Warm Lake

We had a nice couple of days at my sister's lakeside cabin. The weather was cold and rainy, but didn't slow the kids down much. Ben loved going out in the kayak. He gave rides to all the littler kids. One day it rained every time he went outside, and stopped raining every time he went back inside. We told him he could make some money as a rainmaker someplace that has a drought. Natalie enjoyed kayaking with Jolie, and fishing with Connor. She caught 2 or 3 fish, Connor caught a couple, and Ben caught one. Olivia was happy to play with her cousin Hallee. It was a bit of work to keep Logan out of the fire, off the stairs, etc. but he had fun, too. Thank you Karen for inviting us!

Natalie braving a rainy day to catch a fish...

...and then proudly displaying her catch!

Ben giving Olivia a kayak ride on the beautiful lake. He wants to buy a kayak now.

Logan & Tyson watching birds & squirrels. The girls put leftover pancakes on the windowsill and they would come right to the window to eat.

Some of the kids playing games in the cabin.

We had lots of fun at the cabin! It was a great start to our summer.

Yummy Strawberry Jam!

Strawberry freezer jam is the BEST!!!!! I vowed a few years ago to never buy store-bought jam again. That stuff is awful. It is NOTHING in comparison to real homemade jam. And of all of them, strawberry freezer jam is the BEST!

To make a batch of jam, about 7 cups worth, you need about 2 lbs of strawberries, a box of MCP pectin, 1/4 cup of lemon juice, a cup of corn syrup, and 4 cups of sugar. Follow the directions in the box of pectin for quick freezer jam (uncooked.) Basically you clean and mash the berries, stir in the lemon juice & pectin, let sit for half an hour (stirring occasionally), then stir in the corn syrup and sugar. Put it into freezer containers (I use gladware containers) and there you have it. About as easy as it can be, and once you taste it you will NEVER be able to choke down Smucker's again.

Memo to self: MCP pectin and Sure-Jell pectin boxes look identical and cost the same. However, Sure-Jell requires about twice as much sugar per the same amount of fruit. Make sure to get the MCP. (I accidentally got a bunch of Sure-Jell last year when couponing, and am donating it all.)

I didn't take a picture of my jam before I stashed it in the freezer, so here's a picture I stole off the internet. You can almost taste the yumminess through the screen!

Camping!

Almost every year, we go camping over the Memorial Day weekend. We didn't go last year because I didn't want to take a newborn, so the kids were chomping at the bit to go this year. But it's been raining. And raining. And cold. And windy. And raining. And raining. So we weren't sure if we'd go or not. There was enough of a break in the weather, that we went ahead and did it. And it was great! A little chilly, a few light showers here and there, but the kind that blows over in 10 minutes. The kids had a great time with their cousins, we enjoyed having a borrowed camper for the first time ever (instead of our tent), we saw a deer, a wild turkey, a rabbit, and on the way home I saw an owl and a hawk (or eagle, not sure) swoop down and grab something at the side of the road. Fun, fun! Here's a few random pictures.

Our family May 2010

Kids & cousins having fun on the gate.

Logan was DONE with hiking!

Ben with his BB gun

Natalie & Olivia with cousin Hallee on the bridge

Who needs the great outdoors? Kids & cousins playing games in the camper.