Just the kids and I

After the weekend, Matt headed back to the cities to work (someone's gotta pay the bills, right?) and the kids and I stayed up at Stormy. We knew we were going to be having friends coming up on Thursday, so it just seemed best for the kids and I to stay up here. I was a bit unsure of how I would do without friends or other people around for 4 days, but it was actually great. The kids and I had so much fun together--no distractions, no schedules--it was truly a gift.

But since I was the only adult around, there weren't many pictures taken. I tried to get as many as I could and Wyatt even took some for me at times.

Face painting...

And skiing....lots of skiing. The kids were huge helpers while Matt was gone and really chipped in, helping make dinner and clean up, helping one another get skis on, etc.

This is one of my favorites---Wyatt helping Sadie get her skis on

And she got up behind the boat for the first time ever on her very first try!! We were all really bummed that Daddy missed it, but Sadie wanted to try it and she did AWESOME! 

She even went outside the wake on her first run!!

We even got a smile!

Sadie showing a few tricks too!

(photo cred:Wyatt)

She went out for a few more runs that night and the sunset was just gorgeous

I was so proud of her--she was nervous at first to be that far away from us out in the lake, but she still tried it and did great! 

One night we drove to Minocqua (about 35 min away) to see their local ski team perform. We have seen the Chain Skimmers, the local Conover team, many times and thought it'd be fun to see what other teams do. It just so happened that on the night we went, the FOX Pro wakeboard team was there--only for one night--and we got to see the best wakeboarders in the world!! My pictures certainly don't do them justice, because of course I only had my phone with me. When I started texting Matt the names of these guys, he texted me back "No way! You are seeing a real professional wakeboard show!"

Pretty cool boat trick from the ski team

Blake's favorite wakeboarder....Rusty 'the bone crusher' Malinowski

Needless to say, this kid now loves the wakeboard! Doesn't that just seem so fitting?

We also did lots of this while we were up there...

Every morning after breakfast I would go for a run around the lake and Wyatt and Sadie would bike and I'd push Blake in the jogging stroller. But Blake is NOT a fan of the stroller and would much rather bike. However, 6 miles at 3 years old would be biting off a bit more than he could chew! So we would often times bike over to Grammy and Papa's cabin to play at their beach or to eat dinner with them (they were around for an extra day after Matt left). It's just over one mile to their place and I could never keep up with the kids. They would take off and I would see terrifying glimpses of Blake flying down a huge hill, yelling in excitement, with both legs flying out to the side as if he were truly flying! Honestly, every single time I just about have a heart attack. But he always makes it (thus far!). I'd say it's time to get the training wheels off!

I love how comfortable my kids are up at Stormy, especially Wyatt. He will often kayak over to Grammy and Papas for his '2nd breakfast' or bike over to see what's going on. And Sadie will join him biking over too. But back at home he's tentative to bike down our street alone. It's very clear that being 'in the city' creates a certain level of anxiety in him that is CLEARLY absent when we are up at Stormy. And it's such a blessing....to see him go out into the woods with his BB gun to shoot a squirrel or kayak across the lake or just spend an hour or two whittling sticks with his pocket knife...it's definitely a gift to be able to let him explore out in nature without fear. It seems, especially for boys, that being in nature is healthy--even essential--to give them space to think, dream, imagine and solve problems independently. And clearly for Wyatt, it's been such a great thing! There is a side of him that seems to only come through when we are up there--and it's been good for me to let him do those things without feeling like I have to watch over every move. I've trusted Matt that it's best for him to try these new things on his own--this is how boys grow up and learn to be men--one step at a time. 

One final note from our week up there without Matt. When we bought the place, we thought we might follow in the footsteps of many people we know who have cabins and have the kids and I stay up there for much of the summer and Matt would drive back and forth. However, after one week without Matt (even in a beautiful place like Stormy Lake), we realized we are not that kind of couple. We honestly enjoy one another's company too much to be apart for that long. And we make a great team together--without him here, it's like half of my team is gone and I don't like it. We each pick up where the other person leaves off and we have our 'roles'--I make dinner and Matt cleans up. He empties the dishwasher at night so it's clear in the morning...he gets the coffee ready at night so all I have to do is hit a button. He backs me up on disciplining the kids and vice versa. So without him here, I had to do it all by myself. And none of these things are difficult to do, but I realized how much Matt does around our house to help out and how much I missed not only his help but also him. Nights were lonely for both of us--Matt especially didn't like being in our house alone--it was just to quiet for him. And our kids are at such fun ages to do stuff together as a family. So although we had fun without him, it's definitely much more fun when he's around. And I'll take a little bit less time at Stormy Lake any day over looking forward to time away from my husband!