Fish from our Dock

This spring and summer have been quite fruitful when it comes to fishing from our dock.   The pics below are from our catch from the past few days.     When Eric was cleaning the fish, he had a nice captive audience.  :-)

 Not pictured: a very large white bass that Connor had caught. 

While Eric and I were fishing the other evening, he said to me, "this is partially why I'm not in a hurry to get the boat in the lake!"    Touche.  :-)

Class "A's"

It is very rare that Eric wears his "dress blues" (Class A's).   Typically, it's for a new photo for the police department.   In this case, he wore them to a funeral for one of their former colleagues (an older retired gentleman that Eric worked with in his early years on the force).

 Pictured above are the chief, detective sergeant, and the two captains who all worked with the gentleman who passed.   Below is the same motley crew, plus the Chief Deputy at the Sheriff's Dept.

Summer "Boy Time"

Lots of friends and lots of fun here at the lake this summer...     Bridger came to chill with Ramsey for the day (and stayed over night and all the next day) and Connor had buddies out for the afternoon and evening.

 The big boys fished the entire day (with one break to get some grub).   Connor had five different friends out.

 While they fished, the littler guys battled in the yard with their "swords" and used their imaginations, playing "Minecraft", mining for things and fighting Ender Dragons and creepers.

Connor, Jared, and Jason netted a painted turtle and brought it to shore for Ramsey and Bridger.

 Mr. Kitty couldn't resist checking out the turtle too.  Sidenote: Mr. Kitty is getting spoiled by the boys.  They throw him bullheads to snarf.

Our Little Pike

 LONG OVERDUE:  Swimming lessons for Ramsey.   (It's been a little while since we've had a "first" for Ramsey. )
It seems I just couldn't ever find a lesson schedule that didn't have preschool kids coming in on a Tuesday morning at 10:30 or something odd like that (HELLO, some people don't have summers off!!).   I finally did find lessons at the YMCA that fell on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 5:30 (half hour each class).  Bingo!      Starting level:  "Pike"!

Ramsey said he was a little nervous at first, but he was very excited.   His teacher, Ashley, is wonderful!  She's obviously a pro and handles the kids very well.

 Ramsey's #1 rule for lessons: "LISTEN".   Also, "don't act like a squirrel; behave yourself!"  So far, so good.

 Although, he made friends with another little fella (Asher).  They got pretty excited at one time and got a 1-minute time out.  After that, they were great!

 Lessons will continue for about a month.  After that, I will try to find additional lessons for the remainder of the summer.  (Wish me luck!)

 During these early sessions, they're pretty much just playing around; [holding onto the edge while] kicking, splashing, blowing bubbles, and using "big arms" (mimicking swim motions).   Although, at Session #2, they did bob their heads under water, mini-dived for rings (grabbed them while they were sinking), and were using floaties to swim on their backs and tummies.

He's catching on quickly, so he'll be swimming in no time!   Bonus #1: Ramsey and I have both made friends while at lessons.  Bonus #2: He saw about three of his classmates from preschool when he was there (albeit all in different classes).

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to a wonderful Daddy and hubby!  We love you so much!!!

We had an awesome day... the weather was beautiful and we were all in one place; home - together! 

 Most of the day was hanging out, doing some fishing and tinkering and playing in the yard.   That evening, Connor and Eric went fishing off the dock.   They caught some nice walleye, a perch, a few bluegill, a huge catfish (about 27" long), and two huge carp.    Because Eric had purchased a smoker (and smoked up some delicioso jerky the day before), I joked that we needed to keep a few carp to try (as gross as it sounds, I've heard it's quite good!). 

 Needless to say, it looked like a crime scene in the kitchen during the cleaning process.   The electric fillet knife and the regular filet knives would barely penetrate the steel-like scales and ridiculously tough rib bones.

It was quite humorous for sure (unless you were the fish cleaner) but it wasn't very fruitful.  We won't be having smoked carp anytime soon.    We WILL, however, be having a nice catfish and walleye fish fry.   😉

Father's Day Q&A w/Ramsey

1) What is something Daddy always says to you?
"Don't take huge bites!"

2) What makes Daddy happy?
"Not taking big bites."

3) What makes Daddy sad?
"Being a complete hot bull."     (???)

4) How does Daddy make you laugh?
"His jokes!"

5) What was Daddy like as a little boy?
"Like me!  Because I'm friendly and make friends where ever I go."

6) How old is Daddy?
"Um... I don't know!!"

7) How tall is Daddy?
"He is taller than us."

8) What is Daddy's favorite thing to do?
"Just fish with Connor."

9) What does Daddy do when you're not around?
"He takes care of Mr. Kitty."

10) What is Daddy really good at?
"Catching bad guys!"

11) What is Daddy not very good at?
"Running.  He can't run as fast as me!"

12) What does Daddy do for a job?
"Police!!!"

13) What is Daddy's favorite food?
"Cheeseburgers!"

14) What makes you proud of Daddy?
"Daddy does all of this work for me."

15) If Daddy was a movie or cartoon character, who would he be?
"Batman!"

16) What do you and Daddy do together?
"Play inside... Star Wars light sabers."

