Saturday, July 21: Homeward Bound! We left Birch Villa at 8:07 a.m. We had eaten a very light breakfast of leftover scraps of food. We hit the mall in Duluth at about 10:30 MN time and our first stop was Barnes & Noble where Seth purchased the 7th and final Harry Potter book. (We knew this routine well, as we had to do the same thing 2 years ago for the 6th book.) We ate brunch/lunch in the food court and then did a little more shopping for school uniforms for the girls (clothing is tax-free in MN!). We hit the road again at 12:30. The ride home was pretty uneventful. We luckily found our little bike on top of the car to be slipping off while at a gas station and tied it back on before we lost it completely on the road. We stopped at Culver's for supper, and arrived home at 12:45 a.m. (MI time, 11:45 MN time), making the trip, with shopping, in about 15:45. We were tired, but thankful to be home and looking forward to sleeping in our own beds again. We were also thankful for another great vacation at Cass Lake and can't wait til next year!
Friday, July 20: We woke up to another gorgeous day--sunshine and a gentle breeze blowing over the lake. Tom, Seth & I headed over to the Potato Islands area to fish (we decided the last day was a good time to try something new). Things were rather slow-going until about 11:45 when suddenly we were reeling them in "left and right" (although really it was "center and right" as Tom, on the left side of the boat just couldn't seem to get as much action). We ended up with our biggest catch of the vacation, with 21 nice-sized perch and 3 rock bass.
We spent the afternoon cleaning fish (Tom), needle-felting (Linda), swimming and playing (the kids). We also started taking the boat apart and packing. Friday evening we took a quick trip over to the Canal House for dinner. It was all-you-can-eat fish night, but since the fish was "Alaskan pollack" it didn't seem too exciting. We decided the salad bar was good, but next year will either opt for the Wednesday night all-you-can-eat chicken or the Casino instead. We came home and played a few games of pool, checked out with Karrie, did some laundry and then packed until about midnight.
Monday, July 23, 2007
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Fishing, Shopping, Biking, etc.
Thursday, July 19: Wow, it's hard to believe it's our 2nd to the last day! Time has flown by, and yet it seems like we almost "live" here and home is so far away it's like a distant land. We woke up this morning to a little more wind than we really wanted to fish in, so decided to put off fishing 'til this evening. Leah and I worked on a craft instead (needle-felting), Jared & Chloe slept in until almost noon, and Seth & Tom read books. It was just a very relaxed, lazy morning--just what a vacation should be! The sun is shining warmly outside and I decided to catch up on my blogging and get my pictures posted, while looking out the big picture windows at the lake. The kids are swimming and Tom is STILL reading. I think he's on his 5th book this vacation.
Wednesday, July 18: Today Chloe & I planned to meet Phyllis in Park Rapids for a day of shopping, so Tom and I headed out early for a little fishing before I had to leave. We caught 7 perch on Strawberry Bar in a little over an hour, on a very peaceful lake. Chloe and I then drove to Park Rapids (an hour's drive) which gave us plenty of time to talk about life... We then met Phyllis for lunch at Minnesota Ice Cream Fountain. We enjoyed sub sandwiches (and later went back for ice cream sundaes). We then got down to some serious shopping.
In the meantime, Tom, Leah & Jared rode the Mi-Gi-Zi trail again, this time starting from our cabin, making it a 17 mile bike ride. They later reported that Leah did a great job keeping up the pace. Seth opted to stay home and finish his book. In the evening, Leah & Seth headed out fishing with Tom to SB, where they were able to catch 16 more perch to add to our numbers. We all came together again quite late and by the time the fish were cleaned and supper was ready it was REALLY late (10:30!), but we (the kids and I) had a special meal planned. We had a mini-early birthday dinner for Tom, since I had gotten him some gifts while out shopping that I knew he'd want before his birthday next week (a life vest, a fishing rod tube, and a tub for his fishing stuff). We had steak on the grill with sauteed mushrooms, baked potatoes, and tossed salad. Yum! It was worth the wait.
Wednesday, July 18: Today Chloe & I planned to meet Phyllis in Park Rapids for a day of shopping, so Tom and I headed out early for a little fishing before I had to leave. We caught 7 perch on Strawberry Bar in a little over an hour, on a very peaceful lake. Chloe and I then drove to Park Rapids (an hour's drive) which gave us plenty of time to talk about life... We then met Phyllis for lunch at Minnesota Ice Cream Fountain. We enjoyed sub sandwiches (and later went back for ice cream sundaes). We then got down to some serious shopping.
