Winter 2025-2026 and Spring 2026 Coming to a Close

2025 has now come and gone.  It was a great year, and I often wonder how many more years can be this great.  I am sorry, mostly to my children, who I hope will one day read this that I haven't updated the blog more frequently.  And I suppose if there are any other readers out there in the dark, hollow void of the internet I apologize to you too.  As always, I'll try to do better.  We last left off in November of 2025.  So thats where we will pick up...

Chinch and I celebrated our anniversary in style this year with a trip to Stillwater MN.  We walked the downtown, and stayed at the Water Street Hotel, a historic site.  Lots of fun, great food, and great scenery.  So blessed to be married to my soulmate.  Love you Chinch!

Poppi and Gigi came up for a visit, and we all trucked over to The Ranch, a classy local supper club.  As I get older, my tastes converge more and more with Poppi, so it was a good time had by all.

And wouldn't you know it, its Christmas time again!  We celebrated both at home and in Orion, as usual.  Kids were grateful for their gifts, one and all.  They are especially excited for the Drone.

A rather goofy highlight from the winter was Twiggy the Water-Skiing Squirrel!  The Duluth Ice Fishing show had Twiggy as their special guest. The kids already love squirrels, so this was a natural must-do activity.

The Kid and I hit up Gronks after one of our tournaments.  The dinners out after our events are always the best part.

As one would expect, it was a cold winter.  And we went through plenty of firewood.  We even needed a refill, thanks to Les Chandler we made it through and then some.  This was me splitting some of the larger logs.

For Valentine's day Chinch and I trucked on down to IL for a romantic... quadruple date with some of my best friends from High School and their wives.  Oh and Wes.  We went to the most romantic spot we could think of... Papa Dels.

One may ask how we fill our time during these long winters?  Why board games of course!  Grandma Polly has become a HUGE fan of Catan.

The whole family trucked down to IL again in April for Glamma Glogg's big 90th birthday party.  While that was a glad occasion (and fun to get two of my sisters in the same pic) it was also slightly sad.  Grandma Rosemary is sick, and getting sicker.  By this time her appetite was dropping and she was growing more confused by the day.  We went for what we thought would likely be our last visit to see her.  I am glad the kids got to say goodbye.  I wish I had gotten a picture, but I have been out of the habit of getting pictures on my phone.  Trying to be more "in the moment".

That isn't to say that we didn't make it as fun as we could for the kids.  Including stops at some of our favorite places (Pizza Hut Classic, Lil Porgy's, among others).  And they got to play with those Nichols kids!

Got to go out with the boys for Devin's last hoorah in the midwest (shipping out East for Residency) after the NSTT.  TDR!

In amazing news, Mandi has been confirmed! She has now joined us in communion.  So excited for her.  

I had come to realize that while the Kid had quite a few road trips with me, and Lovey got to go to Texas with Chinch, our third kiddo Babo hadn't gotten a trip.  I found a free weekend, and we set off for the Windy City!  These are some of the highlights: Deep Dish Pizza, Willis Tower Skydeck, Navy Pier, The Bean, Shedd Aquarium, Field Museum and (Babo's Favorite) a trip out to Oak Park to see the Nichols' kids.

Well, maybe you gathered it from reading above, but we lost Grandma Rosemary.  She passed the Saturday of Babo and I's trip to Chicago.  I was pretty heartbroken.  Grandma Rosemary was one of my biggest fans.  I treasured my relationship with her, and miss her dearly.  I still have some old voicemails she left me that I've been listening too from time to time.  I wish I had spent more time with her.  And that is probably the lesson in all of this.  Spend time with those you love.  The rest is all superficial.  The family trucked down to IL once again, this time for the funeral.  I'll spare everyone the tears, and leave you with this happy picture: all of my Dad's grandchildren in one picture.  

Mandi took off for her yearly "sabbatical". She likes to take a Mother's Day trip down to Orion to visit with her Mom, sans me and the kids.  And I respect that.  Everyone can use some time away.  But while the zookeeper is away... the animals play!  Dad-mode is a little more loosey goosey than Mom-mode.  We ran all over the Northwoods.  From Spooner to Duluth.  Kids got to have fun with friends, and even scooter the bike path!

As summer nears and Spring has shed its chill, Garagehammer is back.  11th Edition Warhammer is coming, and the boys have been preparing using my garage setup.  Always happy to see them using it.

Well that is all for now.  Again, I'll try to do better.

Stay Healthy!

 "Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the Law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may achieve success wherever you go"

Joshua 1:7

Summer 2025 Come and Gone!

 Time flies.  Faster and faster every year.  In a blink Summer in the Northwoods has come and gone.  We made the most of it this year to be sure, and readied ourselves for the fall to come.  Now in full swing.  Here's a glance at our sweet seasons of 2025.

Spring started off with a trip to IL to see relations in Monticello.  Always a pleasure to see Great Grandpa and Great Grandma.  As well, Lovey got to really get to know her great-Aunt Aimee.  They had an instant bond, which is a giant surprise to no one!

It wasn't just a family reunion, it was a Little-Bluestem Montessori reunion too!  The Kid caught up with his childhood friend, and Chinch with her first Momma-Friend, H..  H. and Chinch were fast friends, and peas in a pod back in our Monticello days.  So good to reconnect.

And we ended the trip with another reunion.  From left to right we have Chinch, myself, Scilla and Michael, Wes, Matt, Squeege and Rachel.  Michael, Scilla, Matt, Squeege and I were the apostrophe in our High School class photo "'01".  Fast friends from Junior High, it was great to reconnect over our favorite pizza, and let the kids play.

