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| Daina, Benn, Murray, Trish and Kim |
For the 8th year in a row, Murray and I found ourselves back on the beautiful Audubon Lake in North Dakota. A very special summer place for us as we met some lovely people there and catch up with them each year. This year was even more memorable, as my son Benn, his girlfriend Daina and my daughter Kim arranged to meet us there. Yes, I am sure you are asking - North Dakota?? Of all places to meet. Considering Benn and Daina live in Japan, and Kim lives in Denmark, it was way out of left field. They only had 2 days with us, but it was great to see them and have them experience our lake side campground and meet our North Dakota friends. On their first night, we caught up on each other's news before Murray put some huge T-bones on the BBQ. After that we lit a campfire and enjoyed the lakeside ambience.
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| Lakeside dining - well, pre dinner drinks at this stage... |
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| Avalyn and Kim at rear, Trish, Daina and Kathy in front |
The next day, while Murray and Benn went off fishing with Milt, us girls went to town. Avalyn, Kathy, Kim, Daina and I jumped into Avalyn's suburban and visited the Malt Shoppe in Garrison. We then looked through a few gift shops before we were done - a successful girls' day out!
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| Daina, Trish and Kim |
On the kids' second night with us, we held a fish fry for 18 people. Everyone contributed to the meal and there was so much food that a lot was taken home. Clint, Amanda and their 4 daughters Taylor, Hayley, Emelie and Macey were the last to arrive. Clint and Amanda had both been working all day and had a long drive to get to us, so I thought they would pick up some BBQ chickens and potato salad from Walmart. Not a chance: Amanda had cooked potatoes before she went to work, and each of the girls was tasked with something to do to convert them into a family potato salad recipe. Clint got in from cutting hay, and began a chicken casserole in one dutch oven, and a roast chicken in another. Neither were cooked before they were due to leave their ranch for the 50 min drive to our RV - so he simply put the dutch ovens in a drum surrounded by coals in the back of his pick-up truck, loaded up the family, and drove out. En route he stopped to test if they were cooked, and when they were, he removed them from the coals! He pulled up in front of our RV with steam and a delicious aroma emanating from the dutch ovens in the back of his truck, and carried the dutch ovens to the table. An impressive entrance Clint! As well as the chicken and potato salad (old family recipe) from the ranch folk, there was Murray's freshly caught and expertly cooked Walleye fish bites, Avalyn's chili taco salad and strawberry shortcake, Kathy's green pea salad, sliced kohlrabi (fresh from her garden), rhubarb pie and a pineapple slice, Irene's brownie slice and potato salad, Frieda's freshly cooked corn on the cob (Lenny set up the cooking pot and Frieda supervised as he cooked the corn while we sat and chatted), plus asian salad and s'mores. A great night. People started arriving at 4pm and the last group left around 10.45pm. The weather was perfect - got cool after the sun set, so a campfire was called for. We needed that to toast the marshmallows for the S'mores anyway. Kim showed Clint and Amanda's girls how to insert the chocolate bar into the marshmallow before toasting over the coals - a trick she learnt while living in Canada.
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| Kim showing Macey how to insert chocolate into the marshmallow |
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| Hayley and Emelie toasting marshmallows for the S'mores |
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| Macey entertaining Benn and Daina |
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| Clint in foreground and Macey up the pole - entertaining us |
The day after Benn, Daina and Kim left, it was time for us to say goodbye to our North Dakota friends and head south to store the RV in the cave for another year. The countryside was as beautiful as we had ever seen it. We passed fields with flax, sunflowers and wheat abutting one another - I just had to take the photo below. So pretty. Farewell North Dakota. God willing we will be back next summer.
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| Blue flax in foreground, wheat at the back on the left, and sunflowers at the back on the right |
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