In the meantime, Tom, Leah & Jared rode the Mi-Gi-Zi trail again, this time starting from our cabin, making it a 17 mile bike ride. They later reported that Leah did a great job keeping up the pace. Seth opted to stay home and finish his book. In the evening, Leah & Seth headed out fishing with Tom to SB, where they were able to catch 16 more perch to add to our numbers. We all came together again quite late and by the time the fish were cleaned and supper was ready it was REALLY late (10:30!), but we (the kids and I) had a special meal planned. We had a mini-early birthday dinner for Tom, since I had gotten him some gifts while out shopping that I knew he'd want before his birthday next week (a life vest, a fishing rod tube, and a tub for his fishing stuff). We had steak on the grill with sauteed mushrooms, baked potatoes, and tossed salad. Yum! It was worth the wait.
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Two beautiful days!
Tuesday, July 17th: Today was the best weather we have had yet. The lake was very smooth and it was hot (almost too hot for fishing!)--great weather for swimming and tubing. The kids were able to do both again this afternoon, and Leah and Seth tried knee-boarding as well behind Karrie's boat. They seemed to really enjoy it. Leah has been spending a lot of time with Landon since her cousins left. Today she made a new friend--Andrea, who is 9.
We fished Pike Bay in the morning with Jared and Chloe. They've both already lost their enthusiasm for fishing, so we spent most of our morning encouraging and coaxing them to get their lines back in the water. We saw both a blue heron and a bald eagle on the bay so that made the trip worthwhile, in addition to the 15 fish we cooked up for supper. Tom and I went out again this evening and added another 6 fish to the freezer (bringing our total count up to 88 for now).
Monday, July 16th: Our 2nd Monday began much like our first Monday. The weather was pleasant and warm, with a light breeze, and we took Seth and Leah out to Strawberry Bar fishing. After a slow start, we were pleased to end our morning with a catch of 20 perch. The kids spent the afternoon tubing—Chloe with her friend Maddy’s family, and Leah, Seth and Jared were pulled behind the Nelson’s boat by Karrie. They all had a great time!
This evening Tom and I went out for dinner to The Boulders in 
fishing, we didn’t catch any big ones. We then went back to the cabin for ice cream with the kids.
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Itasca ("VerITAS + CAput") Sunday
Well this is my first ever blog entry. This is a journal of our annual family vacation to Cass Lake, Minnesota, where we rent a cabin and fishing boat at Birch Villa Resort. I'm hoping I can go back and enter some posts for the past week that I missed, but if not I'll just try to review later. In any case, let's give it a try...
Today was Sunday. We found ourselves free to choose our own church today, since the rest of the Kingma clan has cleared out. And so we headed for the Evangelical "Free" church of Bemidji. We actually tried to find the Evangelical Covenant church first, but the mapquest directions sent us out into no-man's land and no church was found, so we opted for our 2nd choice, which was actually a very good choice. The 11:00 a.m. contemporary service had great music, an inspiring sermon, and enough room in the newly-built sanctuary for us to feel welcome (as well as 5 choices of gourmet-flavored coffees afterward!). The kids voted to go there next year even though it was 15 minutes farther away than the Lutheran church.
After church, we headed out for Itasca. What had started out as a very promising, warm, sunny day was quickly becoming overcast and very gloomy. We were able to eek out a picnic lunch at Itasca just before the raindrops started to fall. It rained the rest of the afternoon and became cool as well. We were glad we hadn't bothered to bring the bikes along this year. We finally got to explore the Visitor center we've never been to and learned so many cool things about Itasca--like the meaning of the name: "Truth + Head" (see title for the Latin), as the true head of the Mississippi had been discovered after much searching. We also learned the connections between the "Cass" and "Schoolcraft" names we see here in Minnesota and those we see at home in Michigan (named after the same men--they sent a team of explorers from Michigan), and found links from Itasca to Cass Lake and Star Island. Pretty cool--although the boys needed a little convincing that history was cool!
