Bennett Springs

This was the 2nd annual camping trip with the Medley family, this time landing us at Bennett Springs in Lebanon, very close to home. The Medley's left on Thursday evening to get a spot (and it was a GREAT one!) before they were all consumed as it was Free Fishing Weekend. Chris, Aaron and I went up Friday afternoon (Austin had plans elsewhere) after the Huggler tent was pitched and the bathrooms found...it was time for Bryon to work his magic on the open fire. We brought t-bones and ribeyes, they had HUGE potatoes. I'm really sorry for those of you reading this because it is hard to comprehend how delicious this meal tasted. The boy can cook!!

The back drop was absolutely perfect. A breeze keeping us cool, trees engulfing the campsite, polite neighbors (unlike last year's trip), along with great conversation and laughter! I, unfortunately didn't get to 'camp' as I had obligations at work so I just commuted Friday and Saturday. I caught up on some reading, snacked, and got caught in Grace's excitement over snakes, losing her flip flop in the river (a nice gentleman rescued it), the raccoon that successfully opened the massive food storage container in the middle of the night. Seriously, Lisa said it ate a half a bag of marshmallows and dragged a loaf of bread under the truck. Yep, she had soooo much to tell. It was really a wonderful, relaxing weekend despite my missing a large part of it.

The guys pulled on their waders so they could trout fish. Aaron had been looking forward to this for quite some time. He came back full of excitement, along with wet socks! Hahaha!!

Mom went up with me Saturday morning, we weren't there very long when her best friend Brenda (she has worked at Bennett Springs for several years) found us. She sat down with us girls, enjoying lunch with us and we discovered it was Brenda's birthday. Of course we had to sing!! It was so cool :) Judy, Lisa's Mom pulled in Saturday afternoon, it was nice to visit with her as we hadn't seen her in a long time! Her and Grace ended up going for a nature walk. I opted to stay at camp and read but when they came back, both girls were bubbling over with stories!! Judy looked hot and worn out, Grace looked like she could fall over but I'll bet they would have done it again..LOL!!

There were so many cool memories made this weekend...yep, even with Gary's 'Jethro' belt as he called it. The s'mores being consumed as the smoke blinded me! Or how about all the kiddos playing, riding their bicycles or the sense of security in this very full campsite. It was amazing.

This is definitely God's Country!

Pretty Pedals

Lunker Brown...Part II

Austin's brown trout came back the end of March and I must say the Taxidermist did a great job! Yes, it is hanging in the living room :) a must see for everyone that walks through the door!

Finally, (sigh)...Bryon loses!!

I told Bryon I would be blogging about him being the Loser, finally! Bryon and I are very competitive when it comes to playing games. He (barely) kicked my butt in Scrabble, dethroning me as Queen. Then forced me to lose in Monopoly...ha.ha!! So when the guys announced they were going upstairs to play a game of cards...Lisa and I followed. Aaron started out at the table but I ended up taking over (during the practice hands) and of all things ended up being Bryon's partner when the game of Pitch began. Chris made the comment that whoever plays with Tammy will lose. I was not overly ecstatic with that statement as you can imagine but I played my heart out and WE lost not only the first game but the second one as well. The best part of this? We being partners didn't dare make fun of the other about losing. Bryon suggested that the Medley's vs. the Huggler's and see what happens. The Huggler's won! Bryon once again LOST! WOOHOO!! I was soooo happy that Bryon wasn't the one basking in the glory of ME losing. So, for the last game we once again switched partners, Chris and Bryon vs. me and Gary. By this time I was trash talking 'cause it was so much fun to see the frustration written all over Bryon's face..LOL!! Yep, you guessed it, Gary and I won. It didn't matter who Bryon was partnered with, this definitely wasn't his game.

Oh, Bryon...how does it feel to be the L~O~S~E~R? Sucks, huh?!

Squirrel Eatin'

The story goes there was a pesky little squirrel that was bothering Bryon...so he gave Austin a gun to rid the situation. BANG..BANG!! The pesky little squirrel is dead. End of story. Well, or at least it would have been for most. Aaron runs out to where the squirrel lay and picks it up by the tail, proudly carries it towards the house. This is where I'm freaking out..."put that down, wash your hands!" He grins from ear to ear and almost in sync the boys ask "can we eat it?" I'm really freaked out yelling "no, gross!" and all the while trying not to cuss. Of course, Bryon and Chris immediately tell them to go ahead, clean it good. I am throughly disgusted! My boys eat a rodent? GAG, GROSS, PUKE!!! It just so happened the grill was going so the squirrel was thrown on there, all spiced up (as if that could help) and when finished, brought into the house where the four guys devoured it. Aaron kinda gagged at one point because Austin didn't get all the hair off of it!!! Now, that didn't necessarily make me gag but I did laugh. Oh, the joys of country hunting boys!

Got Gas?

This is definitely a story worth telling, so sit back and enjoy the laugh. The month of February has been kinda rough at the Huggler Hacienda, with sickness and car troubles. About three weeks ago, Chris went out to start my car as he takes it one week a month for his carpool and discovered a flat tire. He used some fix a flat in it and drove it to Marshfield where another one of his carpool buddies drove instead. That same morning, it was very, very cold so while Austin was in the shower, I, being the sweet mommy that I am, grabbed his keys, headed out the door to start his truck. It acted like it didn't want to start and then struggled to stay started. I told the boys as I came back inside that I didn't think the truck was gonna stay running. Sure enough, Austin came back in a few minutes later and said the truck wasn't running at all nor would it attempt to start. Great. Fabulous. Marvelous. I grabbed my jacket and we all stuffed ourselves in Chris' truck, heading to school, not to be late!

So, for two weeks we shared a vehicle. I just so happened to be on the 7-4 shift at work so Austin would run me to work before school then pick me up after school. It worked out ok for us but was a pain in the butt as I had to spend my whole lunch hour in the deli at work. Granted I work only two blocks from home but when the wind is howling and the temps in the 30's, this chic ain't walking anywhere!!

Our friend Ronald, along with Chris, towed Austin's truck to the local garage for a fuel pump replacement. After a couple of days, the garage called and requested Chris to come down so they could 'talk' to him. Holy Crap...when someone wants to talk to you in person...well, it can't be good. So, he loaded Austin up and away they went. A few minutes later they were back home....

...home with a truck that was in the garage, supposedly getting a brand spanking new fuel pump...BUT instead it went straight to the gas station because our teenage genius ran the tank COMPLETELY out of gas. We are talking not one stinking drop of fuel! So, it cost $40 in labor just to inform us it needed gas to fully run. Now, in all fairness, the gas gauge hasn't worked for a long time but the trip works great to keep track of the fuel mileage, a daunting task that I'm sure a certain seventeen year old will now be more aware of.

After the shock wore off, and the tank was finished slurping up every last bit of fuel it could handle...he is on the road again.

Ahhh....got gas?!?

Amish Buggy

This little Amish buggy pulled up to the Market, I grabbed my camera...isn't that what every good, efficient scrapbook-a-holic does?