Hessel

Well, another year has come and gone at our cabin in Hessel. After my hubby missed going last year for the first time ever (minor set back with having a baby and all), he was chomping at the bit to go. And he wasn't disappointed with the fishing either. They seemed to catch more fish then they have in the last few years. They caught pike, herring, salmon, perch, and some suckers too. Unfortunately I don't have a single picture of any of their fish. I do however, have plenty pictures of my little fish. My kiddos were lovin the water this year. Perhaps it was because the normally cool temps in Hessel were just about warmer than we've ever seen, and warrented a good dip in the lake. Seriously, the mornings in Hessel usually require a sweatshirt until about 11:00 am, and cool off around 7:00 pm...and that's on a warm day. But I don't think we needed a sweatshirt once. It was even in the 90's a few of the days...and the only air conditioning we had was the warm breeze that floated into our rooms off the water's edge. But even in the heat, the kids had a blast.

The girls followed my hubby's cousin's kids around like shadows the whole time. Thank goodness they stay for the whole week (their parents typically go home after a few days, and leave the kids with their grandma and grandpa) otherwise our kids would be lost without them. Kyra would be up at the crack of dawn asking to see Carlye at her cabin. I would have to tell her that unlike her, Carlye was probably still sleeping at the hour of 6:30 am on vacation...hoping she'd take the hint. If it were up to Kyra, she'd stay another week. Yes, the girls really had a great time running around in the sand, riding bikes down to the little grocery store by the marina, and fishing as well. They both loved fishing with daddy, but for the first time Kyra caught 3 perch by herself. She cast it out, and reeled it in. Katie caught a couple too, but needed help reeling it in. The girls also made friends with a woman at the marina...who had a 65 foot boat! They had a tour and everything. Must be rough with granite kitchen countertops in your yacht.

Andrew seemed to do pretty well at Hessel too. Although I did have to grab hands full of sand out of his mouth a few times and carry him a bit more than usual (so he wouldn't crawl through the gravel or race to the shore), he did pretty well. He took great naps and slept well through the night, allowing me to have some moments of rest. It definitely was nice to not be far from the beach. Because so many times we have gone to a beach and had to leave early, because Andrew was getting cranky. I would have to tell the girls we have to pack and up and leave, and they would grumble that we always leave because of Andrew. This time, the girls could continue in their fun while I put him down to rest.

And me? Well let's just say I had an aokay time. Now that a few weeks have gone by, I am able to reflect on more of a positive note, although I wasn't so positive a good deal of the time I was there. Let's just say I would have been a little more of a happy camper if my hubby would have come home from fishing at a decent time and not left me with the kids ALL day. But a lot of having fun has to come from your attitude and I just didn't have a great attitude after the guys missed dinner twice to allow for their fishing fix. Looking back though, I do realize it was very nice to get away and enjoy time chatting with extended family, watching my kids have a blast, and looking at the beautiful view. The water is so calm and peaceful in the morning, that it's almost mesmorizing to watch.

Perhaps my best moment though was our one and only family ride in our boat. We drove out just before dusk, and trolled in and out of the little islands by the bay. We docked the boat on a sandy shoal on one of the islands while trying to catch a few fish. The girls got off the boat to run around and chase each other for a few minutes. Just then the hubs caught a perch. It was a keeper, but we had nothing to put it in. Finally he found a plastic bag, in which Kyra filled up with a little water, and we slid him in. But then the girls wanted back in the boat, so the hubs needed to help them back aboard. I grabbed the plastic bag in one hand, while he gave me his huge cane fishing pole to hold in the other hand. Meanwhile, with both hands preoccupied, I had Andrew tugging on my legs trying to stand up in the wobbly boat. Then wouldn't you know, I caught a fish. The hubs shouted, pull it up...pull it up! So with one hand, and all other limbs preoccupied, I pulled up and caught a fish who then flew right at me (since I didn't have any hands to grab the line). Yes, it was quite a sight to see. I'm sure that would have been funniest video worthy had we caught it on tape.