McNature: Day 4

Today is our last full day in the great outdoors.  Now, it has come to my attention, that some people don't think we are truly "roughing it" since we have internet access.  Well...let me inform those skeptical individuals that yes, we do have wifi, but it is such a weak signal that I can't download any podcasts, stream rad songs, or watch any YouTube clips.  I mean, come on!  Clearly  that defines "roughing it" in this day and age, right!?  It's almost like I have to go outside or talk to these other people living with me (who mysteriously keep calling me "Dad").

Highlights from today:

• Great breakfast with the Stimpsons, which led to pool time (and much splashing), then nap time, then (to beat the hot, hot, heat) a trip into town and get an ice cream treat.  We needed a lot of napkins to clean up the ice cream mess in the restaurant, but Katie promised to be cleaner next time.
• We then stopped by a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' spillway and looked at the museum and interactive displays within it.  Of course, by "looked at" I mean J+J managed to run around the entire area and push every talking display button in record time.  Did I mention we went here after the ice cream treat?  It was really neat, the boys seemed to be interested in all of the educational information taxidermy animals, but their favorite part was the gift shop and the box of pencils with the pirate skull, robot, and shark erasers...which had nothing to do with anything about the spillway (I think) - did I mention we went here after the ice cream treat?  Unfortunately, we ran out of time and could not see everything in the museum.  We showed up 15 minutes before they closed for the day (or so they claimed) - did I mention we went there...never mind.
• We had an awesome dinner, followed by some final pool time, and then our last opportunity to fish.  Dave cemented his legacy as the fisherman of the trip with his 16 1/2" bass he caught tonight.  Final fish total: Dave - 11, Chris - 8.  There Dave, now everyone knows.
• Finally, the evening ended with the adults testing their skills in "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?"  3 out of 4, or 75% of us, passed the grade.  There Dave, Mr. Fish King, now everyone knows. 

Tomorrow consists of packing up and driving back home.  As long as we pack up three kids, we will be in good shape.  All in all, it really has been a wonderful trip, and we can't thank Patti and Dave enough for allowing us to share in these wonderful opportunities.  These are memories we will undoubtedly cherish for years.  I plan on getting pictures up from the trip at some point tomorrow.  I can't upload photos with this slow, archaic wireless signal because, you know, I am camping.

McNature: Day 3

What I am learning about fishing is when in doubt, exaggerate.  Day 3 of the great outdoors saw Dave and I leave early to try our luck with fishing out on the lake.  The idea is that we would catch our dinner.  The reality is that we had a higher chance of catching a cold in the sunny, hot weather than catching a fish to eat.  Not that we aren't great fishermen, of course.  We did catch fish, but they would have made the world's tiniest fish sticks.  However, this didn't stop the fish from growing in our memories and we talked about our experiences throughout the day ("I tell ya, it was about 3 feet long, with eyes as red as the fire that burned within its belly!").  None the less, it was a cool experience, and driving around the boat was fun.  Other highlights:

• While Daddy and Papa were gone in the morning, Mommy and Grandma took the kids to the park and pool.  Everyone had a great time, and judging by how hard people were napping when we came back into the camp, clearly everyone played hard.
• They boys did some more fishing in front of our cabin, but soon put their poles away for an even more exciting camping experience...rocks!  They spent most of the evening picking them up and placing them on everything around the campsite.  We spent most of the evening reminding them not to do that.
• The boys got to experience their first campfire and S'mores.  They seemed to enjoy them, although they were a little turned-off by the messiness of the snack (OCD?  Is that a bad thing?).  None the less, the boys seemed to really enjoy playing (with the rocks) by the fire.
• Finally, Katie and I got some time to sit out by the fire after the kids went to bed.  It was really nice, with a beautiful view of the water, along with good conversation with a pretty lady! 

McNature: Day 2

"Someone is out of their bed."  At 5:30am, these words are never exciting words for a parent to hear - no matter if they are said at home or on vacation.  None the less, this would be how our second day started here in the great outdoors.  I tried to preoccupy the boys enough (undoubtedly promising them gifts and privileges every parent swears they will never do) so I could try to catch some sleep on the couch, with visions of our second day adventures dancing in my head.

