a small treasure

I found this sweet little plate yesterday and could not resist...only $4.00 and we were intrigued by the stamp on the back. "Made in Occupied Japan" So my sweet plate had the great fortune of coming home with us where I googled it. I found out from the end of WW II 1945 until 1952 when Japan signed a treaty everything they sent to the USA had to say Occupied Japan. Interesting fact huh?! Of course with all the destruction and horrific events that came from the war I am surprised we imported anything from Japan at all. 

Last night Jerry caught a lovely foot long walleye which is one of my favorite fish to eat. Sweet white flakey meat without the fishy taste. Gracie was so darn excited to see it on his lure she fell into the lake! My man let it go however so I will never know just how delicious it might have been. Gracie either. What a goofball!

 

 Speaking of goofballs Gracie has enlisted Buster to help her watch for squirrel/chipmunk crossings. Buster tends to break for naps a lot sooner so we are thinking he just might be a bit brighter. We wont tell Gracie though! :^>

This is the week that was.

Well the time has come for us to find out if we did indeed get the house in La Quinta. This has been the most stressful and unpleasant housing experience we have ever been thru. We will drink champagne this week to celebrate being homeowners or simply because all the idiots we have had to deal with will be out of our lives. Once we arrived in Minnesota and began living on a beautiful lake we started having second thoughts about if we even wanted to get the house. Last week we had one of those heart to heart talks and decided as much as we are enjoying the lake life we would also enjoy the desert life. It will soon be the time of year when the evenings are balmy and we could sit outside by our lit pool and listen to our waterfall slide into the pool below. I will have pots of freshly planted flowers and fruit trees scenting the air. The golf club would just be getting going and perfect weather for us to be out together. Timothy will be living close by and mostly we will be surrounded by all our treasures. You get the picture. Well as of Friday 'the idiots' are saying because we changed lenders over a month ago we have blown the deal. The house is suppose to go into foreclosure on Wed. and we will no longer be part of its future. I cannot sleep at night because I want nothing more than to go home. I want more than anything to sleep in my own bed something I have not been able to do for over nine months. That would be heaven to me right now. If we do not get the LQ house we have no where to go and at least a month or two of looking again in front of us. That thought makes me cry...I also feel so sad that we have become jokes in our boys eyes with all this indecision. I guess the thing about our age is you become so afraid of making a mistake you cant make a decision at all. It starts to feel like you no longer have the time left to fix a wrong.

We are definitely feeling autumn in the air as September approaches us. The squirrels and chipmunks have become frantic trying to load up their stashes of nuts for winter. We all know who else has become nuts.....

This has become Gracie's position while in the house watching the squirrels run past her windows.
The unfortunate thing is when she gets outside she has no idea where she saw them and runs in circles jumping up at trees. Its not her finest hour for sure. She has also ruined fishing for me because as soon as I cast she cries and wants to catch my bobber to the point of trying to get in the lake. At first it was cute but now it is simply taking all the fun out of my fishing time. Speaking of fishing...my man caught one SOOOO big yesterday it fought him like crazy until it snapped his line and took off lure and all. Wish we could have captured a photo at least because he says it was REALLY big!

 I was in a store this week and saw this school supply list and it brought back so many memories.
I couldn't wait to get this lovely list so we could get going on what each boy needed and begin the 'back-to-school' rituals. Checking off boxes for three different classes... New backpacks, new shoes and socks, and of course a few new outfits and bigger jackets and then all of these supplies to round it out. I can still remember the smells of new crayon boxes and how excited the boys were to begin again after a summer on the lake. I was always so hopeful this was the year they would shine, have a wonderful teacher and be happy with lots of friends.  Doesn't seem like a lot to wish for but for some reason rarely came true for all three. Life itself is the biggest lesson and you can only hope the bumps make you stronger.
Thanks for dropping by.

Minnesota scores

I love the character of this old pulley!

