Fishing Grandma

Thursday dawned bright and sunny.  Too bright and sunny for the kids to be in the outside pool with their fair skin all day.  So we decided to go to Tom's home to feed the ducks and fish.  Little did I know I was with a bunch of squeamish fishermen!

We fed the ducks and found the white ones very aggressive towards the one Canada goose and the half dozen Mallards.  Until the white ones were finished, the others didn't even come around,  then there was lots of honking and chasing until the white ones all swam away like a little army.

Bill had borrowed some fishing gear up at the house.  While waiting, I used the remaining bread to make dough balls using soda as the moistener.  Ted no sooner put his line in the water while helping Morgan than he had a fish.  But they all stood around looking at it!  I told them to take it off and throw it back and they asked how.  Ted wanted something to hold it with.  So I went over, grabbed the poor little fish, took the hook out of its mouth and tossed it back.

Sam wasn't having any luck so I suggested we use worms Bill brought down.  I grossed him out cutting the worm in two with my fingernail and threading it on the hook.  Sam did catch a fish but the hook was through its gills.  So after washing the worm mess off my hands I now had fish blood on them getting the fish off the hook.  I knew it wouldn't make it but didn't want to cut it up for bait in front of the kids so I tossed it off to the side.  After several nibbles it disappeared under the water and they didn't notice. 

Ted's big catch of the day!  

I think we caught about a dozen 5 inch bluegills or sunfish, not sure which.  But the kids had fun and learned a little something in the process about fishing - and Grandma's hidden talents!  I didn't spend   summers at Grand Lake as a kid and not learn a few things.

We stopped to meet Tom's very extended family and they were the nicest folks.  Later we went to dinner at the Mellow Mushroom then headed home to prepare for our Friday departure.

Our trip to Cincinnati was uneventful with no construction or Nascar race traffic delays.  Jim was glad to see us and had our spot ready.  We had settled in and were cleaning up from lunch when there was a knock on the door.  Sherry, Wyatt and Amanda stopped by on their way home from the vet.  They couldn't  stay long because all three dogs were in the car.  It was great to see them.  Our time here is short and we won't have time to see everyone so I am glad they stopped by.

When the Kara entourage arrived, we went to LaRosa's for pizza.  It was after 8:00 and we were all starving.  We drove past the two houses Kara lived in here as a child to show Bill.  She was entering Middle School when we moved to Michigan.

Sam spent the night with us and they will be by soon to get him.  The kids will spend the next 10 days with their father and then we will be there for almost three weeks to help out while they are out of school.

Our friends Jay and Stella will be at the Michigan campground while we are there.  We haven't seen them since February when they left the Rio Grande valley.  We are looking forward to spending time with them.  I want to try some of the Facebook recipes and hopefully they will be my test subjects since Ted won't!