the 3 F's

Fish, frogs & friends...three of the main ingredients of summer wouldn't you say?

Only true friends would spend time together vacuum packing salmon heads to use for shrimp bait!

Fun at the lake! Such happy, happy memories I have of playing in the lake growing up...It was so fun to spend so much time at the lake while we were in MN. Thomas, Ella & Claire all went tubing for the first time, & Ella even got up on waterskiis. Swimming & skiing at sunset have got to be the best...
Sam at sunset.
My brother Paul's classic flip out of his trick skiis.

my light

The Lord is my light & my salvation - whom shall I fear? PSALM 27:1

Gordy, my mom's brother.
Owen thought it pretty funny to hose down all the adults!
It was so great to be in MN this year over the fourth of July. My family has always "lake hopped" every fourth. First, we go to my aunt & uncle's lake cabin on Pickeral Lake. It was great to see many from my dad's side here and eat a fabulous lunch complete with mom's traditional creamed peas & new potatoes.

In the afternoon, we always head over to my mom's side.... Gordy & Sandy's lake cabin on Jewett Lake. The kids are surrounded by cousins their age here and there is always an abundance of food & laughter.

Next to the Lord, nothing lights my way more than family, both near & far...

Pete & Kay, dad's sister.

scripture & a snapshot

I came upon this fun blog, & decided to join the challenge this week. I'm passionate about photography and there is absolutely nothing like the joy of a good photo for me. ...Of remembering the joy, the moment, the laughter, the memories, the people....of seeing God in the smallest areas of life. I love the house where you live, O LORD, the place where your glory dwells. -Psalm 26:8

This is where the roots of my faith were watered as a little girl growing up in Minnesota. This is Aastad Lutheran church. We visited MN recently and went to church here with mom & dad. It's always good to worship here and fellowship with so many faces I grew up with. This time, we were part of a celebration for Aastad....the church has been here for 100 years. The foundation of the church was built with Norwegian hands. The stained glass windows throughout have Norwegian text on them. The first years of the church's documents are all written in Norwegian. The church is beautiful, the people kind.... I'm thankful for my beginnings here.

first fish

Thomas & Owen each caught their first ocean fish the last time we went boating. They were so proud to reel in these yellow-eye by themselves! No small feet when the line is over 100 feet down:)

We tied off to Larry & Ron, good friends of ours, and fished quite a bit with them one day. They caught an octopus and we chopped it up as bait. Ella stayed busy for quite some time with it's tentacles! The suction (after dead and chopped into pieces) is still unremarkable. God made some crazy creatures, indeed!

Claire was in Yellowstone so missed this boating trip, so no pics of her this time. Stay tuned for more....we're headed out on the boat again this weekend:)

Aly

Meet Aly. We brought her home tonight and she is the sweetest little piece of chocolate around! We think labs are the perfect family dog, so after owning several black and a yellow, we decided to try a chocolate this time. After much thought and deliberation, the kids voted and picked her name. She is named after our favorite local ski resort, Alyeska.


This was her "going home bag" packed by the lady we bought her from! Contents included 2 toys, a blanket, a jar of peanut butter, a binder full of papers, training tips and even a bottle of spot remover! Wowzers.

My Seward Field Trip

Seward

My class went on a field trip to Seward. We stayed for 3 days. We went on a boat ride, went to there library and saw a movie on the earthquake and tsunami, and went to the Sea Life Center. We got to dissect a squid. We found the pen and wrote in our trays.

This seal would follow our hands if we hovered them on the glass.

This is my Seward Group. Our group name was Jumping Jellyfish.