road trip start & ellstrom family reunion 2012

Ok ... I've been putting this off for long enough.  Here is the first of my 3 blogs about our trip this past month.  It all begins with a long little road trip to the north country ...

On July 27th ... a Friday afternoon, Billy came home early from work (an hour later than planned but still early none-the-less).  I had the car all packed and the kids ready sans their afternoon nap, so they could nap in the car!  We packed up in a hurry, and we took off for cooler weather and family fun.  I drove first.  My plan was to avoid the 3 a.m. to 5 a.m. driving--which I had to drive last summer.  I drove through Florida ... we stopped for dinner as soon as we got into Georgia (which was a good thing, because just as I was exiting, Colton says, "I have to go potty!")  We had dinner--which takes over an hour with two small children ... just so you know, and we got back on the road. 

Khloe's first dinner on her first road-trip!

I couldn't get that hair to stand down!  She looked like Alfalfa!

Billy's worst idea!  I got a Mountain Dew for Billy and I to share.  Colton, of course, asks for some.  I say, "No." But Billy thinks he can have just a little taste.  Needless to say, he couldn't close his eyes until after MIDNIGHT! No joke.

My cute boys!

Billy drove us up through Georgia through Atlanta, and I began to drive to give him a little bit of sleep--still hoping to avoid the above mentioned driving time.  Around 1 a.m., I had to stop, because Khloe was having a meltdown!  She had woken up for whatever reason, and she could not fall back asleep.  When I picked her up, she clung to me like never before!  I calmed her, and luckily, she slept through the rest of the night.  I finally stopped around 3 a.m. (4 a.m. now, because of the time change).  By now, it was somewhere just south of Nashville, TN.  I wanted to get some "good" sleep while the kids were still asleep and quiet.  Billy drove until breakfast ... I woke up around 6:30 a.m.  We stopped at about 7:45 a.m. just to the east of St. Louis for breakfast at IHop.  I took Khloe into the bathroom to change her while we were waiting for the food to arrive.  After I finished changing her, I realized that I needed to use the bathroom, as well.  I held her the entire time ... until I needed to pull up my pants.  I thought about what I should do.  I figured, she doesn't really crawl yet ... only slither ... and she won't do that in the 2 seconds it will take me to finish.  So, I set her down and raced to finish, so I could pick her back up.  In an instant ... she was off to the races--CRAWLING--across the disgusting large handicapped bathroom stall ... hands and knees touching who knows what nasty bacteria rests there.  I didn't know whether to throw up or throw my hands up in a loud cheer!  She finally started to crawl (traditionally), folks!  It was a disgusting, but exciting, event.  

The most exciting part of a road-trip ... both kids asleep!

After breakfast, we got back on the road ... we had a long day ahead of us.  From St. Louis, I drove, as we headed north through MO and IA.  I stopped somewhere in northern Missouri for a bathroom break and to let Billy drive a bit more.  He drove through half of Iowa, and I picked it back up in northern Iowa and carried us the rest of the way to Hutchinson, MN--where Billy's parents live.  We arrived--26 hours later--around 6 p.m.--just in time for dinner.  The drive was ... as expected.  Khloe cried a lot ... there was a lot of sleeping ... Colton had us stop for a few unscheduled bathroom breaks, but all in all, it went pretty well.  We were happy to be at our destination.

Ah, the midwest!  I have missed you!

Mom and Dad Heinrich's house looks wonderful!  I hadn't been there since last summer when it wasn't even built yet ... and I was very impressed.  The house is nearly finished, and the decks had just been completed.  It really was a nice place to stay.  We had some delicious food from the garden for dinner, and the kids were ready to crash!  To bed for us all!

The next morning, Gerson wanted to shoot some of Dad's guns, so Billy went out with him.  Of course, Colton wanted to be out there, too.  I got to shoot some, as well.  It was fun!  I shot Dad's 22 and his shotgun.  The 22 was fun!  The shotgun was LOUD!!!!  Colton's newest favorite toys are those shotgun shells.  He collected them and put them on his fingers.  Boys!

Mom and Dad's land (the view from the side of their house facing the drive up from the road).

Colton got to ride the tractor with Grandpa!

