APPLEFEST 2008

The first weekend in October is a Lindau family tradition. This was our 15th year taking in the sights, sounds and smells of Apple Festival in Bayfield. We began going the year before Logan was born and (eeek!) now he is in high school. 

Our trip begins on Friday with a 6 hour drive from Janesville to Bayfield and a warm, relaxing stay in (Als' Aunt and Uncle) Shirl & Hans' loft. Saturday we head downtown for shopping and family pictures on the pier. My first purchase each year is an Applefest coffee mug from Eckles'. (I have 12 of them in my classroom.)We eat every variety of apple you can imagine in every form you can imagine, from carmel apples and apple pie, to apple sundaes, apple chai and even the infamous 'Apple Orgasm!' In the evening we watch all the college football games and this year rooted for the ill-fated Cubs, White Sox, and Brewers as well. 

Sunday we head off to the orchards to climb in trees and pick apples. We bought apples and apple cider donuts at Erickson's and two cases of wine from Hausers'.  We returned to downtown for some last minute shopping and to get our usual seats to watch the big Apple Fest parade. 

After the parade, we head back up to Hans & Shirl's place, and enjoy some delicious chicken and dumpling soup (and one more apple dumpling) before starting our trip back home and counting the days until we return. 

Football Season

    

This is Grayson's second year playing football with Janesville's Youth Football League. He couldn't wait to get back on the field. He was a bit uneasy though, when he found out he had been drafted by the Vikings. Not sure if he was more concerned that he would be playing for the Packers' NFC North rival, or if it was because he would be wearing purple! 

He has played a few different positions during practice, but for now he's playing center while he's on offense and either linebacker or defensive end on defense. 

The Vikings had a four-team scrimmage, providing an opportunity to see some of their competition as well as providing some idea of how the guys will respond in a 'game time' situation. 

Their first game was against the Lions. The Lions' players were much bigger than the Vikings and Bumpa said it looked like a 'Father - Son' game. There was one constant throughout the game...rain. We called it the 'Gustov Game.' (The remnants of Hurricane Gustov had made their way up north.) The field was like a swamp. The ball was wet, the boys were soaked, there were frequent fumbles and dozens of dropped balls. The Lions capitalized on a Vikings fumble and scored, but did not make their extra point attempt. Eventually, the Vikings ran for a touchdown and their extra point attempt was GOOD! That made the difference in the final score. Vikings 7, Lions 6. Mark down that purple "W!"

The second game was against the Cardinals. They, too, were BIG. They had two guys that were about 5' 9". This is 6th & 7th grade! One of the Cardinal dad's bragged that their team had scored four touchdowns in the first half of their first game. The Vikings worked their way down the field in the first quarter and scored, twice! Then, time after time, the defense stopped the Cardinals from scoring. They did it! The Vikings scored again in the fourth quarter and were very happy when time ran out and the refs blew the whistles, GAME OVER! Vikings 18, Cardinals 0! Mark down that purple "W!"

The Vikings third game was against the Saints. The Vikings recovered two fumbles in the game and intercepted a pass in the first half which led to the Vikings lone touchdown. A forced fumble on a Saints fourth-and-eight at the 10-yard line with 34 seconds to go sealed the third win for the Vikings. Vikings 6, Saints 0.

The next game was against the Eagles. The Vikings scored a passing touchdown (Plutchak to Reynolds), but missed their extra point. The Eagles eventually scored and converted. That was the difference in the game. Saints 7, Vikings 6. The Vikings suffered their first loss and DID NOT like the feeling.

The Vikings came back BIG against the Bears two days later. The Vikings scored twice in the first half and once again in the second have, while giving up a touchdown late in the game. When the whistle blew the score was Vikings 19, Bears 6. 

The Vikings entered their game with the Buccaneers with a record of 5-1. They knew the Bucs were a big, tough team. Again, the Vikings defense came up big and held the Bucs from scoring at the end of the game. Vikings 12, Buccaneers 9. Vikings move to a record of 6-1!

Then came the Redskins. They handed the Vikings their second loss 18-8 making their record for the season 6-2. 

Cut the Mustard, Whiskey!

