Summer Weekend in Kenmare

The Boston Hagers are here visiting and this weekend was the annual Goosefest Golf Tournament and Hager Golf Tour.

Saturday:

Some of the men of the family played in the daytime golf tournament. The evening brought out all the fans for the racehorse competition.

Matthew got to cruise around with Jesse.

Kya had a hole-to-hole ride in her stroller.

We had quite the cheering section ... rooting for Megan's Dad - "Boston" Fran, and Papa Gary.

It was lots of fun and the weather was perfect.

Gary was the winner last year, and this year Fran was the big winner (Gary took third this year)! Actually, we were all winners, because we bet on the both of them - so we all made some money.

Sunday:

Kya's First Swim

Today the weather was hot and the pool was open. That only left us one option: take Kya swimming. We dressed her in her swimming suit and Matthew wished her good luck.

Maria took us to the pool - where she works. Today was her day off but she didn't mind haning out and showing us around.

I knew Kya really enjoyed the water and baths ... but she LOVES swimming.

We had such a fun afternoon! Thank you Maria!

Thanksgiving in Kenmare, ND

This year Corey and I (and baby) spent Thanksgiving with Corey's parents and siblings, in Kenmare, ND. It is quite a magical place, especially on Thanksgiving.

The Friday after Thanksgiving the town celebrated Light Up Night, which includes a parade, town square lighting, craft fair, and open houses hosted by the town merchants.

It was a bit strange not having any snow, but the lights were beautiful nonetheless.

Here is our gang waiting for the parade. As you can see, it was chilly, but well worth it - I made out like a bandit with all the parade candy I got.

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The rest of the (extended) Thanksgiving weekend we played lots of games, ate way too much food, the boys went pheasant hunting, I finished a quilt, watched football, and enjoyed each other's company.

Thanks for hosting us, Hagers! We had a great weekend!

Shootin' in Kenmare

During our visit to Kenmare, ND, last weekend, the boys and Maria went out to the shooting range.

Corey, Papa Hager, and Andrew got the guns worn in.

Maria was quite apprehensive. It was difficult even talking her into going along. But once she started shooting ...

... She didn't want to quit. Legend is that Maria is the new Annie Oakley.

We've got some sharp shooters in the family!

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Thanks to Corey and Maria for taking the photos - the baby and I passed on attending the noisy event.

Matthew gets confirmed

We spent the weekend in Kenmare, ND, celebrating Matthew's confirmation.

Jesse was his confirmation sponsor and it was great having him back in North Dakota (he and Megan live in Boston) for the weekend.

As always, "Grandma" and "Grandpa" Hager were fabulous hosts! Such delicious food :) I'm still enjoying the leftovers!

The Bishop was there to make it official.

The class

Matthew - looking cute as ever.

What a special day!

'Domination before migration'

My bonus sister (Corey's sister) Maria is on a North Dakota Class B volleyball team that competed in the state tournament last weekend. Not to brag or anything, but they are the defending state champions - woo hoo!

Corey and I drove up to Minot (where the tournament was being held) on Friday evening to surprise Maria (and Corey's parents).  This was my first "class B" experience. For those that don't know, Class B schools are the small North Dakota schools. This encompasses the vast majority of North Dakota schools since most are in small, outlying communities. I had been told that the Class B towns really 'rally the troops' for their teams and support them fully.

Well ... knowing this I went in with a few expectations, which were all fulfilled and exceeded. The fan support was unlike anything I've ever witnessed - and then some. It was truly amazing. It was really special being a part of the crowd, cheering on the team. 

Turns out, Corey and I were bad luck for the team – they went to five matches but lost the series. The next day they got a few wins to finish third overall. Good job!

p.s. the volleyball team created their own marketing slogan for the tournament, "domination before migration" ... their mascot is the honker (Canadian goose), which migrate south this time of the year. I though this was so cool! Go Honkers!