We're ba-aack!!

After having breakfast in the hotel, we hit the road at about 9:05, and decided to try a different route this year--through the twin cities instead of Duluth. We did this in hopes of meeting up with the rest of our gang who all spent the night in Coon Rapids, a superb of St. Paul. Turned out, they all left their hotel about 15-30 minutes before we got to that area, so we were trailing them. Beth & Bill (& kids), Deb & Roy (& kids), and Uncle Roy & Aunt Sone (& Paul), were all on their way to Birch Villa too. Mom & Dad, and Glen & Pat (& Brad, Jordan & Trevor) were on their way to Horseshoe Resort. We found gas for $3.89/gallon in this area, thanks to Mom & Dad's scouting for us. While we stopped for a quick lunch at Quizno's, others took their time at more leisurely restaurants or stopped for groceries, and we ended up being the first ones to arrive at Birch Villa, at 3:25 p.m. Our total trip time this year ended up being 14:30, including our 2 lunch stops.

We checked out the resort to see all the improvements since last year. The upstairs loft inside the lodge is finished, and the outside decks are now in use. The docks and boat ramp are also improved and expanded. In our cabin, we found a "new" leather sectional, and new quilts on the beds. This year Beth & Bill are in cabin #3, Uncle Roy & Aunt Sone are next to us again, and Deb & Roy are next to them. After unpacking and saying "hello" to everyone as they arrived, we ordered pizza for the kids at the lodge, and Tom & I headed to Bemidji for our big grocery run. We had a nice, quick supper first at the Ground Round, and then hit Wal-Mart.