Platteville Historic Reenactment 2010

This has to be one of my very favorite field trips each year.  Even though we've talked with some of the same people each year, we still learn a ton and all of the kids look forward to it.

A Teenager in the House

Camping with Debbie and Troy Labor Day Weekend

Friday morning we packed up the van with our camping gear and headed to Balsam Lake to Deb and Troys.  We had all talked about heading to the camp ground Friday night, but it was a little rainy and chilly so we stayed the night at their house and we all set out the next morning.  Deb had found out about this great little camp ground  this summer called the Skonewood Christian Retreat.  It's address is Cushing and it is only about 25 minutes from their place.  Totally family friendly.  First of all they do not have a fee--they take only donations which I think is amazing.  To top it off, they provide paddle boats, canoes, and life vest at the beach.  There is a nice little pier for both fishing and swimming.  They even have a huge pile of fire wood available---again totally free for the campers.  The kids had a blast since the campground was fairly small, they had a lot of independence which they thought was great.  Jonah and Nick were able to take out a paddle boat all by themselves and fish a couple of times.  Logan and the other guys preferred to fish from shore.

Even though the temperature was a little cool, they still managed to go swimming both Saturday and Sunday.

Saturday evening we all sat around and watched The Lion, Witch, and the Wardrobe thanks to Grandpa and Grandma's projector. 

I think it got down to the mid forties Sat. night.  We stayed pretty warm in the tent though thanks to MULTIPLE layers.  Poor Bandit woke me up shivering.  I put him close to my sleeping bag and he proceeded to crawl down inside and make himself comfortable.  Problem solved though, he was toasty the rest of the night. 

Saturday we  had a bean bag toss tournament.  Debbie was the unlucky person to draw my name as partner.  But because of her outstanding skills, we managed not to be eliminated the first round.  I bet Nick was sooo please to realized that he didn't have Aunt Paula as a partner.  He and Debbie's friend Peggy won the tournament.

Well Labor Day is over(almost it's still 5:00 on Monday) and I just am not quite ready for summer to be over.  Usually I love the thought of cooler days, leaves changing color, and getting back to more of a scheduled school day.  But for some reason I'm not at that point yet.  Thankfully we'll still see some warm weather so I can pretend that summer vacation is not over just yet.  I think the bike trail is calling our name.

General Science Expermiment #3