Ahhhh - Madeline Island

After the hectic summer I always love to go up to Madeline Island to unwind.
This year my parents came up also. This was the first time in many years we vacationed together. But I think they liked it - a lot!
The first day my mom comes up with a huge rock to take home. Shopping at the lake is so inexpensive. Then there were bowls of chili, puzzles to put together, yes and of course beadwork. Even my mom tried her hand at beading, first a star and them around a piece of driftwood.
My dad has a bad knee and a bad ankle so a trip down those stairs was out of the question. He would take my dog, Shambala, and walk around up on top. He would see all sorts of wildlife on his walks. Here he is resting on the deck with 'bala between walks. While he was sitting out there one day, an eagle flew right over the edge of the cliff. So cool!
When the sun was out it was nice outside, the deck is sheltered from the wind, and what a view.
Every day I would walk down to the lake, to look for rocks and driftwood. I was collecting driftwood to finish off my BJP for this year. I am making an accordion style book with the driftwood for the end pieces.
While I was down there one day I decided to try my hand at a self portrait. I would set up my camera on a rock and then run to the other rock to sit down. My dog thought this was such a fun game. I had to be careful running so I would not break anything on the rocky shore. Here is one of the better attempts. Shambala was not there in time to turn around and smile!
She probably had the most fun of all. She is a water dog, loves to swim. That water is sooooo cold, but she didn't care. Look at the smile!