The highlights:

• We rented a boat this morning and took the boys and Madeleine on their first boat ride around the lake.  They loved it!  Well, I am assuming Madeleine enjoyed it.  When I asked her if she liked it, she grunted at me.  However, the boys enjoyed it so much that they staged a mini-mutiny and offered to drive the boat back to the marina while "Papa" and Daddy were swimming in a cove.  After bribing them with chocolate, they let me back in the boat.  Best part of this event...no sunburn (take THAT global warming)!
• The boys got more fishing in today.  Fishing stories (alert):  "Papa" got three fish (one in record time) and Katie supposedly caught a fish so big that she couldn't reel it in to the shore.  Her line just sat there, almost like the lure was stuck to something, like - I don't know - a big log on the bottom of the lake (or something).  Needless to say, we cut the line (and "The Big One") free.
• The boys got to do some swimming (see: floating in a tube) today.  Everyone had a lot of fun splashing, playing with toy airplanes, not peeing in the pool, and chasing Mommy - but enough about me.
• Finally, the evening ended for the adults with some campfire conversation and popcorn over the fire.  Awesome day!

P.S.  When asked what his favorite part of today was, Jameson replied, "Riding in the boat, the airplane, the spaceship, and the helicopter!"  If he keeps answering like that when we get back to Bloomington, people are going to think we just gave our kids the coolest vacation ever!

McNature: Day 1

Five days - pure nature!  We are taking our first vacation as a family of five...to the great outdoors!  Dave and Patti kindly invited us to go camping with them.  Some highlights from day one:

• On the drive down to the camp site, one of our 3-year-old passengers (let's call him J. McGraw) decided he didn't want to take a nap during the drive.  Instead, he felt like counting objects that passed by our car.  Here is how it went (for 10+ minutes), "16, 17, 18, 19...17!  16, 17, 18, 19...17!"   
• His brother (let's call him J. McGraw), then proceeded to sing the ABC's (A-Z thankfully), but a mini-civil war broke out when the other J. McGraw decided to sing the same song.  A passionate declaration for ownership of the song then followed.  Luckily, all was calm when Mom explained that everyone can sing the ABC's.
• The boys were able to try fishing for the first time today, and Joseph (warning: fish story ahead) almost caught his first fish!  As he was reeling his line back in to land, I saw a fish bite at his rubber lure.  The fish then let go, but came back and grabbed it.  Joseph's pole then began to bend, and his eyes got very wide.  I dropped my pole in excitement and ran over to him, screaming something like, "You got a fish!  You got a fish!"  Joseph, probably now more terrified of me running at him like a lunatic, dropped his pole...and (say it with me) the fish got away.
• Besides fishing, we got all of our gear unpacked in our cabin, had a tasty dinner of brats and sweet corn, and did some evening fishing - and this time - it was I that had the fish (say it with me) that got away (a bass - I saw it, I swear). 
• I took some pictures to document the first day of the trip, too.  I will post them when I have a better wireless connection (it is too slow to try it here).

All in all, a wonderful start to what should be a great time together as a family - stay tuned for more updates, and, don't forget, please pray for us! 

July

July is quickly coming to an end!  Which is fine - if you are talking about ending this "surface of the sun" heat-wave - but isn't so great in the context of less family time for school days.  Here are some photos from the past month, from our Super Twins to first dentist visits...and a pretty girl!  Enjoy!

Madeleine!

Today is St. Mary Magdalene's feast day.  Mary Magdalene was one of Christ's disciples and was present when He died, and according to St. Mark's account, she was the first to see the risen Lord.

This feast day is an extra special day for our family because Madeleine (say Mad-uh-lynn) is a form of Magdalene, meaning "woman from Magdala" - a village on the sea of Galilee.  It is also a form of "magnificant" in Ireland.  To celebrate, here is a one-month slide show of our beautiful girl.  Enjoy!

Saint Mary Magdalene, pray for us!   

Birf-day!

What do you give two three-year-olds for their birthdays?  Memories!  They may not appreciate it now, but Katie and I will definitely cherish the opportunity we had in spending the boys' special day together as a whole family.