Look out, Boys!  Daddy's got a gun!

Daddy and Colton

Colton with his new favorite toys ... shotgun shells!

Later that morning, Mom and Dad (Gerson and Brenda ... and Ethan) took Colton and Khloe up to the lake for us.  It was another four hour drive, and we had our fill of the kids in the car.  Instead, Billy and I got to go to a Twins game together and spend a nice, quiet four hours driving up to the lake after that.  The Twins game was good.  It was our first time in their new stadium.  They won, too ... which always makes for a good time. 

At the game!

The stadium ... it was a HOT day in the sun! 

Enjoying the game together!

Billy with Kirby Puckett

When we got up to the lake, it was about sunset ... bed time for the kids.  So, we moved into our cabin, and we put the kids to bed!  They were exhausted ... there was no complaining from them!  

Khloe hanging out with one of her two favorite people ... Aunt Debbie.  She seemed to cry with anyone but Aunt Debbie and Grandma (and me or Billy, of course).

Hands full ... Khloe and Cousin Elle

Nearly the same sized feet!  I don't know if Elle has small feet or Khloe has big ones.

Elle with her Daddy. 

Colton had a BLAST with Uncle Josh.  He made Uncle Josh play cars every time they were together.  It was really cute how much fun he had with his newest Uncle.

Khloe playing with Uncle Alan.

Elle wanted to help out with the cooking in the kitchen. 

Elle trying on Colton's shoes.

The week we had was full and fun!  The ladies always have a breakfast one morning together.  We had that on Monday morning.  We always go to a restaurant in Ely called The Chocolate Moose.  It is delicious!

The infamous Chocolate Moose!

The guys always have golf time up at the lake, and we drug Billy's golf clubs up there for him to use.  He had a good time with his uncles and cousins golfing.

Colton had so much fun swimming in the lake.  It was much warmer this summer than past summers, so he had a grand time playing in it.  He always wanted to find and catch crawfish and minnows.  So, Billy bought him a bug net that he could use to scoop them up.  He had a great time searching for them and catching them with Uncle Alan and Uncle Josh.  I'm just ready for Khloe to stop eating sand.

Playing in the water.

Khloe enjoying some sun time.

Miss Elle playing in the water.

Colton looking for crayfish with Uncle Josh and Uncle Alan.

Happy Boy with his crayfish!

Aunt Debbie (holding Koki), Uncle Alan, Elle, Uncle Josh, and Colton playing in the water.

Capturing crayfish in the bug net!

Koki

The girls ... Koki with Elle.

Playing with Uncle Josh ... who found some BIG crayfish! 

Looking for more!

Oh, that sand!  It must be tasty!

A BIG one! 

Colton takes a peek.

Carrying it around.

A big smile for the camera.

Aunt Cherrie and Uncle Josh enjoying the water ... Aunt Debbie enjoying the sun with Elle.

Colton had to go pee ... Grandma took him to the trees!

They are way out there!

A kayak ride with Uncle Alan.

Elle enjoying the beach time! 

Elle taking a kayak ride with her Daddy.

There they go!

Way in the back of this picture, you can see Cole on a kayak with Uncle Josh.

Somehow Cole talked Uncle Josh into a kayak ride, too!

Cole playing with cousin Joe.

Cole jumped in to Aunt Brenda ... he wasn't thrilled to do it.

Cole LOVES his cousin, Petra.  He played with her a lot ... they are about the same age.

Cole with Petra

I love this boy!

Aren't they cute?

Some lake time.

One day ... I can't remember which one, we went to the North American Bear Center.  Colton was excited to learn about bears and to see some.  We got to see one live bear.  Her name was Lucky.  She was cute!  

Isn't this funny?  I had to take a picture.  She was doing this on the drive over to the bear place.

Gnawing on her toes. 

Big giggles!

And, of course, a big squeal (scream).

At the North American Bear Center.

Cole with some bears.

Taking a closer look.

Mommy & Khloe waiting for a bear to come out to eat some food.

Waiting to see a bear with Daddy.

Billy and Debbie with Elle and Khloe.

Lucky, the bear

A most gorgeous day!

