One sub-zero night down, one to go...

Well we made it through the first sub-arctic night without any issues...other than losing sleep that is. No frozen or broken pipes. Hot showers, laundry, and dishes are still in the forecast. I still have one more really bad night to make it through, then it looks like the 'real' spring temps will be back. At least the wind finally stopped blowing and the clouds have moved out. We even had a very gorgeous sunset to end a long day of cabin cleaning. That is why I have another sleepless nigh though, without the cloud cover, what little warmth we have will soon rise up and out. I am predicting low 20's again. BRRRRRR!!!!

Luckily both of our kids like to read. Lots of time for that lately.

Josie sleeps up in her "princess loft" while Jeremiah
sleep in his "cool big boy bed"

Even the kids are getting tired of the chilly temps. They thought its was great at first because we told them they could watch lots of movies and have some iPad time while hanging out in the warm cabin. But even that excitement is waring off. They would much rather play outside or help mom and dad. Just be careful what you wish for kiddies!

Groceries and snow...happy Friday the 13th

Yep, woke up this morning to a brisk NW wind and snow. While the snow was not heavy, it was enough to remind us just how cold it was outside...not that we really needed any reminders. I think the official high temp today was just above freezing, and I do mean just. At 6pm it was already back down to 30 degrees and falling. So what happens at camp when it gets this cold? Well normally we would be hunkering down inside looking for any project that we could do near the oil stove. However, just our luck, today is grocery delivery day. That means having to unload 5 full pallets of food and dry goods while trying not to freeze in the brutal weather. The truck arrived at 12:30 and 5 hours later we finally had the last box out of the yard. Needless to say, the rest of the night is going to consist of watching movies, playing games with the kids, catching up on office work, and just relaxing in our nice warm cabin.
The bad news for me...I will most likely be up all night as I will have to make sure all water continues to run. I will have to run the water pump every hour or so, then let the faucets drip, then run the pump again, and so on and so on. It stinks, but it is the surest way to prevent frozen pipes. I hate crawling under cabins trying to fix cracked water lines!

Yep...this is spring in Red Lake. 

And this is only part of our seasonal total! 

Jeremiah's rain dance worked!

We have finally received some very over-due rain! It has not been a lot of rain but it has been steadily drizzling for 2 days and more importantly no lightning. The fire nearest our camp has been put out, but the big one located in the Woodland Caribou Park is still going strong. Fortunately for us the winds have been in our favor, so the fire and the smoke are moving away from camp.

The bad news (for this weekend anyway) is that the rain is turning over to snow! Yep, a week ago we were sweating with 86 degree temps and tomorrow's high will struggle to get above freezing. Lows will be in the 20's. Not the best conditions for unloading 5 pallets of groceries, which are to be delivered tomorrow morning. But that's the way it goes sometimes, welcome to camp life.

I have held off on getting water to the fish house and shower house until the weather returns to more spring like conditions. I do not want to deal with any broken water lines. As it is, I will have to be diligent in running water throughout the night in the 2 buildings that have water, so that none of the pipes freeze up.

Luckily there is always some inside jobs that need to be done. Jillian is 90 percent done in the main lodge, we have started some cabin cleaning, and I got some repairs done to the camp road. After the groceries get unloaded, I will be spending a lot of time in the motor room. Only 29 more motors to go.

The kids enjoy rainy days the most. They play in the mud puddles, catch rain falling from the roof and overhangs, and they get to watch movies and play games in the warm cabin.

Josie drying off after coming in from playing in the rain.

Jeremiah did not want to come in...
he was having way to much fun in the puddles.

Game on!

"watch this Dad!!"

Camp chores continue.

With the continued nice weather, there has been plenty of opportunities to keep the camp work moving along. I think I have too many projects going in fact. The Main Lodge is almost completely cleaned and ready for guest, the yard has been mowed, trees have been cut, water system is up and running, our trailer is empty, our porch is cleaned of boxes and bins, and the kids even helped me put 14 boats in the water. It is starting to look like a camp again! Just need some fisherman.

This is what happens when you sit down for just a minute. Jillian thought it
would be funny to take a picture of me snoozing on the couch.
Apparently I fell asleep faster than Jeremiah did for his afternoon nap.

Happy Mothers Day!

Happy Mothers Day to all of the Moms out there...especially to ours. Last night (or more correctly) this morning, we celebrated Mothers Day by attending a late show. The start performer was the Aurora Borealis. Just after midnight, the Northern Lights gave us one amazing display! For 2 straight hours Jillian, Josie and I laid in the yard and watched the lights shoot and dance across the sky. They were seen in every direction, a 360 degree epic display. The only issue we had was trying to stay warm. The temperature dipped into the 20's and it took many layers of clothes and even some sleeping bags to remain out there for a couple of hours. It was all worth it though. Unfortunately it is very hard to photograph the northern lights. But even if I could, it would never do them an justice. It is truly magical display that I wish all of our guests could experience.

You must be a little crazy to be a camp owner...

In order to keep guests and surrounding buildings safe, some of the very large Poplar tress have to be cut down. Most can be dropped safely in one cut, but some of the larger ones, that are of course leaning the wrong way, must be cut down in stages. That means someone must climb up the tree and systematically prune the to portions first. Then the rest can be dropped safely without crushing any surrounding structures. And since the kids are not quite old enough yet to be 30 feet in the air, and Jillian is afraid of heights...that means I get the nod. I guess this is where 2 decades of competitive gymnastics and rock climbing finally pays off. Sorry you had to see this Mom. For those of you who have a queasy stomach for this kind of stuff...fear not, I was completely roped in and and Jeremiah was spotting me the entire time.

Guess I need to buy a bigger ladder.

Nice view from up here.

Fallen trees make great backwoods balance beams for the kids.

Mom says, "my husband is NUTS!"
Josie says, "please don't get hurt Dad."
Jeremiah says, "Awesome! Can I help too?"