled down his underpants he came running out of the bathroom. “I found my diaper!”

Well Kirby where was it?

“It was in my underpants!” He had put his underpants on over his diaper! I’m still laughing about this.

August 29, Tuesday

Sarah made ribs for dinner and they were delicious. We ate outside on the screened porch.

Then we had a fire. Suzanne had these cool packets that you toss in the fire and it makes the flames turn different colors. Then the boys played with their new airplanes that have flashing lights. Lots of neat things to do if you can stay awake until it turns dark!

This morning Lee, Suzanne and the boys took the pontoon and went fishing. They didn’t catch anything, and Lee said it was pretty windy. I didn’t run this morning, just did a little stretching. I’ll probably take Sophie on a walk later this afternoon.

This place is making me appreciate having a fenced in backyard. The first day I was putting everyone on a leash to go potty; with 5 dogs that was making me crazy. Then I realized that Heather and Mika don’t need to be on a leash; they’re not going anywhere! Sophie and Otis definitely do; even though Otis is old now he still has a strong streak of wanderlust. Sophie is not to be trusted, and Harper might be ok, but she can’t hear and  she might see a squirrel or something so I don’t want to find out.

Wednesday August 30

Yesterday afternoon I took Sophie and Harper for a walk. Nowadays when I walk both of them Sophie is charging ahead and Harper is lagging behind. Such a change from only a few years ago. I love my old dogs, but they make me kind of sad too.

At one point Sarah and Kris and the boys took out the kayaks and went paddling. They had a good time but getting back out of the kayaks onto the dock was a challenge. There’s no appropriate shoreline, just piled up rocks, so that was what we had to do. It took an extra person (me) to get the boys out and then steady the kayaks while the adults gingerly clambered out without tipping the kayaks over. We did it too!

One time when I took the dogs out to go potty Sophie grabbed something she found under a bush. It was a dead bird! Ewww! It was a warbler, just the right size for her to get almost entirely into her mouth but too big to swallow. Without thinking I wrenched her mouth open, grabbed the poor bird, and flung it into the lake! I was so disgusted! We really have to watch her every minute, she’ll put anything in her mouth.

Yesterday was Taco Tuesday; Kris and Suzanne made wonderful vegan tacos with lots and lots of fixings, including fajita peppers and onions, guacamole, vegan taco meat, fried sweet potatoes and lots more. They also had two types of Mexican cookies, which of course I loved. AND margaritas, and strawberry lemonade for the boys. Then later we had another fire, this time with s’mores. The moon gets more beautiful every night. Tonight, our last night, we’re going on a moonlight cruise.

Thursday August 31

This morning It was chilly, 45F! I went for a good run. The lower temps really helped. I ran a warmup mile and then did 8 400 meter repeats at 5k pace, recovered for a half mile and then did 4 200 meter repeats at mile pace. Every single repeat was on target, which hasn’t happened in a long time. Then I came back to the house and ate the last of the French toast that Sarah had made.

Lee and Suzanne and the boys tried fishing again but no luck. There’s a lot of algae in this lake. Maybe it killed the fish.

We’ve had a nice relaxing day. We sat outside for awhile, until it warmed up and the flies started biting again. Since then we’ve been hanging out inside. 

Our moonlight cruise on the last night was great. It was a full super duper blue moon, very pretty. On one side of the lake the sun set then shortly after that the moon rose on the other side. We putt-putted around admiring the moon and then went back. 

This was a nice, relaxing vacation. I think everyone had a good time. Kirby was tired, though. He’s right in-between needing a nap and giving them up. If he takes a nap he stays up too late at night so when he’s not at daycare he doesn’t take one. Sarah said he slept until 9:30 this morning! That’s late for a little boy!

Kirby and Leo Go RV Camping

In mid-August we took Leo and Kirby camping in the RV. We were going to try to go with the Johnmeyers like we did last year but the week we were going to go was horribly hot so we cancelled. We took them for a day of tubing on the pontoon boat instead and that was pretty fun. Leo and Kirby came too along with Henry, Owen, Ada, Arlo, Cathy and JA. Their grandkids are getting so big, Henry and Ada are 11!

