Farewell Shelda

Farewell, Shelda. Rest in peace, little hermit crab. Hope you and Hermie have a joyous reunion in Heaven :)

Two hermit crabs have fallen; Godzilla remains healthy and vibrant. Maybe we will have better luck with a puppy? Oh, Daaaaave. It's almost time! The Christmas wish lists for 4 of 5 family members have PUPPY written at the top in bold print :)

Blasts from the Past

Now that I am FINALLY catching up on Shutterfly photos and Camp Clark blog updates, I had to share a few photos from May that are priceless. Dave had the opportunity to coach Dylan's baseball team and I had the opportunity to coach girls track and be the group leader for LTD and their friends (Erickson's and Ethan) at Vacation Bible School in June. Needless to say, the volunteering was both fun and rewarding for Dave and me. Check out a few photos below that are worth sharing on our blog. I have updated our Shutterfly photos as well so feel free to check those out to see many more memories by clicking on the link in the right hand column of this blog. Summer memories are caught up! And now it's time for Fall :)

Girls trying to lay a kiss on Dylan

Come on, a little lipstick doesn't hurt anybody

Ok, maybe?

Come closer Dilly Bar

Oh, girls, this is SO silly!

Back To School

Yesterday was the first day of 2nd Grade for Lindsey, Taylor & Dylan. They were ecstatic; mama bear held back the tears. They are growing up much too fast and I wish I could turn back the hands of time most days. I am so thankful they love their new teachers and their school and being back together with their friends. SO, I will sulk as I look back on yesterday, BUT ON THE BRIGHT SIDE, for the first time in two years, I will actually have time to get things done around this camp! Oh, so much to do! Photo projects, organizing school and artwork bins, getting photos up on our walls, reading, lawn work, deep cleaning, exercising, painting the kids rooms (while Dave holds his breath - Mr. Perfectionist), organizing, washing windows, and helping Dave with his rental properties and marketing SlimGym. It's time to get started :)

August Memories

Is it really September? It is just SO hard to believe! We had a great vacation in August which we already posted about but we also had many more great times including: fishing with little people (Tegan, our neighbor joined us for her first fishing experience), celebrating our good friend Jon's 40th birthday, ValleyFair (multiple times) boating and tubing on Prior Lake, taking in the MN State Fair with the Brigham family, sharing time with our dear friend Sarah from Colorado and visiting Sarah's sister, Nancy, at her lake home/farm on Bone Lake in Scandia, MN. 

The "farm" was an absolute blast! Not only did the kids get to swim and tube on a beautiful lake, they also got to meet 3 new friends (Shadow, Roman and Emmie) and ALL their animals including ducks, chickens, roosters, geese, dogs and a few cats. The kids were in absolute high heaven feeding and carrying around the ducks and chickens! These chickens were not the typical chicken, they were fluffy, little furballs and completely tame. By the time our kiddos left the farm that night, the animals were worn out and supposedly slept until noon the next day! It was very precious and we can't wait to go back. On our drive home from the farm, the kids had a very serious conversation that lasted the entire 1-hr drive about buying their own farm with animals and what chores they would each be responsible for. Dylan said, "Hey, girls!  You can each give birth some day too which means we will have even more help on the farm!" What???

I am posting a few photos here but feel free to check out our Shutterfly link for many more photos from August. Wish I had taken more!

Next up, First Day of School, 2nd Grade! Sniff, sniff, sniff.

Leech Lake Vacation

Yet another vacation with the Brigham family on Leech Lake in northern MN! GREAT TIMES! WE stayed at Grand Vu Lodge (Anderson Family resort) and had a nice 5 bedroom log cabin 35 feet from the lake/beach. The weather was super the entire week with the exception of one windy, cool day which was actually a nice break from the sun. Once again, the Anderson's did a fantastic job! They had fun activities scheduled every day for the kids and big kids of the resort including an ice cream social, sand castle tournament, turtle races, fishing contest, kayak contest, tie-dye shirt creation, free tubing, shuffle board, train rides, canoes/kayaks/waterbikes/paddle boats, water trampoline and huge slide into the water, family olympics, horse rides, bonfires, complimentary doughnuts and coffee in the lodge, furry bunnies to pet, playground with a pirate ship, and last but not least, adult social night (complimentary cocktails in the lodge from 4 until close). Dave and Derek took FULL advantage of that and closed her down at 2am! Lynn and I soaked in the massage service and went into Walker to shop on Crazy Days (the cold day) for our treat. Grandma Jackie (Derek's mom) was a trooper and she kept up with all of us and seemed to really have a nice time as well.

We rented a boat and had our 4-man tube and spent time whipping the kids across the lake at full speed and pulling up anchor on Goose Island (great fishing spot). We also temporarily adopted a cute litte cat, Mitten, for the week who showed up at our door the first night with a killer meow. She knew who to come to for love, and food and warm milk! Other than water activities most days, we watched movies at night (re-runs of Lonesome Dove - the entire series!), played games and had many bonfires. What is so awesome about Northern MN is the brilliant display of gazillions of stars, the call of the loons, the sound of the waves hitting the beach, the burning sunset and watching the bright moon rise on the horizon. So peaceful, especially when sitting around the bonfire.

