The Haskell Family ::Est. 2007::: Annual weekend trip to Lake Geneva 2012

Ever since Dan & I got married, well even before we were married, Lake Geneva has been our favorite place. Before we were married we would go visit the town for a day, shopping, eating, & walking along the shore. I suppose since we fell in love with Lake Geneva while we were falling in love with each other is why we decided to honeymoon there. Sometimes I wish we would've gotten the experience of an all inclusive resort on a tropical island for a whole week for our honeymoon, but then I remember the fun we had & how special it was, & I wouldn't change a thing about it : ) The fall of 2007 (the year we were married) we joined a 2:1 small group (a small group for newly married couples). That is when we met Brian & Leslie Schwartz, & we immediately connected with them & loved them! They have become great friends & mentors to Dan & I, we are blessed to know them. Brian & Leslie own a condo on the lake (along with a boat!) & have so graciously invited us year after year to join them for a night or two. So of course we took them up on their offer every year! But now, they actually own a house on the lake that they have completely re-modeled with 4 bedrooms, 4 bath, bonus rooms & a theater room! We are so grateful to the Schwartz's for their hospitality & generosity to us & look forward to our time up at the lake with them every year. I share all that with you to lead into this years annual weekend trip to Lake Geneva...

It was a blast! (as the theme for our summer has been!) Last year we went up to the lake with a few other couples, one of them being Ryan & Emily Baker, who only had their 1 son Colin, at the time. We could tell right off the bat that we were gonna be fast friends with this couple! They are great! So, naturally when we were all thinking of when to go up to the lake this year we planned a weekend to go together again. This will hopefully be a yearly tradition now with the Bakers : )

We got up to the house on Friday night, unloaded the cars & enjoyed a delicious meal made by the Bakers. After we put the kids to bed (Colin (2), Josiah (1) & Elijah (4mo.) us adults stayed up & talked & caught up with Brian & Leslie. But we wanted to get a good nights sleep for a fun Saturday, so we went to bed shortly after 10pm. We woke up Saturday morning, had bagels for breakfast & got ready to go on the boat. It was a beautiful day on the lake! The boys absolutely loved the boat ride, & got to help Gmpa Brian drive it several different times, too. We took a short break & anchored so the guys could jump in the water & cool off. The kids loved it too! After a few hours on the boat we rode back to shore for lunch & naps. It was a quiet afternoon- the kids napped, & well some of us adults napped too : ) Dan & I made dinner Saturday night- homemade burgers, sweet corn & the worlds best potato salad (no I didn't make it, its from Costco). We decided to watch a movie after the kids were in bed, & the one we watched I wouldn't recommend, but now I can't even think of the name of it! Haha But we shared some laughs!

Sunday morning we were able to go out on the boat again, & believe it or not, Sunday was even more beautiful out than Saturday. Wow, I was so so grateful! We toured the lake again, took a quick swim break, passed by the Abbey resort (where we honeymooned!) & got back to the house again for lunch. Our campus pastor, Jeff Donaldson, at Elgin Harvest & his family were on their way up for a nights stay at the Schwartz Inn, so they joined us for lunch. It was great to see them & fellowship with one another. We left to go home shortly after lunch, though, & as always, it was hard to leave this beautiful place & wonderful company. We had such a great time with y'all! & cannot wait until next year!!