Anyway, we still wanted to take Leo and Kirby so we went to Baker Park again, just for one night. It was Kirby’s first time so we thought one night would be enough. He’s potty trained and he was just fine!

We picked them up from summer camp (Leo) and daycare (Kirby) on a Monday and off we went. Well not exactly. Lee drove the RV to Baker Park and I took the car with our bikes and picked up the boys. First I picked up Leo. They were having an event that involved shaved ice and we had to wait until the shaved ice truck appeared. Leo let me have some bites and it was pretty good! But we didn’t have one for Kirby so Leo had to finish his before we could pick up Kirby.

THEN we were finally on our way. It didn’t take long to get to BP. and Lee did have the RV mostly set up when we arrived so that was nice.

First up the boys wanted to go fishing. Lee took them down to the dock and I followed with the dogs. I brought Heather’s back pack because its a pretty steep hill back up from the lake. She walked down just fine but I think she was happy to have a ride on the way back up. The boys caught some fish too.

After that it was time for dinner, a fire, and bed. Of course the big event was making the table into a bed for the boys after dinner. Its very ingenious but it sure gets a couple of little boys excited to sleep in a table bed! I finally put Kirby in bed with Lee and I got in bed with Leo. Then everyone settled down and went to sleep.

In the morning I went for a run, one of those strange runs when it felt like I was going downhill one direction, but when I turned around I was going downhill the other direction too! Hmmm. Then Lee took the boys to the playground and the beach and I followed later with the dogs.

By the time I got there they were at the beach. We have these little toys for diving and they were having a great time with them. Leo was also making sandcastles. There was a yellow jacket buzzing around his head and I tried to shoo it away and it stung me! Boy did it hurt! I was very glad it stung me instead of Leo, but man. My hand swelled up and turned red. It was painful for several days.

By then it was time to get ready to eat a little lunch and then pack up and go home. The boys fell asleep in the car on the way to our house. I tried to carry them inside without waking them. I plopped them on the couch and turned on Bluey. We were all pretty tired.

It was a fun couple of days. It was nice to have both boys. Maybe next year we’ll do a two night trip.

Glamping Part II - Happy July 4th and 5th!

Monday July 4th

It rained all night long, but everyone was warm and dry and by 7 am it had stopped. The boys came over again for breakfast, actually everyone did, eventually. We had almost all 8 of us in the RV at one point, more or less!

Then we went into town to go fishing. I felt bad leaving the dogs so I said I would be responsible for them. So while everyone else fished from the town dock I took the dogs on a walk around the town.

When we got back they had had success. Leo caught 2 fish and Lee caught some as well. Kirby doesn’t quite get the concept.

We came back to the resort for lunch. We ate sandwiches and various snack things in the screen tent. It started to rain a little again, so the boys headed off to their tent to nap and everyone else headed to their tents and RVs for quiet time. 

I went into town for coffee but the little coffee wagon was closed, so I got coffee ice cream at Granny’s Pantry instead. It was pretty good. Later when the boys woke up everyone else went into town for ice cream too. I stayed back and kept the dogs company. I’m feeling a little sorry for them, they can see us, but we’re mostly hanging out a little apart from them and they like to be with their people!

When they got back Daniel had poppers and he showed the little boys how to do them. They tried throwing them but they mostly couldn’t throw them hard enough in the grass. Stomping on them worked; so did throwing them against trees. He had also bought a couple strobes. They set one of them off and Leo jumped up and down with excitement. 

Then Lee had another treat for them. He had bought water toys that’s were imitation fire equipment. One had water tanks in a backpack and a hose, the other was a pump action water gun. The pump was kind of hard for Kirby to do, also he liked to spray Leo but cried if he got sprayed. Poor kid, he was pretty tired.

It was Sarah and Erik’s turn to make dinner. The sun finally came out and it suddenly got hot. We tried putting up a sheet to block the sun in the screen tent but because the sheet was dark it absorbed the heat and made it even hotter. We ended up setting up a buffet in the screen tent and moving another picnic table into the shade to eat.

