The fourth of July holiday has to be one of my
favorites. We arrive out at the
cottage a couple days early for a long
weekend. The first few hours are spent
unpacking food and clothing, tidying up the cottage itself, and then assisting
Andy with the cleanup of the yard and lake frontage. We are usually sweaty and dirty when this is
all done, but we don’t mind because its completion signifies the beginning of a
few days of relaxation. This year Lucy
was visiting Abby and Kaleb in Milwaukee for the first few days so we just had
the 3 kids with us until Friday evening.
The kids spend the days swimming, fishing and playing in the
sand. I spend my days watching them enjoy the lake, perusing my Country Living
Magazines, painting my toenails and snapping photos of all of the fun. And Andy tinkers around the house and yard,
takes kayak rides and enjoys fishing.
We took a ride out to the hunting land and explored its
glorious beauty via 4 wheeler. There is
just a serene feeling when you are surrounded by clean air and beautiful green
leaves; the golden sunlight spilling
through the canopy here and there; the fresh smell of the grass and evergreens.
We checked out and inspected the tree stands, picked flowers, picked up
feathers and held on tight around corners and over bumpy terrain.
One evening we piled the kids into the canoe and explored
the lake. The water was like glass and
we glided easily from bay to bay. On the
east end of the lake we noticed a pair of loons in the distance. I told Cassidy that if we got close enough
she needed to look and see what color their eyes were. She was guessing blue, but was hopeful to
have the chance to see firsthand what the answer was.
We were curious about how close we could get (without
disturbing them!). We told the kids to
stop talking and as steadily as we could we paddled our way over, making sure
to stay far enough from the shore where they likely had a nest. It was so peaceful. As we looked to the right wondering where one
of the loons had gone, he surfaced maybe 15 feet away. He sat there quietly taking us in as eagerly
as we enjoyed his beauty. He was so
large; his head jet black and his eyes piercing red. I heard Cassidy very quietly whisper
‘Reeeeeeeeeed eyes!’ A few more times he
dove under and resurfaced around us. He
was not alarmed; it was as if he knew we were taken by his presence and wanted
to show off a little. That sure was a neat experience.
In the evenings if we don’t have a campfire, we watch old
VHS movies (like Dirty Dancing(!) and The Pelican Brief) and enjoy popcorn and
the quiet of the country.
This year it dawned on me how grateful I am that we have this
cottage and for the experiences and memories that my kids get to make
here. It makes me think of the cottage I
grew up visiting in the summers and over the 4th of July, north of
Milwaukee. I have such fond memories of
that place. Grandpa Bodenhagen built it
when my mama was just a baby. Somewhere
there is a picture of her sitting in one of those old fashioned baby buggies in
front of the cottage…. I might need to try to locate that gem. Grandpa would be fishing off the dock- I can
just picture him in his fishing hat holding up a northern, or hear him telling
about the one that got away. Grandma would
be pushing the old fashioned human-powered mower and scaling crappies for
dinner on the picnic table. Uncle Tommy and
Dad would grill hamburgers on the brick oven/grill and my cousins, sister and I
would catch sunfish on cane poles, swim at the neighbor’s dock, and beg Mom or
Aunt Gloria to row us over to ‘turtle pond’ to try to catch painted
turtles. And how could I forget the
highlight of peeing in the double-seater out house?
On the fourth of July we’d head into Campbellsport to see
the parade and fill our bags with candy, then over to the fireman’s park for
fun games (ah- the fishing game!!) and carnival rides.
I am so thankful that we can make similar memories at this
cottage. We started the 4th
this year at the parade in Three Lakes with Abby and Kaleb and the boys, which
happens to have a smaller town feel to it as Campbellsport did. We had an incredible shady spot on the side
street at the very beginning of the parade.
The kids got doused in candy because it seemed that everyone was excited
to be marching and to have a huge bucket-full to throw. We had the family out after we enjoyed the
parade The kids swam, played in the sand and water skied; the adults played a
few games of sand volleyball, ate delicious grilled chicken and summer salads
and watermelon, and enjoyed each other’s
company. By the end of the day we were
sweaty, sandy and tired from the day full of activities.
This was the first year we decided to bring the whole family
to the fireworks. We figured Isaac and
Cass were old enough to handle the loud booms this year. Cass did great! When they began her eyes were a big around as
quarters and her mouth hung open in awe.
I didn’t realize it fully til this moment but she had NEVER been at a
fireworks display before. Isaac did
great too. He fell asleep on the way to
the park, slept through the ENTIRE show and never saw one firework! The most he did was stir during the grand
finale. He must have used every ounce of
energy up that day swimming and running around with his cousins.
It was a great holiday weekend. There is just something about being at the
lake that screams ‘take a load off! Slow down for a bit!’ and then truly being able to do so.
