Minnesota 2009 (part 1)

I have no idea where to start to tell you all about our annual family trip to Hackensack, MN this year. I thought I would just start with a timeline of the 10 days.

Friday, August 7th - In the morning the kids and I ran to Kohl's (good sales and even better coupons!) Greg took a half day and when he got home, we packed as much as we could. We ate lunch and then all laid down. Greg would be driving all night and we needed to make sure he rested. After nap, we finished packing. Douglas came over after work and brought pizzas for dinner. We ate and then waited for Steven to be ready. We headed to his house around 8pm and were on the road by 9pm. We drove all night.

Saturday, August 8th - We ate breakfast around 6:45am and then made it to Hackensack, MN by 10am. We met up with the rest of the family, ate lunch in town and did some grocery shopping then headed to our resort. We checked in and unpacked and the kids immediately headed to the beach to play in the sand.

Sunday, August 9th - lots of fishing, eating good food, digging in the sand, playing on the playground and playing games.

Monday, August 10th - more of the same but the weather was good for swimming.

Tuesday, August 11th - We took the girls into town for a local fishing tournament. They were so excited and even lasted about 15 minutes before getting bored. Abby caught one fish and then we headed to the local playground. After tiring of that, we went to our favorite sweet shop for mint chocolate chip shakes. After getting back, the kids did some more swimming.

Wednesday, August 12th - After breakfast, I got to go into town for the annual flea market while Greg and the family watched the kiddos. It was some great "me" time. After getting back, we ate lunch and then did MORE swimming. That evening one of the families showed a movie with a projector on a big screen. The kids watched Veggie Tales. We told them they could stay up late and sit around the bonfire and watch the meteor shower. Abby and Emma (Michael's soon-to-be step daughter) had a sleepover together in Grandma and Grandpa's cabin. They headed to bed at 11:45pm but Leah made it to midnight. She was so proud. (Thanks to Aunt Susan for staying in our cabin and watching Cameron while he slept so we all could go to the bonfire.)

Thursday, August 13th - Lots more swimming, digging, fishing and playing. That evening all the families came together for our annual Thursday night fish fry. Lots of great food, good company and fun. The kids all played together and the adults got to talk. After dinner, Greg and Michael went out fishing and Kris (Michael's fiance) and I took the girls into town to play at the park.

Friday, August 14th - More fishing, swimming, digging......Michael, Kris and Emma left early in the morning.

Saturday, August 15th - The rest of the family left in the morning. We checked out of our cabin and spent the day with Grandma and Grandpa at their cabin. We spent most of the day in the cabin playing and eating. This was the ONLY day it rained on us. We did manage to take the girls on a short canoe ride around. They had never been in a canoe and really enjoyed it. I tried to go out fishing (for the first and only time) but 15minutes into it the rain began and we had to head in. Shucks!! We then went back to the cabin and all settled down for a nap. (Greg would be driving all night again) After nap we played some more and ate dinner. We left that evening at 8pm and drove straight through the night.

Sunday, August 16th - We pulled into our driveway at 8am. Exactly 12 hours later. We only stopped for gas 3times. It rained for most of the drive home. The kids and I all slept and Greg drove. When we got home, we unpacked and ate breakfast. After Cameron napped, we went out to lunch and came home for naps. We were tired!!!

Back to reality.