Peter Pan - July 1st

The Prairie Fire plays have begun! While Rick was taking a class at the U all week, and I was trying to finish some research before my graduate research assistant's funding ran out, Nora participated in her first of 4 plays this summer. She was one of the lost children and had a several lines - none of which I managed to get on video. Hopefully we'll get some at play #2 - Beauty and the Beast.

Boarder Nora displays her birthday gift from Dad

Wedding weekend #1 followed - June 25th

Sorry no pictures of us from my niece Sara's wedding. But there are some beautiful photos of the happy couple on her photographer's Facebook page.

http://www.katielewisphotography.com/blog/?p=3006 

Gramma Jo's Farm - June 18th

Well, we've been a few places since Lake Pepin. 

The weekend after Marti's birthday dinner we hit Gramma Jo's farm, which usually includes such activities as feeding calves,

 

a ride on Grandpa Tom's pontoon boat,

some delicious food - here we have strawberry-rhubarb pie straight from my garden,

and an animal adventure (Unfortunately we didn't get a picture of the really BIG black bear we saw waddling crossing a field toward the highway a few miles before we got to the farm. He came all the up to the side of the road, stood on his hind legs to look over some bushes at us, and then ran back to the woods - who knew we were the scarey ones!)

Here we have one of the turtles that came from the Jump River below the barn up to the gravel driveway to lay her eggs. We saw a turtle doing this each day.

I hope turtles don't care too much about privacy!

Lake Pepin - June 11th

This weekend we went to Pepin, WI to meet up with Marti and some friends from the Cities to celebrate Mard's 60th (don't get me started). Though we don't have pictures of the dinner, we have a few shots from our other stops.

Here, we visit to the reconstruction of the little house in the big woods where Laura Ingalls Wilder was born. We just finished all the books about Laura, and are now reading "Farmer Boy" to round out the series. Notice Naura and Klarrie up in their sleeping loft!

We also went to the Renaissance Faire in Chippewa Falls since some friends from MSU were performing there.

 Here is Nora playing with the fairies.

 Klara gets a ride in a swan swing with her friend Bridget. Bridget and her sister Clare are the children of the friends who perform. They get the run of the place every weekend.

Aunt Marti with two fair maidens.

Fancy Pants

Carlene sent hand-me-downs from Kirsten and Erika's dress-up bin. Here are the girls on parade. Note Grandma Peachie Pie's silver shoes on the leggy one.

Birthday Party

For Nora's birthday, she had 5 friends come to a sleepover last night after the last day of school. They wanted to sleep in the playhouse but after too many ghost stories they all piled into the girls room. Luckily Klara was sleeping over at another friend's house so she wasn't disturbed.

Note the candles that were many long skinny ones that melted into one long wide flat one when left in the car on that 103 degree day!