Part 1: Up North to Hazelhurst we go...

Phewww.  It has been a crazy couple of weeks, but fear not, we just took a slight hiatus from posting.  So without further ado, enjoy our latest post about our trip to the Northwoods:

Picture the open road, endless trees, glassy lakes and wildlife all around you.  That is what Melissa and I saw on Memorial Day weekend while spending four peaceful days in Wisconsin's Northwoods. 

Our cars were jam packed with kids, dog, fishing poles, Melissa’s camera (of course), food and even some non-essentials (Oreo's :).  Since we can remember, Melissa and I have been “Up North” kids, enjoying all that nature has to offer and loving every minute of it.  We love the little towns full of character, trinkets, delicious cheese (why is it that you have to go north to get awesome cheese??) and woodsy Cottages.  It is our idea of a weekend getaway!  That is unless we get whisked away to a tropical paradise....(Dave and Justin take note :)

For the first part of our vacation, Mother Nature decided to rain on our parade, but we came prepared.  The girls played board games and snacked on the above mentioned oreo's, while the boys braved the drizzle to fish.  On Friday, we decided to weather the storm to visit the Minocqua Zoo with the kids.  Too our surprise, many of the animals were roaming free, which made it pretty exciting!

Saturday was our day to cook, so Melissa and I wanted to do a hearty meal that traveled well and would fill hungry bellies.  We created a nontraditional twist on grilled steak and potatoes.  Stay tuned for the recipe and pictures on part 2 of our Northwoods post.

    

Road trippin' with kids and dog means a lot of 
stopping and stretching!

Gotta love the Beach Front! The kids couldn't get enough :)

Fun at the Minocqua Zoo!

Don't you love that last picture of the hog thing!  We were sad when our trip came to an end, but we enjoyed every Northwoods minute!  Except for Justin's quick trip to the ER.  Worry not, he came back 2 hours later, finger glued and ready to party! 

Special thanks to Ann and Tommy for hosting and giving us a wonderful weekend!

Sugars (things we loved)

-Planning ahead for the drive.  (Dixie had lots of bones and Evan had a mini theater system lavishly set for the 5 hour drive)

-Relaxing with no cell phone reception!

Snaps (things we learned)

-Make sure husbands are careful with knives, so they don't end 
up in the ER.

-Rain, Rain, go away.  Well it did for our last day anyway!

See you next post!
 Ashley & Melissa