Al remembers a childhood neighbor (called 'Dirty Ernie') who encouraged his dog to run around and chase his tail by saying, "Cut the mustard, Whiskey!" Over the years, the saying has stuck and the kids always yell, "Cut the mustard, Whiskey!" to the boat driver when they're ready to GO! 

Logan and Grayson pound the water every chance they get. Whether it's skiing, tubing, wakeboarding or kneeboarding, they're always asking for their runs to be longer, faster and full of bigger waves! At the end of a long, bumpy run on the tube, we head back towards the dock with the boys yelling, "AGAIN! AGAIN!"

                                            

Dog Days of Summer

Lanci and Luke will go through a month of depression when we return home from the lake. They have as much fun (and relaxation) at the lake as we do. 

When the boys are down playing in the lake, the dogs sit on the deck with sad puppy dog faces, longing to be down there with them. 

When only one dog is down in the water, the other one sits up on the deck and 'cries.' 

When one of the boys calls to let them out of the house, they get so excited they nearly break through the screen doors. Once the door is opened, all we can see is one brownish-orange and one black STREAK bolting toward the lake. 

They love the water; dunking their heads under water to find big rocks, chasing the boys, swimming behind the paddle boat, and (their favorite thing) walking over to 'say Hello' to Gama (who is quietly reading & sunbathing) then proceding to shake sand and water off ALL OVER HER. 

4th of July in DC

I had the opportunity to teach at Gallaudet in D.C. again this summer. Toward the end of my stay, mom and the boys flew out to spend the Fourth of July weekend with me. Al surprised us by flying out too. 

When mom and the boys arrived, we drove straight to Gravelly Park to see the airplanes fly overhead. They were so close, it felt like we could reach out and touch them. 

We spent the morning of the 4th at Mount Vernon (15 miles outside of D.C. up the Potomac River, just south of Alexandria, Virginia) where we gained a new respect for George Washington's brilliance and humility. It was hard to believe we were standing in the same home, on the same land, where the our first President (who preferred to be remembered as a farmer) was born, lived and died. 

We returned to D.C., made our way downtown where we 'copped a squat,' on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, and waited for HOURS to see the fireworks (it rained at least three times). At last, we cheered and "Ooo"ed and "Ahh"ed as the bright, booming blasts lit up the sky above the Washington Monument. 

We had a rental card for the weekend, but we had fun using the great D.C. Metro (rail) as well. We visited all the typical tourist attractions, the White House, the Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials, the Vietnam 'Wall', the National Cathedral, and Arlington National Cemetery. There was so much to see and learn at Arlington. I've been twice now and I'd still love to go back. While the fact that Arlington is an active cemetery (holding 25-30 funerals everyday) is humbling, the land and the lore still hold so much wonder. 

On Sunday, mom and I got up early to shop at the famous Easter Market (est. 1873) and Georgetown while Al took the boys to the National Air and Space Museum and the Smithsonian Folk Life Festival. The boys said they could have stayed in the Air & Space Museum all day. 

Our celebrated our last evening together with a big meal Washington D.C.'s award winning Legal Seafood in Chinatown. Logan and Grayson both ordered Alaskan King Crab Legs and savored every bite. By the time we got back to the Carlin Hall (Gally dorm) each evening, we were pooped! We packed everything we could into the long weekend and will treaure our memories of the Fourth of July in our nations capital. 

The Fisherman

Logan has always enjoyed fishing. Last summer, the day he had been waiting for finally arrived. He was able to remove the inches of dust covering his great-grandfather's 1962 5 & 1/2 horse motor and drive his own boat. His interest in fishing progressed to a new level that day. He has since had some of his fish mounted (ick) and has learned the 'clean' them by himself (eww). He can sit in his aluminum boat and fish for HOURS! We know Grandpa Lindau is smiling. 

July at the Lake

Welcome! 

This is Sand Lake at about 8:30 pm. The little waves are from Logan's boat returning after an evening of fishing. On the deck of the lakehouse, there is a wooden plaque that reads,  

'If you're lucky enough to live at the lake, 

you're lucky enough!'  

That about sums it up for us in the summer. 

Much more to come!