I have a renewed passion for antique stores and the treasures they hold...I thought I was over it when I moved away from here but I can't help myself. I find the pieces of the past fascinating and full of character unlike anything I can find new today. Maybe because everything new is made in China and basically looks like it wont be in your life long. I woke this morning and decided to show you all my new treasures so you might understand my love for old. (I will not include any photos of my man with these! JK my JK!)

You saw my fishing bag before but our friend took this professional shot of it with JK's new reel.

Below are old oil lamp holders...the white one is in our house and we had no idea why...ashtray? Violet plant holder? We found out they were for oil lamps and some actually have deflectors attached to send the light back into the room. Jerry found the black one for us and I am thinking if nothing else it would be wonderful by the BBQ to hold his beer!    Yesterday he found another really nice one so now we have one for his beer and one for a future violet I hope to have!!                                    

This is an old tailgate with license plates of our years. I may need a bit of rust removal for mine.

This was put in our trash can last week and I think it has great potential!

Antique ornaments like we grew up with on our trees and so fragile!

This is an old hay rake with wooden pegs I will hang small treasures on like my antique ornaments!

                     

I found four of these Waterford glasses for about the price of one! Our cocktails never tasted better!!

dogs on water...

I have come to the conclusion that all dogs deserve to either live on or by water. Gracie cannot wait to get up in the morning and see what has happened around her lake while she slept. She seems to love the way the lake air smells and listening to the loons calling. She runs along the shore to see if anything interesting (or smelly) has washed in. She enjoys walking on our underwater docks with her paws splish splashing all the way. She watches me fish and once she got to see what comes back on my lure its even more exciting. She cries with anticipation as I wind in my line and I am not sure who is more disappointed when it comes up empty. I have had to ask her not to bite my bobber on more than one occasion. She has also learned to watch the sunfish swim around the dock and hangs her toes over the edge to see them better.

Dogs need to swim, bite the water, chase sticks and just have wet fun.

Grace got her first Seadoo ride today and while I think a boat might have been a better place to start, she seemed to like the wind in her hair. We will make a Minnesota lake dog out of her yet!

Gracie chased this RC airplane up and down the shore and reached out here and bit it. AGH!

Lake life and Springfield reunion!

 With views of the lake like this I cant stop inviting all my favorite people over for dinner!

We have truly been enjoying the lake life with the exception of NO BOAT! I begged Jerry to call on a little aluminum boat/trailer/motor for sale. Anything to get me on the water and thru the bridges into all new territory. Unfortunately someone else is riding around in it and I am still yelling at people floating by to please take me with. May have to blow up the yacht some more tomorrow and start paddling.  I am looking forward to a day by the water after being in farm country all weekend!

This is the house that helped raise my man into someone wonderful.

In front of high school!

We just returned from our wonderful weekend in Springfield celebrating my man's 45th reunion. Best part for me was listening to all the classmates stories about how wonderful is was to grow up in their town. I also loved that we rode our bikes all thru town and simply remembered our past visits and he shared his memories with me the outsider.  I was taken back by how everyone knew everyone else and you simply went out your door to hook up with all of your friends. They all worked where they could find a need and most of them were somehow related.
I made new friends and tried to blend as best I could and also give Jerry time to just be a kid from Springfield.
The saddest part of the reunion was listening to all their stories about how alive and active the town use to be and seeing it now. Its a ghost town in comparison with very few stores or businesses struggling to get by. I wonder if in our technological progress we have overlooked the most important factor in raising our families. Being a community and everyone caring about each other and knowing each other's names. I sometimes feel so sad that we can't go back and recapture the essence of our childhoods and families.

I just love this photo of a corn field...its what you see everywhere you look in the midwest. Beautiful and healthy and alive.

We rode our bikes to the airport to see a classmate with an airplane and I couldn't resist this. I am telling you there is a corn field embracing every inch of the town and its wonderful! I love Minnesota and always will.

