A little family time

Before our next round of visitors came, we had a day to ourselves--just the five of us--and it was wonderful! It was quite chilly and the water was even cooler since it had been chilly for several days, so we opted for a fishing excursion.

This is how the boys prepare....

..while Sadie sits with Matt and asks him every question she can think of while he gets all the poles ready.

Matt showing Wyatt how to start the motor and how to steer it

...Wyatt taking the reigns

Watching Matt put the leeches on the hook was quite interesting to Blake

As I have said in the past, Stormy Lake isn't exactly a fishing lake. But we saw that as a great challenge and learning opportunity for the kids (the only reason I did it because I have a strong dislike for fishing--I get bored too quickly!). And we did wait...and wait...and wait....and then Sadie's pole got a nibble...and the boys quickly grabbed the net while Matt helped Sadie reel it in.

There it is--the first fish caught on our first family fishing outing on the lake. The kids were pretty grossed out by the blood, which is pretty normal I suppose.

But then there is Sadie who likes to play with the leeches....this isn't a great pic of Sadie but notice the leech hanging off her thumb? She likes to hold the leeches and let them suck on her fingers (not long enough to draw blood, of course)....have I mentioned the maternal instinct this precious girl has?!

I love this picture---my four favorite people in the world on a gorgeous lake (check out the color of the water) on a beautiful blue-sky day! (no filters or editing to this pic--aMaZiNg right?!)

This is Blake's signature pose for pictures these days....usually with a peace sign or a hand gesture similar to this one!

Cheesy? Maybe--but I love the pictures of reflections in sunglasses

After lunch, Matt and the kids decided to do some fishing off the dock and miraculously caught this bass---which we believe must be the largest one in the entire lake! Wyatt and the Statema boys spent so much time trying to catch something--anything--off the dock, so Wyatt was ecstatic when they caught this one! (life lessons to be learned: perseverance, patience, and being quiet so as not to scare those fish! Thankful Matt is willing to teach them these things because I clearly haven't mastered them yet!)

(Disclaimer: out of focus)

The kids loved looking inside the fish's mouth and seeing all the parts of the fish

It was a wonderful day that gave us a chance to regroup before the Sullivans arrived---and we were so ready for them to come--especially Sadie who had been waiting for her friend to come after a summer of lots of boys!