Fall Weekends

My Aunts and Cousins (maybe a quarter of them... there are lots more that didn't come!)

A couple of weekends ago my Aunt held her annual 'Soup Off'. We all go to her house with our best pot of soup and compete for the soup ladle trophy! No, I didn't win. I did get second place!! I made a green chicken tortilla soup.

I did win the football kicking contest!! Yup, that's right I kicked the football the farthest for the girls!! Thanks to Mr. Kelcheski, our 8th grade Ph. Ed. teacher, who spent weeks on teaching us how to properly punt a football. Looks like I still got it! : )

I won myself some very yummy cut-out cookies.

Uncle Tom won for the guys.

My Aunt & Uncle also set up a 'station' for practicing your gun shot. The guys got real excited about this! They did get real competitive over the football kicking... but I am afraid some of them may have limped into work on Monday from pulling a muscle. I took my turn at the target... and well... I missed! I hit her garden fence instead of the target! Oops! Good thing I wasn't the only one... my sister hit it too!! (My Mom will probably have pictures of us shooting the guns on her site. She might even show you the garden fence with the proof that we hit it!)

This past weekend my Sister, Niece, Mom, and I went to a corn maze for the day. It was so much fun. Elly loved it! We decided to do the kid maze because the other was very muddy and the workers told us that 2 girls lost their shoes in it... it was that sticky, suctiony mud. The kid maze was less traveled which meant less mud!

It was like a scavenger hunt in the maze for Elly. She had to find all these items that had to do with nursery rhymes. She loved it!

We went on a hay wagon ride to see this big round barn. It was pretty neat. The want to fix the barn up and hold parties/weddings in it.

They had big round hay bails set up in a maze that the little kids to do on their own and Elly thought that was coolest thing ever! She couldn't get enough of them. Even when it was time to leave she cried because she wanted to play in the maze. What are aunties for??? I grabbed her hand and took off running for the maze and said "Come on El we can do this one more time!" As we are running she is giggling and then stops half way to the maze and looks back at her Mom and Grandma and isn't quite sure what she should do... follow Tia and have fun - or - go back to Mom. I won!! She turned around and ran back to the maze for one last time. Giggling the whole way! Hey, she got in the truck with out crying and pouting... I think I did a good thing!

After that we found our way to Applebees and a few stores. It was a great day for us girls!

Fish, Paint, and Dirt

This past weekend we headed back to our parents house for a little visit. Friday night we arrived at Jesse's brother's house [Jerry]. We went to a local corn maize...which was pretty fun. Then finished the night off with an Oktoberfest in Little Chicago. Oh what a treat! We weren't there more then 5 minutes and I already had a drunk guy coming up to me asking me if I knew how to dance. I told him no, which wasn't a lie! He didn't believe me and told me that he could teach me. Oh goodie! He wanted me to dance to Polka music!! We didn't stay long.

Saturday Jesse and I had my little niece for the afternoon. We took her to Jesse's parents pond to splash around. It was in the 80s with very high humidity... so the pond was refreshing to splash around in. Elly was insistent that I go and look in the bag that her mom packed her to see if her swim suit was in there. It wasn't!! That water wasn't that warm!

Jesse and Elly went fishing in the pond. All they had to do was stick a fishing pole with a hook in the water and the fish would bite at it! You didn't even need bait!! She thought that was pretty cool. Although we kind of gave her the wrong impression about fishing... usually you wait for hours for a bite... not 30 seconds.

My cousin, Shawna, and her family showed up to Jesse's house for a little bit. Her oldest son, Josh, spotted Jesse's dirt bike in the back of our truck. At first I tried to tell him it was my bike, but he was too smart... he wanted to see me ride it. Um....

Before they could leave they wanted to hear Jesse's bike! Jesse unloaded his bike and did a few tricks for the kids... wheelies. The boys went nuts! They thought that was the coolest thing and they thought he was Evil Kenevil!!

Saturday night we made our way back out to Jerry's house. I finished painting his garage for him!! Okay, I helped - I painted the last coat on all but 1 wall!!

On Sunday we were at my parents house. I was able to talk my Dad into letting me take his 4-wheeler out to the hunting shack. When I say "talk my Dad into" I really mean I had to do some talking!! He just got done washing it when I decided I wanted to go out to the woods... and he wasn't too excited about letting me get it dirty again... but isn't that what wheelers are for??

Jesse rode his bike and I followed behind on the 4-wheeler. Following this guy out to the woods was insane. We had take the road for about 3 miles before we got to the woods and he was doing wheelies the whole way there!!! Then he started fish-tailing around on the road... crazy stuff!! I was getting kind of nervous... yes, he wore his helmet but still!!

Before we left the hunting shack Jesse wanted to practice a few more wheelies... so he went up and down the drive way while I tried to get a picture.

And that was our weekend!! Enjoy the pictures below!

High Cliff Park

This is Lake Winnebago right outside of Appleton. It is the third largest fresh water lake in the states. I think it is 30 miles wide. It is huge! As far as you can see is water... but it isn't the ocean.

The leaves are already starting to change over here. You have to love the beginning of fall.

This is a tower that you can climb... to get a better view of the lake and the surrounding area.

Here is your view.

When we were down by the lake we spotted this chimney type thing sticking high above the trees... we had to check it out. It was once a Lime Kiln. Here is a picture of it in its prime.

Here is what is left of it...

Jesse kept telling me that "there are no signs that say Keep Out or No Trespassing". He was about ready to jump the fence and see what was behind the doors. I tried to tell him that was why the fence was there.

One last look at the Lake before we leave.

After visiting the lake Jesse and his brother [Jerry] wanted to drive around and look at enclosed trailers. Why you ask... I have no idea. A guy needs a trailer! Do you know how often it would come in handy. We can move ourselves! I don't know how many more times he plans on moving but it better be worth it if we need our own trailer! : )

Anyway, we are driving around and we come across this....

You know you are in Wisconsin when you start to see stuff like this.

Deer hunting the hunters.