Summer heats up...

Whew! It's been another busy week in the Ribclan family. Last weekend we headed up north for another stay at the ribclan family cabin. We were excited to see our (Great) Grandpa R, who spent a nice week at the cabin with our Aunt Barb & Uncle Tim. He really loves being at this special place, especially as his trips become more few. He was in very good spirits and was excited to see the kids. Little B even pushed his wheelchair in a circle, (inside the cabin)! Quite a feat if you ask us. We had a nice time catching up with Barb, Tim & Grandpa before they left on Saturday (staying long enough to see us, which was nice).

Saturday evening was another exciting adventure with Bart, Donna, Blender Boy, Rose and another favorite friend--Murray! We haven't seen Murray in some time, and it's always awesome to spend time with him. This Irish lad is full of...fun, an understatement if you saw the sparkle in his eyes. As you'd expect, Blender Boy was whipping up some concoctions, but this time I added a recipe in the mix. I've posted the well received "Watermelon Margarita" recipe here for your enjoyment...perfect for a hot summer day. During my assistance, I was labeled "Garnish Girl", a title I'm proud of. Later that evening, Cookie, Louie and their visiting daughter, Julie, joined in the fun. There wasn't a shortage of stories, especially as Bart, Carl (blender boy) and Murray recalled many (crazy) stories of their youth. All I can say is that if I tried to pull off as many stunts as they did, I would have gotten into a lot of trouble. Luckily for them, they all have very sweet, innocent-looking faces that seemed to deceive their family and friends during those antics.

On Sunday, ribB's parents, sisters and children joined in on the cabin fun. (Backnote: ribB is the oldest of 3 children. Christina is 5 years younger and Chandra is 10 years younger; Christina has 3 children (Dylan (5), Brooklyn (2) and Kirsten (8 months); Chandra is engaged to Matt with 3 furry (cat) children: Wrigley, Gizmo and Reggie). We enjoyed LOTS and LOTS of swimming (especially since temps were in the high 90's!). Dylan recently broke his arm (even undergoing surgery for pins, etc.--very brave!) and was a very good sport about keeping it wrapped & dry while playing up on the beach. Kdee loves playing with Dylan ("DD") and they have so much fun together. This visit included making an "island" in the sand, forts in the cabin and eating like dinosaurs, to name a few activities. Brooklyn enjoyed a love-hate relationship with the baby fish swimming up near the beach. She has the best voice/quirky sounds that just crack me up. Kirsten looks like a doll and has a very relaxed, sweet disposition. Chandra joined in on the fun after her big move from Iowa to Illinois, where her fiance' is going to graduate school. Her move literally happened the day before, with her parents helping her out. The fact that they all made it to the cabin at all is impressive!

A couple of highlights (in my book) were: 1) hearing Kdee and Dylan giggling/laughing from across the lake while fishing with ribB and grandpa; 2) the ladies cooling off in the lake & chatting while the kids/guys were fishing; 3) family chat time later that evening--a first in a long time without children (who were sleeping) and the fact that we were all together! It was a pleasure to talk without distractions and really enjoy the company of family; 4) WATERSKIING! Even Grandma waterskiied, which...truth be told, she did better than me! Everyone but Grandpa, Kdee, Dylan and the little ones waterskiied. Pretty impressive!; 5) watching Kdee swim. Part of the reason she didn't ski was because she was too busy swimming. She improved on her ability to swim underwater ("I did a somersault in the water!") so much that she swam herself out of energy on Monday, before we left. She literally fell asleep within 5 minutes of leaving the cabin--a first for any road trip since she was a baby. I also had a blast "throwing" her in the water and playing with her. It reminded me a lot of my dad, who used to do this stuff with me when I was little, which makes for some of my favorite memories of him.; 6) little B wanting to constantly "GO!!!" on the boat to fish with dad, as well as on the jet ski (which he loved). He started his request to "go" early each morning; 7) little B during the drive home...he was downright silly. He had a 3.5 hr nap that day (ahhh, cabin air and lake water mix well for long naps!) and was not about to fall asleep anytime soon. He had ribB and me in stitches for a good 1.5 hr of our drive home.

(On a side note: little B is now obsessed with his dad. It's "daddy" everything...I'm even being refused kisses and attention, as he seeks "daddy" out. Does this child not realize all that I endured to bring him into this world!?! I suspect not. Of course, ribB thinks this is great--especially since ribB put up with being called "mama" for, oh, a few months. I suppose it's my turn (and ribB assured me that the 6 months goes by quickly...)

This weekend we'll be celebrating our 11th wedding anniversary...wow, where does the time go? We've hired a babysitter from 3-midnight, which is the biggest chunk of time that we've had alone since March (ironically, that was also the last time that this babysitter was over!). Needless to say, we're super excited! We've got some fun plans in the works and, oh, did I mention we're excited? I can honestly say that the time has gone by easily and quickly (not without some effort, mind you!). I am lucky to have found a partner who is fun, kind and supportive (and a great dad on top of all that!). I admire him even more today than "way back then".

Have a great weekend...enjoy the pics and, of course, some tasty margaritas!
Pictures (in no particular order): 1) us with (great) Grandpa R; 2) Blender Boy serves Murray while wearing his "super hero" uniform (minus cape); 3) everyone captivated by Murray's fine story-telling skills 4) Grandma R waterskiing!

WATERMELON MARGARITA
Courtesy of BayView Event Center & Bayside Grille, Excelsior MN

2 teaspoons sugar
1 line wedge
3_ cups seeded watermelon
1/2 cup tequila--eye ball or adjust to taste
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
add juice of the watermelon, if available

1 tablespoon triple sec
(orange-flavored liqueur)
3 cups crushed ice
lime wedges (optional)

Place 2 teaspoons sugar in a saucer. Rub rims of 6 glasses with lime wedge; spin rim of each glass in sugar to coat. Set prepared glasses aside.

Combine watermelon, tequila, 3 tablespoons sugar, lime juice, and liqueur in a blender, process until smooth. Garnish with a lime wedge, if desired.