After our learning experience was over, we headed to the headwaters area for ice cream in the restaurant (something else we've never done there!) and our annual visit to the gift shop. We unanimously decided to skip actually visiting the headwaters this year due to the inclement weather and the fact that we've seen them the past two years. We traveled "home" to our cabin for a taco supper and movie night (we cried over "Bridge to Terabithia"). Of course Chloe played with her friend Maddy who she couldn't wait to see all day. That about sums up our Sunday.
Today was Sunday. We found ourselves free to choose our own church today, since the rest of the Kingma clan has cleared out. And so we headed for the Evangelical "Free" church of Bemidji. We actually tried to find the Evangelical Covenant church first, but the mapquest directions sent us out into no-man's land and no church was found, so we opted for our 2nd choice, which was actually a very good choice. The 11:00 a.m. contemporary service had great music, an inspiring sermon, and enough room in the newly-built sanctuary for us to feel welcome (as well as 5 choices of gourmet-flavored coffees afterward!). The kids voted to go there next year even though it was 15 minutes farther away than the Lutheran church.
After church, we headed out for Itasca. What had started out as a very promising, warm, sunny day was quickly becoming overcast and very gloomy. We were able to eek out a picnic lunch at Itasca just before the raindrops started to fall. It rained the rest of the afternoon and became cool as well. We were glad we hadn't bothered to bring the bikes along this year. We finally got to explore the Visitor center we've never been to and learned so many cool things about Itasca--like the meaning of the name: "Truth + Head" (see title for the Latin), as the true head of the Mississippi had been discovered after much searching. We also learned the connections between the "Cass" and "Schoolcraft" names we see here in Minnesota and those we see at home in Michigan (named after the same men--they sent a team of explorers from Michigan), and found links from Itasca to Cass Lake and Star Island. Pretty cool--although the boys needed a little convincing that history was cool!
After our learning experience was over, we headed to the headwaters area for ice cream in the restaurant (something else we've never done there!) and our annual visit to the gift shop. We unanimously decided to skip actually visiting the headwaters this year due to the inclement weather and the fact that we've seen them the past two years. We traveled "home" to our cabin for a taco supper and movie night (we cried over "Bridge to Terabithia"). Of course Chloe played with her friend Maddy who she couldn't wait to see all day. That about sums up our Sunday.
Our First Week
This is the journal of our annual family vacation to Cass Lake, Minnesota, where we rent a cabin and fishing boat at Birch Villa Resort. Since I've just learned how to blog and am playing catch-up, my first week will be summarized more briefly in one entry (beginning of the week starts at the bottom):
Saturday, July 14: It's packing day for our relatives and laundry day for us. Everyone is on their way home, or to other vacation destinations, but we are glad we get to stay put for another week of fun and relaxation. Birch Villa is very quiet on Saturday as it is mostly empty, but the cleaning crews and lawn crews and busily preparing for the next round of
guests. It's fun to watch things get all spruced up and ready. This week Mark and his helpers have completed the deck on the lodge and poured the cement floor of their garage. I used the new laundry room today and found it very clean and efficient. Tom, Jared, Seth & Leah went for a 14-mile bike ride around Pike Bay (the Mi-Gi-Zi trail) and had a really good time). Saturday evening Tom and I went fishing but the lake was a little rough so we ended up fishing over in front of Birch Villa where we found calmer waters and a few perch.Friday, July 13: Friday morning we headed out to Strawberry Bar (rather late) with Jared & Chloe fishing. Neither one is a huge fan of the sport, so it took some convincing to get them to
come along (especially Chloe). Once there, however, they both found it to be quite enjoyable and we all had a great time. We were able to come home with a pretty fair catch--18 perch. Chloe caught 10 fish--3 keepers and 7 losers. She decided that she DOES like fishing this year. Jared, now 16, had to have his own fishing license this year, so we will have to see if it pays off. So far his one keeper is costing us $24. Ouch! Friday afternoon the girls headed off to Bemidji with their cousins to see Ratatoulle (sp?). Afterwards we picked them up and met Grandpa & Grandma and the gang at Applebee's for supper. Then Tom & Brad took the boys (including Nathan & Luke)
and older girls (Leah and Jordan) to see Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, which just opened this week. Then Nathan spent the night at our cabin.Thursday, July 12: We woke up to another windy day, so we waited around for the waves to calm down. Tom and I enjoyed a nice long walk around the area. We did some reading in the afternoon and the kids really enjoyed the treasure hunt sponsored by Birch Villa. By early evening things had calmed enough for us to head out fishing to Pike Bay. We took Leah and Seth with us again. We had fairly good luck, catching about 20 fish, though not as big as those we caught on Strawberry Bar.