Three weeks to go!

Row faster mom!

 I thought this month long stay would satisfy our missing the lake life in Alexandria. It has only increased our desire to be here more. I am a bit upset we cannot find a cheap boat to use for the month because I love cruising the chain more than anything.

Loon and her baby!

I finally took Grace for a spin in the inflatable yacht but I am not going to lie...my arms were killing me on the way back! Jerry ran into a friend from home that he grew up with and they graciously invited us for a sunset cruise. Best day ever!

We came home to a dock guest!!

Our summer 'cottage' and yard from the lake. Still cannot believe we 'live' here!

 
We are having a small dinner party tonight with old friends and its a gorgeous day on the lake. Time is flying by and I so wish it would slow down. I went to happy hour and a movie( I highly recommend you see The Help)  with a girlfriend last night. I cannot remember the last time I did that and it was great fun. Driving back to our house thru a very quiet downtown I felt like I had returned home. I do not feel that way anywhere else we return so it really makes me wish for more.
I simply had to include a shot of Buster on vacation. This is his usual spot but he does change windows occasionally. I think he may like it here a bit too much from the relaxed lounging he seems to have embraced!
  

We are not sure where we stand with the La Quinta house. We have never had such a dumb realtor before and its truly taking any joy out of buying this house. Its an endless list of repeated requests and nothing but hassles for us. I dont recommend buying a short sale because they say by the time you get the house you no longer want it. I believe them now. Time for a deep breath and remember to simply enjoy the day!    I think the deck and a cold brew are calling my name!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

here fishy fishy...

This is Grace and me ankle deep at the end of the dock....dressed!

I have not fished since we left Minnesota 12 years ago but the lake has been calling my name so I am back in the game. I caught my first fish within 15 minutes of casting and felt pretty darn excited. There will not be a photo for two reasons...I was in my pjs and the fish was really small.  One of the things I love about being on the lakes here is that you really can fish in your pjs and there is no one around to care.

My man has become weary of me calling "Honey could you help me?" every time a sunny decides to get hooked up with me. So yesterday we went to Fleet Farm (MN man heaven) to find some gloves so I can remove my own damn fish. I am showing you my glove although I have yet to put it to use...I find myself trying to wind up my hook faster than the sunnies swim so that I dont have to touch them.  I don't see much of a future for me in fishing if I dont man up soon.

This is what it looks like in this store aisle after aisle...seriously how do you decide which lure, do-hicky, gadget is going to attract the most fish?!? I find myself wandering aimlessly saying "oh this one is pretty' but I seriously doubt the fish say the same.

On another fish topic...Grace. She had the opportunity to roll where a fish had been laying and loved it. "Wow this smells awesome..I need to smell just like it!"

I do not care how innocent she tries to look she is so busted the moment she enters the room let alone sits on my lap. Good thing I have the really large bottle of dog shampoo because I have a feeling this roll wont be the last. Darn it!  

We are off to ride the rails on our bikes today...they have paved where the train tracks use to be so you can go for miles without dealing with cars or traffic. Sounds perfect to me! Thanks for dropping by.

Honest mom its not me!!

Stillwater and up to Alexandria

We arrived in Minneapolis Sunday afternoon and I had reservations for one of our favorite restaurants on Lake Minnetonka. They have the best walleye dinner and if you are in MN you simply must have walleye whenever possible. It was crazy to see all these huge yachts pulling into the marina to stop and have dinner or play volleyball. It was one of those 80 degree evening and absolutely perfect for enjoying summer.

Monday I asked to go to Stillwater which is a wonderful old town on the St Croix river with a lift bridge into Wisconsin. Did you know there are only 3 lift bridges left in the US? It was very cool to see it rise for a boat while we dined on the patio. I wanted to show you the restaurant because the last time we were there was 20 yrs ago and we were pushing Kyle in a stroller. Memories!

