Ice Fishing & Eddie

We spent the afternoon out ice fishing on Saturday. 


The first lake we headed to didn't seem to have any fish, so we headed to another one that was close.  Set up some tip-ups and then put up the portable shacks and started fishing. 


I was in our shack when I heard someone say my name and so I headed over to Bryce's shack thinking Eddie probably needed a diaper change.


I was wrong.

Eddie and Uncle Bryce - February 7, 2015

Turns out, he stepped into the hole and got wet!


Uncle Bryce and Auntie Leah had already stripped him out of his jacket, snow pants and boots and were trying to dry out his sock in front of the heater! 


Eddie was of course okay so I headed to find out if we had some spare clothing in the diaper bag and grabbed his extra pair of boots we had brought along.  He got to spend the rest of the day in the truck watching a movie or sitting in one of the heated ice houses helping us fish!


We did (well, William did) catch some pan fish, so last night he made up a big batch of fish for dinner with some fresh green beans and broccoli.  A delicious dinner made even better by the fact I didn't have to cook it!

Ice Fishing

Took a chance and went ice fishing this past weekend with the family. 


I haven't been ice fishing in YEARS...  But, I did have a fun time even though I didn't catch any of the fish. 


We met up with our Chiropractor and some of her friends on a little lake where the Rainbow Trout were huge!  And they were so fun to try to catch.  William caught two large ones (in addition to the three he had caught the day before!). 

William helping get a fish of the line.

Getting ready to put a waxie on the hook.

The delicious rainbow trout!

Elizabeth's snowman - named Strawberry Shortcake!

Eddie fell asleep on the way to the lake and so he stayed in the truck for the first hour or so and napped while Libby and Grandma Sue build an awesome snowman named Strawberry Shortcake!  Once Eddie woke up, they both had fun with their shovels and looking at all the fish that had been caught. 


It was such a fun afternoon.  Almost makes me want to go again...


And the trout was delicious!

Fall Fishing

We headed out yesterday afternoon for a short fishing trip on the river.  It was short because it was so very windy, we all got cold. 

Elizabeth practiced her casting skills and William did some fishing too, but none were caught in the short time we were out.  It was so nice to be out on the river, but with the wind whipping up the white caps, it was less than ideal circumstances. 

Eventually, we headed down river to the dam and fished in the calmer area.  Eddie and Libby had a little picnic in the boat with peanut butter sandwiches, but William and I waited to eat until we got home.  We both needed something warm and a bowl of hot soup was the answer!



Elizabeth practicing casting with her fishing pole.



A very happy William out in the boat.

Edward and Mommy in the boat.

They do like each other!

Fall Fun - Playing in the leaves with no reservations.

Excitement over his sister throwing the leaves into the air.

So happy to have an afternoon at the park and river!

Picnic at the park

We headed to the river Sunday after church to meet up with William and have a picnic.

He was out fishing and came in to have sandwiches with us.  

The kids played on the playground and had a blast on the slide!

Eddie looks like a little boy, not a baby anymore!  Libby was too busy playing with some other girls to pose for any pictures!

4th of July Vacation at the Lake!

We spent a wonderful extended weekend at the lake with family and friends.  It was so nice to get away from the stresses of home (granted, travelling with children presents its own stresses) and spend some time as a family in northern Minnesota.

Thanks to Fred and Debbie for a great vacation and letting us set up our circus at their cabin!

Libby & Julie are ready for the festivities!

A relaxing afternoon in the shade.

Sleepy girl swinging with Mom.

A wonderful beach sandbox for the kids to enjoy.  And they sure did!

The beach.

Libby and a Dilly Bar. 

Bath time for Eddie!

William enjoyed early morning fishing every day.  Walleye for dinner this week!

Eddie cooling off in the water.

William and Eddie.

Happy Anniversary

William and I celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary this year.  We had a wonderful day together as a family and ended up going out to eat the night before as a couple.  We hit the river that evening for a family boating/fishing adventure complete with a picnic dinner.  William only caught one fish, but as you can see it was a pretty nice one!  About 37" long and he said it was the biggest fish he has ever caught.  It was so fun to see him catch it!

Weekend Vacation

We took a little weekend family vacation recently and enjoyed a little fishing in Solon Springs WI and some beach time in Duluth MN.  It was fun to get out and enjoy the boat as a family and the weather couldn't have been any better!

Libby is quite the fisherman.  She starts the boat by herself, drives (with Daddy's guidance of course) and can almost cast her pole by herself.  She did a lot of practicing this weekend and is getting so close to being able to do it on her own.  Her pole has a little fishing lure without any hooks on it for practicing!  It is so cute to watch her learn!

Libby's First Fish!!

Over the long Memorial Day weekend it was very rainy.  We ended up going out to eat with some friends on Friday night and Libby didn't want to go with.  When we asked her why, she said because she wanted to go fishing instead.  Daddy was so proud!  So, finally on Sunday morning, it was nice enough for him to take her out.  Then on Monday afternoon, they decided to go again.  And...

Libby caught her first fish on Memorial Day this year!  (Well, Daddy caught it and she reeled it in.)  She was so excited when she got home that she had to show me right away, even though it was raining out and a thunderstorm was on its way.  It was so cute to see how excited she was, not to mention how proud Daddy was of her!  (Ignore the dark spots on her face and neck...  She was eating Spanish peanuts earlier and got the skins stuck to her and wouldn't let us wipe them off...)

She even watched Daddy clean the fish in the garage and didn't seem squeamish about it at all.  Now if we can just get her to eat the fish, the circle will be complete!  My little girl is growing up so fast!!!  I am pretty sure it is time for her to get her own fishing pole.  I think the new baby will give it to her as a gift when they meet.  Then of course it will be her own tackle box, etc... 

The Fishing Boat

We purchased a used fishing boat this past week and Libby and William are having fun working on it together.  Maybe William is doing most of the working and Libby is just playing, but it is fun to see them hanging out together.

It is an older Lund boat and William is so excited that he finally has his own fishing boat.  Libby gets excited because she calls it "my boat" and always wants to play in it.  Even when Daddy isn't home, or when the boat is covered.  She wants to be in her boat.

Look Mommy, I drive my boat!

I drive fast Mommy!

Do you want to come on my boat Mommy?

You are supposed to wear your life jacket Mommy, the seat doesn't need to wear one!

She is having such a great time in the boat with Daddy.  I have teased William for the past few years that the boat needs a name and we may have to call it the "Libby 2".  I think it is already starting to live up to its name because Libby is always saying "Libby go too!"  I hope there will be lots of great family time in the boat teaching Libby and her younger sibling to fish and enjoy the outdoors.  I know William will get lots of use out of it when he can escape in the early morning to enjoy a few hours of solitude by himself!

Fishing with Daddy

We went fishing on Ed's boat when we were up in Brainerd over Labor Day Weekend.  Elizabeth did okay, but it was hard to keep her out of things she shouldn't be in.  Like fish hooks, the worm bucket, etc...

She is into a stage where she will point at things and then look back at you to make sure you see what she is seeing.  It is pretty cute! 

She was having so much fun in the boat with all of us (right up until we had to change her diaper).  She wanted to be so close to the edge of the boat and it was making Daddy nervous.  Even though she had her life jacket on, he was still a little nervous.  I can only imagine how afraid she could become of being in a boat if she fell out!  We will have to try to keep that from happening!