Cole found the toys in the Bear Center ... he named this wolf, Petra ... he really loves his cousin, Petra! :)

Dad was enjoying the bear center.

Aunt Debbie and Ethan explore the camo tent.

Colton, as compared to the height of a north american bear ... he's the size of a bear cub.

Bear Hugs 

Look closely, the bench says ... "In Honor of ____ Billy"

I think it might have said "Jan" Billy or "Don" Billy.

With my girl!

Hugs!

Everyone on the forest walk ... to see what bears eat.

Of course, Cole finds a "Link-sword stick"--as he calls it.

Hanging out with Grandma.

Taking a walk.

Just like his Daddy.

Grandma gives Khloe something to gnaw on.

She seems pleased.

On Wednesday, I had the privilege of going to a spa.  Billy's sisters always try to book some massage time while up in Ely ... and I got to tag along this year.  It was just what I needed!  I did a little shopping before hand, got a massage, and had some good alone time.  It was perfect!  

A great place I love to shop at when I'm in Ely!  This is such a cute store!

My spa location. 

After the massage ... I felt great!

Out on my own ... having a bit of peace and alone time.

Every night, we ate supper with the whole extended family ... it's a potluck type of deal.  After that (and sometimes before in the afternoon), we would chit-chat, play games, and the kids would run around with each other.  It was a fun gathering time for everyone. 

A nice view of the lake.

Me with the lake.

Khloe and me on the swing.

Feet.

Cole running around with his favorite--Petra.

family softball game

One night, Cherrie and Josh built this fire ... we roasted marshmallows ... it was very nice!

One of Khloe's many sink baths that week!  Oddly, this is also where Colton took a few baths ... sometimes it's just easier than turning on the shower that sprays everywhere!

On Thursday, we had a new event--The Ellstrom Family Olympics.  A couple of Billy's cousins got together and planned a fun race event that included 8 teams of two people.  We had to start on land, run and jump in a canoe, paddle out to one location to pick up a bottle with a number on it tied to a buoy, canoe across the lake to a dock, put rocks in the bottle that corresponded with the number on it, and canoe back to shore.  When we got back to shore, we had to run up to a line, and dump out all of our rocks.  Then we had to try to hit an empty pop can (slightly filled with sand) that was sitting on top of a building from behind our line.  We each had to throw a rock taking turns.  It took a lot of energy!  

To figure out which canoe we would use, we had to do an egg toss with our teammate.  The winning team got to pick their canoe ... from there, each team that lasted longer than the others chose their canoe from the remaining canoes.  On the round of egg tossing, we did ok.  Came in second place to choose our canoe.  On our second round of egg tossing, Billy tossed the egg really well, but I didn't step to the side and it splatted in my face and down my shirt!  It was super gross ... but really funny!

The first heat had four groups of two.  We came in first for that heat, and his cousins Ethan and Beth (who live here in Tampa near us) came in second.  So, we both advanced from that heat.  The second heat was HILARIOUS!!!!  When the "go" signal sounded, Brenda & Gerson jumped into their canoe onto their knees ... as Brenda tried to get her legs out from underneath her (and I'm sure Gerson was settling in as well), their canoe tipped over!  Luckily, it was right by the shore, so with a little help, they jumped back in the race pretty quickly.  Just when they thought they were out of it, about 10 feet from shore, Dad & Abel (Billy's cousin) flipped their canoe, too!  I guess they leaned the same direction and voila!  Everyone ran to help them back to shore, so they could dump their canoe out.  They got all re-settled, and they took off ... way behind, but they made ground.  The winners of that heat were Alan and Debbie ... who had just canoed the boundary waters for a week--and they were paddling like pros! The second place team for that heat was Billy's cousin, Kelsey, and her friend, Madison.  It was a lot harder to hit those pop cans than we had all originally thought!  Brenda and Gerson hit their can three times (or more), and it just wouldn't knock over.  

The final heat, the four top teams competed.  It was tough!  Three of the teams were right together when we left the dock of rocks headed for the shore.  Billy and I ditched our canoe a few feet from the shore and raced to the line to throw rocks at our can.  I gave him one of the rocks I had in my hand from the dock, and I began to dump the rest of the rocks out of our bottle ... when I realized, Billy had knocked down our can with his first throw!  We won!!!!!  It was super fun!  Debbie and Alan weren't far behind ... they hit their can down just a few throws later.  Phew!  We can't wait to play more games like this next reunion.  It was a lot of fun!

