Sunny and Cool, as a Fog Bank Rolls In

6:45

It Takes Four Men to Grill a Hot Dog

Making Friendship bracelets

Tyler and Mitch, with their Nemesis, Jill

Enjoying the afternoon

The Youngsters

The Old Smoothies

Up at 6:45, to sun but also a huge bank of fog off over Long Point and Bemus Bay.  It's now 7:30 and the fog has rolled in obscuring Long Point and Tom's Point, a cool, dampness filling the living room as I sit, still the only one up, an unusual experience when the family is here.  Another fine day on the agenda, in fact, that's all we have had since the gang arrived, one great day after another.

Yesterday, as always, was filled with fun, play, and some kind of physical activity.  We had a light  breakfast, so we could work out and then return to a brunch, of our favorite morning meat, pea meal bacon from the Lighthouse, two pounds of it, and farm fresh eggs.  The thought of it was enough to get us out doing something aerobic.  Jill, Drew and I drove over to Bemus, road our bikes along the Lake Road, through the park, to Warner's Bay, then back out to the tip of Long Point, and home.  Tom, Mary and Nick ran the Lake Rd. in Bemus, about three miles, and Beth walked up Woodlawn Rd numerous times.  Evie stayed home with the girls and boys, swam, and when we all got back, Tommy cooked the pea meal, Mitch fried over a dozen eggs, and we all pigged out on breakfast.

About 1:00, the guys, Evie, and the girls, jumped in my boat, and we went over to Midway Amusement for a couple of hours.  The lake was quite choppy both ways, the girls wrapping themselves in towels and sitting on the floor to avoid the waves, to little avail as all got wet with the spray.  We stayed at Midway for less than two hours as the kids are starting to get too old for the rides.

While we were at Midway, Beth cooked up the bratwurst in beer and Jill made her corn. tomato, herbs, and vinaigrette salad, and Tyler frosted his carrot cake.  Ron and Linda, the Leonards, and Pat Jones arrived about 5:30, every one bringing a dish.  So, while we played bean bag and talked, we had great pupus, clam and salmon dip from Pat, hanky pankies from Evie.  It was a beautiful night on the lake, a nice breeze, sunny, a perfect temperature, low 70's.  The girls sat on a blanket, making friendship blankets while we played bean bag.  About 7:00, I put the brats, Italian sausages, and hot dogs on the grill with the help of Tommy, Drew, and Ron.   It takes four to cook a brat.  Dinner was really great, the sides, Linda's potato salad, Jill's corn salad, and Joyce's baked beans, perfect accompaniments for the sausages. Most everyone went back for seconds.  For dessert we had Tyler's carrot cake, with nuts, raisins, pineapple and coconut, and the cream cheese frosting and Linda's Lemon cookie cake, both amazing.

After dinner, we had entertainment from the girls, a dance/gymnastic performance they had been working on, to music of course.  Then, Marlena sang a solo of an Adele song, and Tyler played a Pink Floyd song on the guitar, with Nick accompanying him, as Tyler had taught Nick how to play background on the mandolin.  We ended the evening sitting around the fire until about 10:00, as a full moon rose off to the south east.  Evie ended the evening with Nick, making a meringue, the kind you put in an oven at 450 degrees, turn it off, and leave it sit over night, the beginning of Nick's peach meringue dessert, my sister Ellen's recipe.  A full day.