Summer Solstice 2012

As we celebrated Summer Solstice it was a perfect sunny day, kissed by a light breeze as it swayed through the fields of tall grass surrounding our home. The wildflowers were all bursting heavenward in multitude and beauty as their new life that had sprouted in early spring is finally coming into its fullest :)

And just in time to!

We picked clover, buttercups and daisies to decorate our sun shaped solstice cake with.

The children enjoyed cooking hotdogs over hot embers as the fire burned low...

and warming toes chilled by running through damp grass that wasn't quite dry from the wet days before.

No one really wanted to wreck our cake by cutting into it but you know that didn't last long *grin*. I think a few even had seconds and perhaps thirds LOL.

But all the extra energy was quickly burned off by having a snowball fight in June. Oh how I love the fluffy ball shaped clusters of flowers that my snowball tree provides and they really do make for a fun summer snowball fight :)

 

As the sun finally dipped below the mountain range, streaking the sky with pinks and purples, we waited for the darkness to come so we could stoke up our fire and sit in its glow...

keeping warm, roasting marshmallows and setting our sticks aglow :)

Hugs,

Rosina

First Camping Trip of the Season

We finally got to go on our very first camping trip of the year :)
One of my good friends that we get together with quite a bit also homeschools so we thought it would be great if we could arrange to go camping together just before the long weekend this week.

So Hubby asked for a few days off about a month ago and on Monday we packed up, hooked on our travel trailer and hit the back roads. One of the perks to homeschooling is camping during the week! Gotta love getting a great campsite while everyone else is working or in school *grin*.

It must have been just about dinner time by the time we made it out to our destination, Loveland Bay. The sun was starting to set behind the mountains and we took a few laps around the campground trying to decide which spots would be the best for us. Originally we thought one of the double sites would be great but by the time we pulled our trailer in beside one of the picnic tables we realized that our friend's trailer and awning would then be right behind the backside of ours and they wouldn't have access to their picnic table because of how they have those sites set up with the tables around the perimeter. So out we pulled again and settled on two single sites side by side :) We had never been here before and since we had never camped with them before we wanted to make sure that we got a spot that they would be able to enjoy just as much as us. Plus we went a day before they were due to arrive so we had to make all of the decisions on our own :)

The kids were so excited when they could finally bail out of the truck and the first place they raced off to was the water. The wind was blowing and it was cloudy so they looked on from the water's edge hoping that maybe the next day it would be nice enough to venture in!

Oh was it nice to sit around the blazing campfire when the sun went down. Normally we head north for our first trip and it is so cold that you nearly want to sit on the fire to keep warm so this was a nice change... chilly but enjoyable with the toasty warmth :)

To our surprise the next morning was sunny and every morning after that!!

This was the view that greeted my each morning as I dragged my chair to the beach where I could sip my coffee and read a book :)

When the other children arrived on Tuesday the fun really began for the kids and the boys started making a raft.

Even though the water was chilly no one could keep out. Check out the socks! LOL

There were a few trial versions of the raft and finally they had one that they could both stand on and it didn't sink or fall apart *grin*.

Of course every raft has to have a flag so an old pair of skivvies were found and proudly hoisted up on the stick LOL. Oh my goodness was it funny to watch them!

Our friends had brought along a canoe and the youngest two couldn't get enough of it. Her husband was so great about it and took them around the lake quite a few times and I think we're definitely going to have to get one :)



It was a great week with good friends, good food and good times :) We're definitely going to have to do this again!

Happy Weekend!
Rosina

Weenie Roast

The weather has been absolutely beautiful here for the last couple of days and perfect timing to for our bonfire and weenie roast :)

My dad has been burning giant piles of brush for the last week but they were so big and hot that we could only enjoy watching them burn but couldn't get close enough to stand and roast hotdogs without roasting ourselves to *grin*. So we waited until there was a nice little fire so that my little guy could enjoy it to without me having to worry he'd fall in. He's a bit of a handful so small is better for him LOL.

K was in charge of making spears for us with his new pocket knife and everyone was excited to get roasting.

My mom and I happily sat watching them with a nice glass of vino :) I'm not sure if wine actually goes with hotdogs but my glass sure looked nice sitting on a round of firewood amongst the ferns *grin*.

The firewood made pretty good chairs to...

but somewhere during roasting hotdogs and sitting down the girly managed to plant her behind in a big pile of soot! I'm not even sure where she found it but if there is something super dirty my kids will find it :)

Of course our little party wouldn't be complete without the sweet treat of marshmallows....

which led to flame control...

and some darn good s'mores :)



I could have spent the entire day down in the field with the forest as my backdrop and listened to the snap crackle of the fire as the kids added more twigs everytime they passed by :) So lovely.

Hugs,
Rosina

Peer Pressure

I can't believe it but I caved in to the peer pressure..... I bought hotdogs *grin*

My dad has been building up a giant pile of brush with all of the hedgings and tree limbs he's been collecting so that we can have a giant bonfire. Of course if one plans to have a bonfire then there just has to be weiners involved! We only have hotdogs once maybe twice a year if the kids are lucky and you should have seen the surprise on their faces when I tossed a package into the cart today. Even hubby had to give me a ribbing about caving in to my dad when I never let him have any LOL.

I'm actually looking forward to the fire, roasting marshmallows and making s'mores :) Mmm, so sweet and yummy! I love watching the kids try and keep from turning theirs into little charcoal blobs and ending up with marshmallow from one end of their bodies to the other. Okay, well maybe not the marshmallows stuck in their hair part *grin* but the joy it brings them from the simple act of a marshmallow on the end of a fresh alder stick cut straight off the tree :)

Spring is so much fun!

Hugs,
Rosina

A Weenie Roast

With all of the mild weather that we have been experiencing and absolute lack of any sort of snow or freezing it has made it perfect for doing some grounds maintenance around our property. My dad is seriously the happiest while he's outdoors doing something strenuous so he's been chopping firewood for us and cleaning up all of the brush and blown down bits in the lower fields. Of course you've got to do something with all of it once it's heaped up so we had a bonfire today :)

The kids just love when he burns and my oldest headed out first thing in the morning to help prepare. The rest of us wandered out around lunch with our sack of wieners, buns and drinks. I must admit that I hate to buy hot dogs so when I do there is a pretty big hub bub about it and it added to the excitement of the day *grin*.

After all of the mom anxiety finally calmed as I watched my youngest so lovingly referred to as my 'wild child' run off wielding a pointy stick with a drooping weenie hanging off of it, and I prayed that he didn't trip on a stick and land himself in the fire things went really well *grin*.

Mmm, mmm. Nothing like a charred weenie slapped between some bunage! LOL

~ Rosina