17) How do you know Daddy loves me?
"Because he is so extra friendly?"

18) What does Daddy like most about Mommy?
"Your mole."     (*sigh*)

19) Where is Dad's favorite place to go?
"Anchors Away"  [restaurant]

20) How old was Daddy when you were born?
"Tell me first!"    Me: "42"   Ramsey: "Oooooh"

21) If Daddy would become famous, what would he be famous for?
"Catching POLICE!  That's funny!!  'Catching Police' is so funny!"

22) How are you and Daddy the same?
"We are both boys."

23) How are you and Daddy different?
"Because Daddy is taller than me."

24) What's your favorite thing to do with Dad?
"Let him watch me playing Minecraft."

25) What's your favorite thing about Daddy?
"I like to play with him!"

Fun with Family

After Ramsey's week of vacation bible school, he left to stay with Nana and Bumpa up north.   He was sooooo excited to stay with them and also to get to see Uncle Troy, Auntie Sarah, and Cousins Sadie & Isaac.   He was also looking forward to seeing the puppies and kitties. 

Eric and I felt a little "off" while he was gone (it was so weird!), but Ramsey was a trooper.   And, he had everyone "all to himself", so he was pretty happy with that.  ;-)

Nana and Bumpa spoiled him rotten, getting all of his favorite foods and treats, taking him to Burger King (where the fun play set is), and hanging out.

He also got to spend time with his cousins, playing in their super fun pool!   Water play + cousins = super happy 5-year-old!

I totally snagged these pics from Sarah.  THANKS SARAH!!!

After five days of being gone, Mr. Ramsicle finally came home.  He's anxiously awaiting the next trip to see everyone... over the 4th of July!

Mr. Kitty

It's quite well-known that we're a bunch of dog-lovers in this household.  Connor and I are both allergic to cats and Eric always grew up with dogs.   Nonetheless, we have soft spots for kitty cats, especially Ramsey (who wants a house cat - and also a baby sister, but that's another story).

Lately, there have been a couple of "neighborhood kitties" that have been hanging around here lately.   We don't know if they belong to anyone, but chances are, they don't have homes.

One orange boy kitty with yellow eyes, in particular, has been hanging around a little more and has let us get close and pet him.   Ramsey fondly named him "Mr. Kitty".

We started giving him a little milk, here and there.  And, now the boys are giving him bullheads that they catch from the dock! 

This cat is never going to leave!  The only way he could have it more well-made is if he got to live inside the house.  ha!     Nice kitty.  :-)    (-Except when he poops in my new landscaping... grr!! lol)

Vacation Bible School 2019

Ramsey's first: Vacation Bible School

The week of June 3rd, Ramsey had his first week of vacation bible school!

Ramsey is pictured just left of center, in the first row of the kids who are standing.

VBS was composed of children from grades Pre-K through 5th, with multiple classrooms for each grade.

The theme this year was "Roar!", with named animals from the African safari posing as learning characters.   Each day, the kids were taught lessons from the bible and how they are applicable to every day life.  I received emails every day that compiled details of what the kids were learning.

And, each day, the kids practiced songs that they would sing in church the following Sunday in front of the congregation.

Above: Sunday singing in church.

Ramsey had a good time, but there were a lot of kids that he didn't know.  I know there were times he felt awkward, but he did see some friendly and familiar faces there too.   He is good at making friends and this was another opportunity to do just that.  :-)

Sidenote: When I was a kid, we had bible school at the same time; first week of June, over my birthday.  I LOVED IT.  Growing up Catholic, sisters from Presentation College came up for the week to teach.  Oh, how I adored them.  It was such a wonderful time!  My hope is that Ramsey has as much fun as I did.  From what I could see, they have many more activities than we did (plus a gym to run around in, a play set outside, etc), so I'm guessing there are more prospects in that area.  :-)

Summertime Fun

We've had some beautiful days on the lake so far.  And, we've had extra company too throughout a number of those days!   Bridger and Emily have been visitors frequently already (happy to have them!)

Of course, Ramsey is in heaven with this crew!

And so is Riggsy, especially with plenty of sticks (branches!) to play with and drag around.

This picture kind of melted my heart.... soooo sweet - Ramsey and Bridger chillin' down by the lake.  I imagine they were discussing the way to solve the world's problems.  Or, more likely, the best way to attack the Ender Dragon in Minecraft.

The weather was quite warm, so what's a hot summer day without swimming?   Ramsey was very diligent about his water duties.

It was hot outside, but the water coming out of the water spigot was SOOO COLD!

After a few pics, the "big kids" went swimming in the lake.  (It didn't dawn on me until much later to check if "swimmer's itch" was raging right now!  Luckily, it was not!)

Connor showed us his mad skills, flipping off the end of the dock!

Ramsey was sad, so I let him put on his life jacket and go swimming with them too.

The "three amigos"... er... hermanos! 

Ramsey decided that there were some make-overs needed.   Connor's hair is longer right now (and rather whacky when he doesn't style it).   Ramsey got out the brush.... and later the gel.

Daddy got a storm trooper mask and a safari hat.  ha!