We didn't have much luck fishing but then again, who would with 6 of the loudest kids on the planet all in the same boat hoping for a whopper of a walleye, northern or muskie. Dave and Derek tried the night fishing twice; the first and the last. They didn't have much luck so they headed into the lodge to close out Adult Social Night. Dylan was out on the dock every day fishing and catching lots of small fish and craw daddies. Taylor actually caught a Buffalo Head with her bare hands right from the dock during the fishing tournament and Dylan was none too happy about that! "TAYLOR!", is all you could hear as he continued to catch gerbil-sized fish all morning. Comical!

We even exercised while we were there this time. The Brighams brought their kettle bells and were the workout animals most days and motivated Dave and I. I personally enjoyed our walks in the woods while Dave and Derek hoisted bells to the tune of the Eye of the Tiger (jk). 

The vacation may be over but we know we will be going back again next year.  However, they may have to omit the Adult Social Night if they know Dave and Derek are coming back! Make sure to check out our Shutterfly link for lots of fun photos from the trip. The album is titled: Leech Lake Vacation. Enjoy!

Bismarck Vacation

This summer has blown by SO incredibly fast. Here it is, already August, and I am just now getting caught up on some of our amazing memories from June. Yikes! After the kiddos finished out Vacation Bible School and baseball, we headed to North Dakota for a 15-day retreat to our homeland to share time with friends and family.

We had loads of fun including the "regulars":  a trip to the Bismarck Zoo and Sertoma Amusement Park, miniature golf, swimming at the Elks Pool and Lil's pool, biking along the river, attending Art in the Park in Mandan, fishing with Grandpa and Grandma Clark, playing with cousins and celebrating Grandma Good's 71st birthday. We also attended my 30 year high school reunion which was a BLAST. It was wonderful sharing time with friends from all 3 high schools for 3 days straight. I am not sure who had more fun, Dave or me, but it was fantastic. We also shared time with Grandpa and Grandma Kemmet and spent some quality time catching up on their outside deck listening to dad's stories which always make us laugh hysterically. 

Something new this year, we decided to treat the children to a trip to Medora. We loaded up Grandpa Clark's mini home and headed to the Badlands in western North Dakota (oil country!). Grandpa and Grandma Clark came too. We camped for two nights; they stayed at the Badlands Motel which had a pool and came in handy during those hot 100 degree days. What a GREAT trip! We toured the Teddy Roosevelt National Park (all 37 miles) and saw live buffalo, wild horses, prairie dogs galore, deer and breathtaking scenery of the Badlands. We also went horseback riding, shopping and touring around Medora (old Western town), swam at the pool and attended the Medora Musical which was downright OUTSTANDING! Not only did we have perfect seats in the gorgeous outdoor ampitheater (right across the aisle from Mrs. Harold Schafer) on a perfectly clear summer night, but we got to sit right behind some new friends from Colorado we met at the pool.

When we returned to Bismarck, the kids treated Grandma Good (her birthday present from them) to an outdoor play at the Chidlren's Theatre for a rendition of Grease. We have been there twice now; the first and the last! Maybe they just had a bad night regarding  audio "quality" but they also needed to tone down the vulgar language; it is a childen's theater after all. At least the kiddos enjoyed the music and set. They sat in the front row on a blanket while Grandma, Dave and I sat back a few rows in our lawn chairs. 

All in all, we loved being back in North Dakota. The people of ND (Nodaks) are just so darn genuine, authentic, hard working and downright fun to be with. Please click on our brand new link, Shutterfly, in the right hand column of this blog to view our photos from our trip. There are two albums from our trip:  Bismarck Vacation and 30th Reunion. I hope you enjoy them as much as we enjoyed making the memories.

We're Back in the Saddle!

Yes, we still do exist and yes, I have been a real loser! I cannot believe how long it has been since I have made the time to update our "weekly" blog. I have had many friends and family ask if we have given up our blog and the answer is a big resounding NO! Life has been very crazy and lots has changed since our last post. With these changes, comes a new commitment to get back to priorities - FAMILY - which partially entails weekly blog updates and monthly photo updates!

I resigned from my career at ASI at the end of May (transitioning out over the summer) so Dave can pursue his dreams/opportunities and to make time to "be present" and proactively raise our beautiful children who are not getting any younger. Dave and I made a pact when our angels were born that one of us would always be home with them to raise them since God gave us this gift of parenthood and we only get one shot to give it our absolute best. So I am back at home with our babes, Dave is pursuing his dreams and both of us are truly back in the roles that God intended for us at this chapter in our lives.

Stay tuned for LOTS of photos, some videos and a NEW website for our photos via Shutterfly. I have lots to do to catch up on photos beginning with baseball, girls track, dance, last day of school, vacation to Bismarck at the end of June, etc. We have shared so many fun memories since the end of April and my goal is to share them with the people we love most and to make time for the "little things" in life that bring us the most joy  :)