The lake ... the canoe.

Right after our victory!

That night, we took everyone to Dairy Queen and treated the competitors with our winnings.  It was a lot of fun to hang out with everyone.  The kids enjoyed a little treat, too!

Grandma treated Khloe to a taste.

Colton enjoyed my lime slush. 

On Thursday night, Billy and I played Settlers of Catan with some of his cousins.  It was really fun!  I hope we play more board games with his cousins and family next summer.  It's always hard with little, little ones and bedtimes, etc.  But we had a good time when we did play some games.

Last reunion and this reunion, two of Billy's cousins hid a special rock around the camp grounds.  The person or people who find this rock, with an "E" on it, get a Dairy Queen gift card.  It's fun, because each night, they put up a new clue on where to look for it.  Billy found it last reunion ... he wasn't supposed to play this year, but he couldn't help himself.  He found it again!  This time, we took his picture with it and re-hid it ... with our own clue.  It was pretty fun!

Billy with the rock.

On Sabbath, we did a Heinrich family hike to a water fall.  We usually do a 5-mile hike around a lake, but with so many of us having a young kid who needed a nap here and there (and to eat), we decided to do a shorter hike.  It was really pretty there.  Billy went for a swim, of course.  It was cold!  I don't know how he did it!  

This is where we hiked to--Kawishiwi Falls

Koki rides with Mom.

I had to put her in our backpack.  She did really well!

Hiking with Daddy

At the falls

There they are!

The fog/humidity off of the falls steamed up my lens! 

Family picture

Another shot

Close up

Koki and I at the falls.

Everyone down near the lake.

Billy decides to swim up stream toward the falls.

Assessing how cold the water is!

There he goes!

It was a strong current ... he didn't do too bad!

Headed back.

Grandpa & Ethan

Ethan ... enjoying the Sabbath.

Waiting for Billy to get out of the water.

The "Grabby Monster" ... she was out for the camera!

Colton finds another stick to play with.

Sweet.

The Eno Family enjoying the Sabbath.

Three eldest boys (in their families) ... Grandpa Heinrich, Daddy Heinrich, and Cole Heinrich.

She got exhausted.

Sabbath evening picnic.

Cole wants to play some baseball!

The kids with Grandma & Grandpa.

Khloe with Grandma Heinrich.

She always has fun with Grandma.

Grandma tickles!

Grandma & Koki

Talking about baseball ... it's such a foggy picture, because the wind had just blown the fire smoke across in front of my camera.

Downtown Ely ... on our way out.  

See you next time, Ely!

A nice double rainbow on our drive back to the cities.

We had to leave on Saturday night, because Billy's flight was leaving at 8:45 a.m. the next morning to take him back to Tampa.  I was very sad that the reunion was over.  We always have a good time up in Ely.  I guess it's good to leave when you feel like you want it to go on ... that means you had a good time, and you will look forward to the next reunion.  Colton had so much fun playing with his cousins.  It was so different from the last reunion when he was only 7 months old.  He wore up every morning asking if he could go outside to play with his cousins.  I know he will have even more fun next time!

Cole catching frogs ... see the one in Joe's hand? ... with his cousin, Joe.

Colton playing cars, once again, with Uncle Josh.

Pretty and smiley miss Elle with her Mommy.

Grandma with Elle & Koki in their table fort.

Fun times with Grandma under the table.

Colton enjoying some fun time with Koki, Elle, and Grandma under the table .... Khloe wasn't too impressed with Colton.

We went into town one day, and Colton had a blast in a toy store playing with their train table.

Isn't the lake beautiful at sunset?

On Sunday, I took Billy to the airport.  We didn't want him to leave us!  Colton cried a little bit after Billy went into the airport, but that's to be expected.  It was sad.  At least we have FaceTime, and we could talk to him every night.  After he left, I headed to our next destination ... and my next blog ... my dear friend, Tricia's house ... in good old Minnetrista, MN!

Daddy with his kids ... who love him SO much!