Sarah and Erik decided to drive back that night. The tents were hot and Erik needed to work a little tomorrow. Then Daniel and Kelsey decided to do the same thing. We stayed, but we turned on the aircon in the RV.

Tuesday July 5.

Time to go home, but first I need to run 6 miles. This time I ran on the trail toward town. This way the trail goes through corn fields and past a small air field, and then along the shore of the lake. I ran as far as the public beach and then turned around.

It was crazy humid, enough that running into the wind actually felt good. I finished, took my shower and we were packed up and on our way home by 9:30. 

It was a nice trip, in spite of the weather. If we could get everyone on board I think it would be fun to get a cabin on the north shore of Lake Superior next year. Only thing, you have to book them 6 months to a year in advance. That might be more planning than some people could stand!

Wednesday July 6

We had one more day with Daniel and Kelsey before they headed out on further adventures. We took the boat over to Wayzata for dinner. It was a beautiful night, calm and peaceful on the lake. We're sorry to see them go but we'll see them in just a few weeks in San Francisco!

Dan and Kelsey Visit / Glamping at The Grove at Battle Lake Minnesota - Part I

Wednesday, June 29th

Tomorrow Dan and Kelsey arrive for a short visit. On Saturday we’re all going to Battle Lake Minnesota with Sarah and crew to go glamping. We’re bringing the RV because we’re old and its cheaper and that way we have aircon and a stove and fridge and a sink and a toilet etc etc. Although the  shower facilities are supposed to be very nice, and since they only have water and electricity we’ll probably use them and only use our toilet at night. 

I’m looking forward to seeing D and K. I’m chronically tired right now from marathon training but that’s the way it is when you do Hanson’s Marathon Method and you’re in week 15! 3 more weeks and we’ll be in San Francisco and I’ll run the SF marathon for my 70th birthday. I’ve really been working on elevation, yet even my hilliest routes have nothing on the SF marathon. So we’ll see. I’m definitely feeling strong, if tired, but the chances of blowing up if I don’t manage thing properly are pretty high. Either that or I’m too conservative and give up before I really get started. No point worrying but that’s easier said than done.

Our yard just looks so beautiful this year. This is our third summer here and the work (and $$) we’ve put in are really starting to pay off. Yesterday Chris, our landscaper, came by, and gave me a lesson on fertilizing. I finally got the evergreens straight in my head, which ones are pines, which spruces, which junipers and which are arborvitae! And now I know which ones get acidic fertilizer and which ones don’t. I can do it myself this year and save a lot of money.

I just really love our combination of natives and non-native plants. Natives are interesting. The first year you plant a lot of them they don’t bloom because they are busy developing root systems. But the second year, watch out! and sometimes they end up not being happy where I initially put them and I have to move them around. I put some lance leaf coreopsis down by the rain garden and initially I didn’t think it survived. But I was patient where it was planted and only pulled things that I was absolutely sure were weeds, and now, here and there they are blooming! Sometimes gardening is exciting!

Friday, July 1st

Yesterday Dan and Kelsey arrived around noon. I ran my 8 miles in the morning. That afternoon we just hung out. They were going out with Sarah and Erik that night so Suzanne babysit Kirby and we took Leo for an overnight because we have him this Friday anyway. He was VERY excited! He wanted to put his pjs on right away, even though it was only 5 pm!

We had a salad and spaghetti for dinner, and watched a movie. We watched Encanto, the new Disney flick. I was busy so I didn’t get to just sit down and watch it but it looked pretty good. I’m going to watch it on my iPad sometime.

I had to go to bed early because I had to get up and run my last 16 miler this morning. I got it done but I was pretty tired by the end. And my stomach was upset this morning so I couldn’t take in all my nutrition. 

We went to the playground and then to Adele’s for lunch. Leo fell asleep in the car after lunch so I don’t know how good of a nap he had. He fell asleep in the car again on the way home. Poor kid! He was ready for the camping trip to start and was disappointed that he had to go home for the night before it would get started. Tomorrow!

