The end of a season...the beginning of a new chapter for all!

I cannot believe that the summer season is over already!  It seems like just yesterday I rushed to open the blinds in the cabin to see if the ice had completely  melted from the lake yet so we could put the boat in the water.  It really does seem my grandparents and parents were right all those years when they told me to enjoy each day because life goes faster and faster the older you get.  I do believe they were right.

This summer I truly did take their advice.  For the first time in my adult life I took advantage of our move to Minnesota and closing down my business in Iowa as an opportunity to try and get rid of all the stress I had accumulated in me (without even knowing I might add).  I must admit it wasn't as easy to take the time off as I had expected.  There were feelings of guilt for not being "useful" and "contributing"; feelings of loneliness at times; feelings of "what if no one ever wants to hire me again"; feelings of blah, blah, blah.  I really didn't start my relaxation time until late June and what I found is it took about three weeks for me to really start to relax.  As the next few weeks went by I could almost feel the stress leaving me and realized just how uptight I had become due to the pressures of having the business and being in the field I was in.

So...for the next four to five weeks I really just started to reflect on what really used to make me get excited and it was the simple things in life.  I read a fabulous book that helped me put it in prospective.  It was called 48 Days to the Work You Love by Dan Miller.  It helps to guide you through thinking back when you were a little kid and dreamed of what you might want to be when you grew up.  It definitely helped me and would recommend it to anyone wanting to change up their professional life.  I discovered that it wasn't the nice dinners, the trips, the "stuff" we all work so hard to have.  It was the quality time with my family when I got it.  It was sitting on the deck with a cup in the coffee in the early morning looking out at the lake or a fire by the lake with family and/or friends.  I realized in those few weeks that my feeling of peace is very simple to have if I choose to have it.  It's up to me to make the choices with my life to stay in line with my real priorities.  That's why I think the cabin is so very important to me.  I found out this summer that it truly took very little to sustain me while I was at the cabin.  I didn't feel like I needed any of the extras that I feel I need while in the city.  I also know why that is now.  I don't like being in the city!  I think so many people feel this way though, so at least I don't feel alone in this.  So many of us are forced to be in the city in order to provide for ourselves and our families, but given the chance we would chuck it for a more quiet and peaceful existence.  

I thought I would share a few recent experiences that I had during my last few weekends at the lake.  My husband, daughter and I were spending the day on the lake a few weekends ago and had stopped fishing to just slowly cruise around the lake in and out of some bays that we don't normally boat into.  We both love to look at the shoreline, different cabins, and views from the lake.  On this particular day we got to experience two different events that were new to all of us.  We were boating by White Eagle Resort on the lake when we noticed a bride and groom with their wedding party down by the dock at the resort.  Then we noticed a float plane coming into the dock.  This beautiful spot on the lake had just been the location for the beginning of a new marriage for this young couple.  "How absolutely perfect!", I thought.  It was a beautiful summer day with little wind and a lot of sunshine.  A float plane ride over the lake would have been the perfect way to make a grand entrance for the reception location!  I was trying to capture the event with a picture of the wedding party, but realize I wasn't going to be able to get a picture without getting too close and that would have been rude.  So....you'll just have to imagine the bride in her long white dress, the groom and groomsmen in their black tuxes and the bridesmaids in their ruby red long dresses.  Quite a sight!

Upon starting back into our cruise we had a couple of loons decide to come close to our boat and check us out.  My husband stopped the boat so that we could possible capture a picture or two.  When they got closer to us I realized that this was a mother loon with her first year offspring.  It was so obvious to us that she was giving the little loon a few lessons that afternoon.  I captured a picture to share with you.  

I went back to the cabin and researched on the DNR's web site about the loon.  I didn't realize that Minnesota had the most number of loons of any state in the nation except Alaska! 

The male loon is slightly larger than the female loon and is usually  between 8-12 pounds when fully grown.  They are known for their red eyes which allows them to see under water better.  They are also noticed by their black bill and their summer coat which shows off the spotty black and white feathers with a black iridescent green head. In the winter months their black and white spotty exterior is replaced with gray above and white below.

Loons don't start to reproduce until they reach 3-4 years of age.  The male chooses the territory and then goes to work attracting a female.  They will build a nest out of weeds and grasses on the edge of the water and will share in the incubation of 1-2 eggs each season.  The eggs will take generally 28-30 days.  Young loons are blackish brown when born and are carted around by one of the parents on their backs in order to keep them safe from predators (larger fish and turtles).  The young aren't able to fly for the first two months, so this is critical for their survival.

In September loons begin to migrate south to the Atlantic coast from North Carolina all the south to Florida.  The adult loons migrate first in September and the young follow the migration 2-4 weeks later.

A few other interesting facts I found was that a loon needs 100'-600' of runway in order to fly because of their solid bone structure which allows them to dive so deep under water.  They can fly up to 75 miles per hour and can live up to 30 years.

So now that summer is officially over and the leaves are turning vibrant colors I'm back in the city and anticipating my new job that starts October 3rd.  I'll forever feel blessed to have been given the opportunity to spend an entire summer at the lake.  Knowing that I'll probably not be given this opportunity again until retirement, I'll be holding tight to the memories that I have and trying to keep those "priorities" straight in this new career I'm embarking upon.

I'll be making every attempt to continue blogging on a weekly basis to continue sharing my up north experiences.  It won't be more than three months from now that you'll get to share in my favorite time up north when snowmobile season kicks in.  YES!  Vroom.....Vroom!