Weekend Recap: Parents Visit the Cabin

My parents traveled to Wisconsin last weekend for a short visit to our lake cabin. They drove 18 hours round-trip to spend roughly 36 hours with us, so I was very appreciative of their efforts. I love living in Minnesota (and having a lake cabin in Wisconsin), but I really wish there weren't so many miles between us. And while I'm dreaming, I also wish my parents weren't bound so tightly by their days off work (or lack there-of). But, that's life! We try to make the best of the time we do have together.

Shortly after my parents arrived on Friday afternoon, we hopped in the pontoon boat for a trip around the lake. Nothing melts stress away like sunshine and the open water. Oh, and cocktails... those help, too.

I put the kids to bed early because they were both exhausted, and Andi grilled us some nice steaks for dinner. Then, the four of us dined al fresco with gorgeous views of the lake behind us. It sounds crazy, but having a relaxed conversation with my parents rarely happens as there's usually the chaos of kids or holidays surrounding our time together. So, I very much enjoyed having their undivided attention that evening.  

We spent the entire day on Saturday relaxing at the lake. We went for boat rides, swam in the water with the kids, fished for sunfish off the dock, and talked about anything and everything. At one point Tory asked Nana, "Why do you want to talk to my mom so much?" I'm pretty sure she thought my parent's visit to the cabin was strictly to see her.     

I like going home to Nebraska to visit my family, but there's also something special about having my parents visit us here in our own environment. It's more stress on my parents to drive here, of course, but the kids are much more at ease and I love showing them where and how we live. 

My mom loves fish fries, so Andi saved fish from our trip to Nelson Lake especially for this occasion. He made us a feast for dinner on Saturday night, including breaded fish with homemade tartar sauce, green salad, bread and corn on the cob. My parents, Andi, and I ate and ate until we couldn't consume another bite. It was delicious.

It sounds like my parents might be coming back to our lake cabin again over Labor Day weekend when my brother and his girlfriend, and my sister and her family come to visit. Two visits in one summer! We'd love to have them, and are thankful for every opportunity we get to share one of our favorite places on Earth with my Nebraska family.