We had carry out Korean for dinner and ate out on the porch. It’s nice out!

Sunday July 3

Yesterday we finished packing up the RV and drove to Battle Lake, MN. This place is called The Grove. It’s in a grove of oak trees. It’s small, only 4 glamping tents and a space for an RV which is where we are. Water and electricity but no sewer for the RV, but that’s fine. There are nice bathrooms. 

We put up the screen tent and the dog fence for the dogs. No dogs are allowed in the tents. It was a beautiful night, sunny and a perfect temp. The bugs weren’t bad either. Dan and Kelsey made tacos and we ate in the screen tent. It was fun, but the sun shone right into the tent so it got a little warm.

The little boys had taken good naps in the car and were FULL OF ENERGY. They ran all over the glamping area, from the chairs we had set up in front of the RV, to the hammocks down by glamping tents and back, again and again. They wore me out just looking at them. We let them play in the RV for awhile but they wouldn’t stop playing with the screen door so we kicked them out.

After dinner we all sat in the hammocks for awhile. The boys put on a fireworks “show”, and pretended to be ninja turtles and then transformers. As usual by 8 I was ready for bed.

Because no dogs in tents Mika slept with us so 2 adults and 4 Westies in a queen "short" bed. Off in the distance someone was setting off real fireworks; Mika was the only dog that was a little upset.

Earlier I had put out some treats for the dogs for later on the table while we were down at the hammocks and the dogs were inside the RV. When I came back to the RV they were gone. “Oh yeah,” Lee said, “Heather was on the table”. That little dog ate 4 little mother Hubbard dog bones and 3 Milk Bones! No more treats for her!

This morning I slept til 6. Yay! Got up and was on my 2nd cup of coffee when the little boys showed up. They are hanging out with us while their parents get to sleep a little bit more. Kind of nice all around.

I was just getting ready to run when it started to thunder, lightning, and pour down rain. Not unexpected so I’m waiting til it eases up. What can you do? No treadmill in the RV!

Sunday evening.

It was a nice day. The rain was soon over and I went for a run. My gps went a little crazy and thought I ran an 8 minute mile for the first mile. No. So I went by time. There is a very nice paved trail in the state park that goes around the lakes and is only a tenth of a mile from the glamping resort. I went all the way around, which was a little over 5 miles, and then went a little farther to get to what was probably 6 miles or close enough. Daniel was running too, he is training for the SF half, but of course much faster than me. We saw each other briefly on the trail however.

After running I took a shower and then ate some waffles that Lee had made. Then we basically hung out for the rest of the day. We were looking at the weather. There were more T storms coming, but when? Would we be able to have dinner or would we get rained out? 

By 1 I was ready for a short nap. Leo was hanging out with us because Kirby was napping in their tent. When I said I was going to lay down he decided that he would too. We both slept for about 45 minutes. It felt very good, and then I needed coffee. I went into Battle Lake to get some coffee and some more chips. It seems like a nice little town, maybe we will explore it tomorrow.

We sat around in the sunshine.

Erik and Daniel decided to try to make a fire. It took awhile, but once they used some toilet paper as kindling they got it going.

 Lee got out the fishing tackle he had bought the boys, and they decided they needed to put on their new life jackets too. He taught them to cast. It was too much for Kirby but Leo kept trying and he eventually got it. I was impressed; I didn’t think he’d be able to do it yet. He practiced for a good hour, maybe more.

The weather held off, so Lee went ahead and bbq’d pork chops and we had them plus watermelon and potato salad for dinner. It was delicious! As we finished dinner it started rumbling, and rumbling, and rumbling. “Thunder!” Said Kirby, “I go home!” We could see a small T storm heading our way on the radar, but it waited until we were finished and even until the dishes were washed and put away. Then it poured hard for 20 minutes. Now at 7:30 the rain is gone and the sun is shining.

But the rain put out the fire, so no s’mores tonight.