Before we knew it one of our favorite weeks of the year arrived: Nichols Week!  The kids had an amazing time, albeit too short, playing with their cousins.  We tore up the greater Gordon area, hitting all the main attractions and getting plenty of tubing time in.

A ride home from Circle Pines in the back of my truck... during a thunderstorm was a highlight for everyone involved.  A memory I imagine they will keep forever.

And just like that, Nichols Week came to an end.  Until next year family!

July held more visitor fun though, with the arrival of Wes!  Up for a few days we enjoyed the various manly endeavors as shown here.  Wes very much appreciates the finer points of Wisconsin Lake Life.

And right on his heels was a visit by my newest Nephew JJ!  He was a big fan of my Truck and the Boat.

Always a sucker for summer nights.  This might look like sunrise... but no, thats the full moon!

We took our family trip up to Two Harbors.  The kids always like playing in the lake.  Stopped by Canal Park for some Vitta Pizza, always tasty.

TDR showed up to absolutely DOMINATE the NSO.  With contestants from as far away as Illinois coming up.  We took 1st through 6th!  I took 3rd.

The Kid and I have made a tradition out of going to Anchor Bar after our events.

We also made it out to Bayfield with LG again this year, to pick apples and see the sights.  As a bonus, Poppi joined us.

Come October we took a trip down to Lake Geneva for Dragonfall Con.  I don't know that we would stay at the same hotel again, but it was a nice time had by all.  Poppi and Gigi came up too, and Vanilla Bean Counter with her kiddo.  Always good to see cousins.

The kiddos joined HACIL this year, offering us weekly trips to Hayward for enrichment day.  We usually cap these days off with a visit to the ice cream parlor.  Funny enough I'm writing this post during one of these trips right now.

Had another trip to IL, this time for a more somber reason.  My good friend Michael lost a brother this fall, we tried to gather to give him what support we could.  And true to our style we did it over pizza.  Pretty sure Michael wouldn't have it any other way.

Alright, thats it for now.  As always I'll endeavor to post more regularly, but also as always: no promises.  Life is so short, and goes by so quickly.

Well thats all for now, Stay Healthy!

"Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the Law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may achieve success wherever you go"

Joshua 1:7

Spring has Sprung!

Spring has Sprung in Northern WI.  We stayed busy as we are wont to do.  It has been fun to see our Donks grow into board gaming age.  Catan has been a big hit this Spring, igniting a family craze!  The Kid has proved his genius once again often convincing his siblings into joining with him in an "alliance".  One in which he inevitably wins ;)

We took our yearly trip to the Wisconsin Dells.  We tried the Wilderness this year and the kids loved it.  Though I think the biggest hit was Paul Bunyon's Lumberjack Shanty!

The Kid has officially joined the ranks of competitive Warhammer 40,000!  He joined the TDR league, and man did this kid have a gauntlet to run, he faced off against 6 of the best players in the area!

And then we jetted off to FL!  This was our third year in the Orlando area, and I believe, our best!

Having sampled some of the best of Orlando during our last 2 trips, we got ourselves back to Volcano Bay!

Lovey just can't help herself, she just had to collect some leaves and flowers.

We stayed back at Champion's Gate this year - and it was a fantastic time.  Probably our best stay.  The kids loved the resort pool.

We made it over to Cocao Beach!  We had never been there, and we had a blast.  Met up with Bampa Butch and Gamma Janet.  Lovey was thrilled, her greatest hope for the whole trip was to go to a "Seashell Beach" and recreate her experience from 2 years ago when she got to hunt for seashells with Gamma Janet.  And so she did!

Babo loves that Carousel.

We also went back to Disney Springs.  Let me tell you folks, this is the BEST Disney Experience.  Free parking. Free admission. All the Disney polish, and half the crowds.  Also has great food, and tons of fun stuff for the kids to see.

Our trip wrapped without a hitch (excepting a lot of traffic)!.  Loved this evening pic of Lovey finishing up at the pool.

Welp, we didn't get our squirrel feeders down in time, and we had a new family visit us!  This momma bear had three cubs!  She paid us a visit several times over the course of two weeks.  We got to see the cubs climb the tree, and the momma lounge and lap up some squirrel feed.  Chinch was less than thrilled.  Was a little sad, as she did lose a cub at some point, and was down to two the last time we saw her.

The Catan Crazy spread to Bampa Gegg and Gwamma Powwy!

Ice is off! Time for the first dip :D

Out with Grandma, she needed to let Eddy and Nick know who the number one favorite Grandkid was ;)

Went to Spooner one day to pall around with Funcle Jack.  My little brother Jack and I don't go out too often, but when we do its always fun!

Sad day for the Sawlaws.  Our White Van was finally giving Chinch "fits".  Check Engine lights and threats of expensive repairs. Given our multiple trips South planned, it was time to go.  This was right before we traded the Ole T&C in.  Our new Chrysler Pacifica is in hand, and has earned the name "Black Beauty".

Chinch headed South for her yearly solo trip to visit with her Mom.  What does that mean for the Donks and I?  Why, breakfast at Wendy's of course!  This is a tradition stretching back decades in our family.  Wendy's was always a favorite of my Grandfather's.  Fun to keep that tradition alive.  AMAZING waffles.

When Chinch is away the degens will play!  The TDR boys and I held our Grillhammer 2025 Beta.  Was a great time even if the weather pushed us inside.  Had 5 tables going!  The Kid even joined in the fun.  And he got to see his old man go undefeated 😎

Well thats all for now, Stay Healthy!

"Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the Law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may achieve success wherever you go"

Joshua 1:7