bridge jumpers at lake of the isles

probably wasn't a good thing for natalie to be watching...

or you could play it safe and just kayak.

fish tacos

this is a super easy, super delicious dinner! i have not done anything interesting in a long time so this is fun to share. and since it's so easy, i almost feel embarrassed! but i'm happy so i'm posting!
*we used three thawed cod filets from a frozen bag from costco. seasoned them with dry herbs, breadcrumbs and a splash of hot sauce. baked on 400 for 11 minutes. meanwhile, pull the rest of ingredients out of the fridge or pantry and get your can opener.
*heat the tortilla in a sautee pan, top with black beans, sprinkle of shredded mexican cheese, cod, corn, salsa and coleslaw. i'd use avocado if i had it. there was enough for leftovers and it's equally yummy the next go round. chips and salsa if you want/have and you're done!

silly sayings

*"can you babysit the baby while i go to halloween?"
*natalie was playing dress up out of my closet and i asked her to put my shoes back neatly. she said, "neatly? not perfectly?"
*"my pee is black! just kidding!"
*while i was cutting her nails, "after you finish, i'm going to scratch you."
*"thumbs are so you can do a lot of nail polish."
*"i'm being still. i'm just blinking my eyes."
*"i'm spreading my piggies (toes) just in case you want to paint them."
*"socks are better than tennis shoes because tennis shoes are tricky."
*i had an appointment and i told natalie she could bring some quiet toys. she grabbed her microphone and baseball bat.
*"i don't like almonds but i'll like them when i grow up." (and she says AL-munds not ALL-munds.)
*"i'm going to be four years old on my next birthday! how did that happen?" seriously!! how did it?!
*"mommy, do you feel well?"
   "yes."
   "you do? you do? you do? you do? your face looks like a strawberry."
*"i want to give daddy a hug and a kiss before he goes to work!" she runs to him and does and then runs back to me and says, "that was a good one!"
*natalie: "me, you and tinsley are the best. but daddy's not."
  me: "yes, he is natalie."
  natalie: "NO, he's the precious!"
*"don't help me. see, i'm a big girl. i can do lots of things ALLLL BYYYY MYYYYSELF!"
*me: are you excited to go to your class today?
nat: yeah.
me: i think you're really going to like it.
nat: i hope so.

self hair cut

you may have noticed in earlier pictures but natalie cut her own hair.

her bangs. (only!)

a perfect swide swept bang.

how stylish is she?!

i waited about a week before i barely shaped it up so it wasn't so blunt.

i think it's so gol-dang hilarious and every-kid-does-it and perfect all at the same time!

and i smile everytime i see it!

she knows it's naughty though and that she's not supposed to do it again...

however, i feel a "to be continued" coming on...

wisconsin vacation

last year we started a tradition of joining the navarro, bracker and janopolous families for a week's vacation in wisconsin. last year we rented a lakehouse in lake geneva and this summer it was castle rock, about 30 minutes from the dells. after boarding tinsley, we started our roadtrip and stopped off in chippewa falls at the leinenkugal's brewery where we got a free tour and samples.

i love me some summer shandy! p.s. you can combine summer shandy and berry weiss to create a pink lemonade! i tried that combo as one of my samples.

this block of cheese represents how many fried cheese curds we ate that week!

fish fry at the buckhorn!

too bad they were actually sold out of walleye and most of us got pierogies for dinner.

even strawberry pierogies for dessert!

and then back to the house for rock band!

cards with uncle chuck

the lake out our backyard was gorgeous!

looks like the karate kid move. i love the ripples.

our backyard

plenty of room for bags!

 

crazy mushroom!

mmmm perfection = sunshine + magazine + margarita!

the girls doing yoga!

lisa, thanks for the private session. too bad it didn't happen more often!

namaste.

boys doing dishes! woohoo!

antler natalie

lots of arts and crafting

a day in the vacation life

JR made me the best s'more!

an improvement since last year:

the dirty turtle

JR was cracking us up with his cartwheels....

and toe touches! ha ha

some of us drove to the dells and went to noah's ark water park.

then we met the rest of the crew "in town."

**natalie just looked at this picture and after naming each of them said, "i love all those people."

uncle chuck was natalie's candy hero!

did you know that jelly bellies has a margarita flavor?!

appetizers on the riverfront

our drive back to the lakehouse

pulling over to look at the hawk's nest

every meal was delicious! i'm telling you - the only way to vacation is with italians (and a navarro!)

including my personal favorite: egg and pepper sandwiches!

chuck and john took the girls fishing and megan caught two fish!

you go girl!

we spent our last night at the juneau county fair! anyone been on the tilt o' whirl lately?! so fun!

these goats jumped out of their pens and enjoyed a little rendezvous with the goats across the way. i thought it was hilarious and would have loved to see an escape for them all but they were corralled just after this picture!

so precious! i feel like they should be in a nativity scene.

sorry buddy, we just saw your cousin in the smoker at the buckhorn :(

this young man took a break from shearing to talk on his cell phone.

phones in farms...times have changed!

these guys asked if i was from the newspaper and wanted their picture taken.

fried oreo! it was sooooo good! natalie was saying, "eat this, camera!" and so i did! i think juneau was just scratching the surface of our fair experiences. minnesota state fair starts on thursday so stay tuned!

thanks everyone for a wonderful vacation!

my only complaint: too short!