MEA break

We visited my parents house to make candy corn this year. Emma's favorite candy is candy corn but it is made with food coloring that may be linked to cancer. We looked and looked trying to find a kind that was sold without the food coloring but couldn't find any. So we took to making it ourselves.

It was quite a process to melt the sugar and get everything at the exact temperatures for mixing.

Overall it was an intense process that took us about 2 1/2 hours. Analise seemed to be the only one in a silly mood today. Everyone else was focused on not getting their fingers stuck and following the instructions so we wouldn't have to start again. The recipe was four pages long and had a lot of trouble shooting notes. There was no room for slipping up.

The food coloring actually worked out really well. We thought it would be really light but it turned out to be a nice deep yellow and orange without much added. After freezing the dough-like candy for a bit, it was much easier to cut (We didn't learn about the importance of the freezer though until we made quite a few mistakes). Emma and Ani made some giant candy corn when the dough exploded across their tray. In the end, they looked somewhat like the store bought ones. The real proof was in the taste. Emma said that they tasted just like them but were definitely fresher.

We also went hiking as a family near Lindstrom, Mn. We started out by some smaller ponds with lots of grasses.

Then we hiked up and down some hills which had great views. Many of the leaves were starting to change.

Next we took in some great sunset pictures and found great trees to climb in.

We ended up exploring the pennisula and going out all the way to the end.

There were lots of great places to kayak and canoe in this area. The lakes were gorgeous. There were so many great spots for photo opportunities.

This final one was our favorite of the day.

After the hike, we and went on a pumpkin walk in Wyoming, Mn. Wade, Li Ming and Kiris joined us for the event. We started by hanging out with the farm animals and fun kid activities.

Don't forget the ostriches. But beware. They have a mean look in their eye and those necks sure do swing fast.

Emma and Kiris feeding the alpacas.

Analise and the kangaroos.

Watch out for those camels. Best to use the big scoop when feeding them.

Then we headed for the trail.

Again there were lots of great places for photos. Kiris was so excited by the 1,000s of pumpkins they had on display. It was fun to be there with a five year old. Five year olds definitely bring the excitement and wonder back to things that may seem rather ordinary to the older crowd we have become.

Emma seemed to take to walking Kiris around and showing her everything she wanted to know about.

Although the weather was dreary this past week, it was decent evening and we enjoyed time together.

Corn Mazes and Squash Hunting

We went to Xdahls today to check out their pumpkins and squash. They have a large corn maze and lots of goats to feed. The girls enjoyed trying to find the pumpkin that was most perfectly shaped. They found a squash that is shaped like a snake. It even had a vine that looked like a tongue.

Cross Country Season

Emma decided to try cross country this fall. She seems to like the long distance running much more than the track experience last spring. She has two meets to attend. In the first meet she will compete on the Junior Varsity level and the second meet she will compete at the middle school level. Here is the perfectly posed photo that we usually don't buy. These photos remind me of trips to JcPenny where they would pull down a background for you to choose. I guess the team went with the "forest experience" for their background. Hopefully we will get some shots of the Emma in action at the meets.

Here is a photo from the first meet in Howard, Mn. They left school at 2 pm and didn't get back until 8:15 p.m. It was a long night. We are thankful everyone did their best and that the weather was good for the event. Emma got 4th place in the girls' run. She is excited for the next race in a month.

Square Lake Triathlon

Dan was at it again this fall with his yearly triathlon. He beat his time by 10 minutes this year and ended up in 4th place for his age category (21st place overall). The weather was chilly this weekend, but the friends had a good time together.

First Day

Here is our first day photo. Emma is off to eighth grade and last year of middle school, Analise starting 6th and first year of middle school, Erin in her 20th or so year of teaching.

Note to self...must learn how to take photos without cutting off people's faces.

DIY Projects

Emma and Erin took at thick yarn blanket making course through community education this past week. We learned how finger weave and were able to make a full blanket in about two hours. Then Emma took her skills and added to her customer base by making a cat bed for the cats at Grandma and Grandpa Maas's house. Customers seem to be thrilled with the product (see photo below).

Mushi was the first to try the new pad. Emma also explored the world of sewing this past summer with Nina's Atelier sewing classes. She made a bag for holding toiletries. Dan needed a new one for traveling, so it was perfect. She also made two holders for ipads or phones while they charge next to the wall. Her final item of the summer was a reusable bag for groceries.

Natura Water Park and Tunnel Trail Campground

We spent one of our last weekends in August visiting Wisconsin Dells natural waterpark and one of our favorites, the Tunnel Trail that runs through Elroy/Sparta area. We originally planned for a three day trip, but we ended up only doing two because the weather was not in our favor. Saturday was rain, storms and very humid weather. Wisconsin Dells was supposed to have thunderstorms all evening and night so we thought we would rather just get some extra sleep at home and head out early in the morning. We started our journey with a walk in the Dells downtown to find the Wizard Quest indoor activity area. It was raining when we arrived and we couldn't see ourselves going to the outdoor water park in the cold rain.

Thankfully, Wizard Quest was the engagement we needed. We started at 4 doors (Earth, Air, Fire and Water). We had to pick a door to go through and a world where we would solve a quest on the Ipad they gave us. We used a flashlight to uncover hidden footprints and doors as we explored the worlds.

We solved a mystery in the fire realm that dealt with a lizard that lost its baby. We moved to the earth and water realms as we solved the mystery.

Then we decided to solve a mystery with a unicorn where we traveled to the world of air. We went up and down hidden stairs, ended up locked in giant bird cages and went down the rainbow slide twice (Erin didn't want to go twice). We enjoyed ourselves and would definitely return for more quests if we found ourselves in the rain while in the Dells. After solving multiple mysteries, we were off to the water park.

At the Land of Natura we played in the pools and went down the inflatable slides carved into the side of the hill. There were so many different inflatables to climb on, slide down and jump off. It was the perfect day to go when it was somewhat cool and rainy. Erin talked with other families that were swimming and they said the previous day was awful because too many people were climbing on the structures. It was hard to get a chance to do all you may have wanted. We got to go on anything we wanted multiple times.

Dan tried to flip the girls off the water teeter totter but they didn't go very far. There were many obstacles that the girls zipped through like water trampolines, swings and even a running rolling tube. It was like watching Nikelodeon competitions on TV back from the 80s.

It was nice to not have all the clorinated water you usually get with water parks.

After the water adventures, we headed to the canopy walk they had created in the forest by the river. The boardwalk bounced as you walked along. The best part was that we were high up so we got a breeze and there were no mosquitoes that high up.

We also checked out the river to walk the beach. The sun finally made its appearance for a short time before we headed back to the campground for the night.

We spent the night at the Tunnel Trail campground and made chili and sweet potatoes. We stayed in a cabin that had a nice swing outside and enough beds for everyone. We also had air conditioning and fans which provided optimal comfort. Our bathroom wasn't in the cabin, but it wasn't far to walk to it and the shower had hot water. It was camping but with needed comforts. We biked around a bit on the tunnel trail and tried out the heated saltwater pool at the campground before returning home on Monday morning. Ever since Erin and Dan biked from Maplewood to Baraboo Wisconsin about 15 years ago, Erin wanted to return to the Tunnel trail campground when she had kids. It is such a unique stop for families. You can camp but then go mini-golfing, play volleyball, swim in the community pool and much more. The family that runs the campground also brings in shows for the campers to see on certain evenings. We stopped in Eau Claire for a rest break and walk at Phoenix Park by the river. Overall, it was a fun mini-vacation before school started again.

Although Erin likes to post the smiling photos most of the time, there are a few silly ones that slip into the mix.