We went strolling thru the town which has numerous antique stores...I know...I dont need anything but I simply melt over old things with character. I FELL in love with this stain glass window and kept returning to look at it again. Isn't it gorgeous?! I am sure you are saying to yourself "Yes Cher it is but what the heck would you do with it?" I kept asking myself the same question and could not come up with an answer so sadly it is still in Stillwater waiting for a home. Boy its pretty...

I did get to come away with a treasure and something I have wanted for quite some time. Jerry found a vintage bamboo fly fishing rod to go with it and we are now perfectly matched.I had to show you a close up because its so darn cute!

We arrived at our lake rental yesterday and we are in heaven. It was built in 1893 and is the most exquisite piece of property on any lake here. We are truly blessed to be here since we found out they have never rented it our before. As I sit here looking out at the lake in every direction I can hear loons calling  and there is nothing better. We have not seen or heard one mosquito since we arrived in Mn so all in all its pretty wonderful.
I feel like my man is hoping I give him permission to walk away from the desert house and just stay and fish and enjoy being on the lakes with friends. It feels like home here for sure. I just cannot imagine how many people will be angry at us if we change course at this time. At what point to you follow your hearts over the logical safe choice that everyone is expecting you to do? We are so confused and frustrated at our timing..I don't expect any of you to understand just sharing whats in my heart and mind at the moment. My man is out fishing in the sunset so off I go to enjoy the evening as well. Thanks for dropping by.

Colorado and baby boys.

A random view of Pearl Street during the day.

 I forgot to mention the torrential rain we ran into going thru the Colorado canyons. We were actually sliding on the road and could barely see ahead of us. Also managed to find a really big rock to chip our windshield just in the same place as our Westy. Sure hope USAA is understanding when we replace two windshields so close together but they are both reason to ticket so whataya going to do?
Our first night we waited for Rande to get done with work and headed down to Boulder for dinner and fun. Have I mentioned just how much we love to visit Boulder/Pearl St? Its just such positive crazy energy and people out enjoying life. Love it. Boulder is definitely on our top 5 list of places we would like to live. I think I could call up my hippy days and blend well enough..not so sure about my man but he would give it a try. We completely enjoyed our time with Rande and hearing about his life and plans. I have not seen him since Nov. and he could not have been nicer.  So fun to see how many friends he runs into as we walked. It was a beautiful evening to stroll Pearl Street and I always leave anxious to return soon. <3

Biker men and their women carrying the big loads!

Kamolz campsite with diligent guard dog posted!

 The next day we  found we were without hot water at the hotel...kind of frustrating but off we went to Timothy and Jammie's campground. We rode bikes, had lunch in the tent/westy while it rained, watched Timothy try to fish and Wolfgang enjoy swimming and again time to catch up. They have so many changes coming up and their plans change daily...hmmm sounds just like his parents! From there we drove to Denver to meet Rande and Meghan and quickly get a bite to eat before Rande was off to work. I was hoping to have my game on to meet a new girlfriend but maybe she didnt notice how scruffy we looked~I asked to take a photo but he said not now as usual so no Meghan to show here. Both boys were working the next day but we decided to stay another day just to regroup. This constant road tripping  is truly wearing us down...but we seem to make the most of each day and get back in the car!                                                                                                                                                          

The next day we just enjoyed Boulder again and spent a couple of hours in McGuckins Hardware Store a true Boulder treasure. If you can't find something in this store you either dont need it or it doesnt exist. My man managed to find some fly fishing gear and a sales person willing to talk and after quite some time he walked out ready to learn how to fly fish. He is pretty darn excited and cant wait to practice when we get to the lakes. Its always a good day when a new passion/hobby walks into your life. I envision us spending our summers in an RV driving from river to river searching for the        perfect spot.  I will add a photo of his new gear when he sets up for some serious fishing.  Personally I really like the cute vests that come with the sport! So many pockets and possibilities!!   Minnesota coming up!