Fun Days

Yesterday and the day before were my days off. Saturday afternoon, I went to Melanie's parents' house for lunch and lake activities. Paul and Melanie had all the kids along, plus the entire Pemberton clan came too. It was great to visit with them and get to know them a little better. We played volleyball in the shallow part of the lake with a net strung from the dockside to a metal post in the water. We played frisbee, some people knee boarded, and I wake-boarded. The food was great, the company was fun, and we had a great time in the water. The weather held warm right into evening.

Before we left, I got invited to the Pembertons' version of church for Sunday morning. It was so lovely and was definitely my favorite church I've been to yet. They put chairs on the lawn in the sunshine, Jasmine played guitar, Mathias drummed, and we all sat in a circle and sang together. There was prayer and each person in the group was given a chance to share with the rest of the group whatever was in their heart or on their mind. I left feeling full of happiness and gratitude.

From church, I carried on to an art festival at a local winery. That statement would seem perfectly normal if I were at home in Sonoma County. But what the heck, they have wineries in Minnesota?!?? Yes they do, at least one I know of. It's about 25 miles from Becida and they don't have traditional grape wine, but different fruit wines, mostly berries I think. I didn't try any wine, but I did buy some art and a hot dog. I got a pretty painting of a bluebird and a new set of earrings: two silver star studs and one moon.

Onward I traveled to Walker where the extended Burns clan gathered on Leech Lake to celebrate August birthdays. I know Uncle Ronnie was having a birthday and one or two of the little ones was too. Nathan brought his boat and I wakeboarded for the second day in a row. My spirit thought that was a fabulous idea, but my body isn't too thrilled about it today. It was lots of fun, I ate another hot dog, and also made plans to go to an auction with Aunt Lee and Uncle Ronnie next Saturday. This auction specializes in Amish made goods and I can't wait to see the quilts! Afterward, we're planning to see a car show.


Dustin, Missy and rugrats


Melanie, Lily, and Steph


Mark and Isaac


Rachel in a lake all her own!


Heather the grillmaster


Uncle S.L.


Paul and baby Lily with her very adult looking hair


Me wakeboarding


Nathan tubing


Nathan and Ariana on the tube before they got dunked


Aaaaaand after

We played till sunset and a little beyond and then said good-byes. It was so refreshing to spend two whole days with family and friends.

This morning Nathan Harper (Pemberton in-law) and I worked on my cabin again together. We plumbed the walls, installed the top plate to tie together the wall frame sections, and began sheathing the walls. We got the corner sheath boards in place on the first course before Nathan headed off for a job interview in the early afternoon. I went home for lunch and accidentally took a nap, only to awaken a few hours later to stormy skies. I rushed to the cabin and got everything tarp-covered just before the deluge. Then I went down in the basement to nail up some floor joist bridging I'd been avoiding since I hammered my finger and got a little depressed watching the water shower down into my soggy little beginning of a house. Luckily when I went to town for groceries, Lynea called me and cheered me right up! Despite a little (or a ton) of rain, I really do have remarkable luck in this life.