Wednesday, July 11: The weather calmed down a bit so Tom & I were able to get out and fish in the morning. We tried Strawberry Bar, but it was too rough, so we went around to Cedar Bar. We didn't know where to fish and the water was still rough, so we ended up catching only one keeper-which we threw back. We came home through the rain and wind. That afternoon, Deb & Aunt Sone wanted to try shopping in Walker so we went again (since we were cut short the day before when the stores closed at 5:30). I took Chloe and her friend Emily along. They had a great time. That evening we stayed in and around the resort.
Tuesday, July 10: Our weather has changed! A thunderstorm blew through during the night and we woke up to wind, cold, and general dreariness. There were some really strong wind gusts, and around 9:30 or 10:00 we had some excitement, when a tree fell right toward Roy and Deb's cabin. Thankfully, a tree right behind their cabin
caught the falling tree and prevented it from hitting the cabin where the kids were changing their clothes, or from hitting their 3-week old (new) car. Once the tree was cleared out of the way, it was obvious it was not a fishing kind of day. We headed off to Walker for some shopping (where we met Mom & Dad & gang), while the other half of the gang headed for Itasca. We (well, the girls and I) enjoyed the gift shops in Walker. Tom and the boys were bored stiff! Sorry, guys. But we ended the evening with pizza at Zhateau Zorbaz, which was fun for everyone!Monday, July 9: We had a perfect first morning of fishing. There was a gentle breeze and it was warm and sunny. We went to strawberry bar and caught 22 perch (nice-sized ones) with Leah & Seth. Of all of our kids these are the two who seem to enjoy fishing the most. We didn't get in until about 1:00 and by the time Tom was finished cleaning fish it was mid-afternoon. He decided he didn't was to overdo the fishing thing on the first day so went with me to Wal-Mart in Bemidji to get groceries that evening. (Psst! We enjoyed a little "date" at Coldstone Creamery without the kids first!) The kids are already having a ball, enjoying the time with their 3rd cousins. Luke and Seth have bonded--playing poker and Nintendo DS together whenever they're not fishing. Leah and Kara have found things in common, and Chloe, Erin and Leah G. (as well as Emily from Minneapolis) are inseparable. Jared pretty much loves sleeping in, watching movies in the evening (we're not allowing TV during the day), and being the big kid that everybody looks up to.
Sunday, July 8: Everyone headed off to church at the local Lutheran church in the morning. We met up with Mom & Dad, Aunt Hank, Nathan, Glen, Pat, Brad & Jordan (who were staying at nearby horseshoe resort). Afterward we all met at Birch Villa for the annual picnic of pork chops with all the trimmings. We spent much of the afternoon enjoying the sunshine, visiting, and just relaxing together. In the late afternoon, the kids went tubing behind Deb & Roy's boat (they had rented a larger boat). They had a great time. That evening we got our fishing gear ready for the next morning.
Saturday, July 7: We finally had the car packed and the house ready to abandon for 2 weeks by 3:20 a.m. (EST) We headed for Minnesota and drove straight through with only one breakfast stop and a few stops for gas, etc. Thank goodness the trip was otherwise uneventful. We arrived at Birch Villa at about 4:00 p.m. (CST), making the trip in 14:40. It was very hot when we arrived and the cabin was stuffy. We were all tired and sweaty as we unpacked, but the lake was refreshing as we took a quick dip. We greeted our relatives (Uncle Roy & Aunt Sone, Paul, Deb & Roy & their kids) who were trying out Birch Villa for the first time. We checked out the new lodge at BV and found it to be a great work in progress. Mark (the owner) has done much of the work himself and hopes to have it finished by next year. We can't wait to see the final outcome--it's so cool already! We headed to DQ up town for supper, and later Deb & I went to the local grocery store (Teal's) for just enough to get us through the weekend. We all slept very well that night!
Friday, July 6, 2007: This is the day we were supposed to leave. But plans were changed due a little problem with our car, i.e. it needed a new transmission! We didn't mind this minor inconvenience however, since Honda agreed to cover the cost 100%. On his way home from picking up the car that evening, Tom discovered a nail in one of our tires and we needed to have it replaced! Then as we were packing, he broke a tooth! It was one of those days!
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