Rachel (4-5 months)

Hilton Head

We took the kids to Hilton Head this summer along with the DeGrote family.

Rachel's first airplane ride:

We can always rely on Jake to make us laugh....

The house we rented was on a beautiful golf course...

The kids by the pool... where they spent their time when not at the beach....

Rachel's first time in the ocean.

More summer fun!

The kids watched the fireworks on the Fourth of July

from our dock.

We were so proud of how well Sara

played in softball this year!

The kids LOVED swimming in the lake!

This was their first practice run with the snorkels and fins.

Sara and Jake entered a fishing contest on Prior Lake.

Jake caught a 3/4 lb. bass (a 2-1/4 lb bass took 3rd)

Sara caught a 1/2 lb bullhead

Sara got 2nd place for the "Other" category.

Summer Fun at the Cabin

We spent a week at the cabin in Park Rapids before school began.

What an enjoyable time that was!

The kids LOVED walking across the Mighty Mississippi River!

Doesn't look so "mighty" does it? And it is amazingly clear.

The headwaters are just 20 minutes from our cabin.

On our first night at the cabin, Sara caught over 24 fish,

and Jacob caught 17. Dad only caught 8 as I was

continuously taking fish off the hooks.

You can bet that the kids know how to do that

themselves now!

Fishing in "The Little Lake" was also great... it has been quite a few years since we were able to catch this many fish!

First Day of School

Every year, when we send the kids off to school, we can't believe how big they are getting!