Lazy Cabin Days

 

Early in our marriage Dan and I had a desire to find a cabin that we could rent and return to year after year. We had some specific things we were looking for – privacy was high on our list.  We didn’t want to stay at a resort with lots of business; we wanted to be away together as a family where we could enjoy nature and each other. We couldn’t even think of owning one at but we did desire to have a special place to make great family memories each year.

We drove hundreds of miles and stayed at some terrible places – such as the cabin that had fleas and the one without water in the lake. Then I thought I found what sounded like just the one, but Dan was uncertain if he wanted to try and experience another failure.

This cabin was owned by a Christian family who was hoping to cut their expenses by renting it out to a few select people. We had to go for an interview and they wanted references. It was about a half hour’s drive from two of Dan’s aunts, so we invited ourselves to stay with one of them for the weekend and arranged for our ‘interview”.

Eric was just 2 months old, Rebekah was two and Emily was four when we met with Mr.  & Mrs. Bear – yes their name really is Bear and we call it the Bear’s cabin. We all took to each other immediately and they decided we would be great renters and we loved the cabin.

It was located on a bay and they owned all the lots in the bay so it was very private. It had three bedrooms, a shower, dishwasher, and washer and dryer – what more could a family with three little ones hope for. A bonus we hadn’t hoped for was the closeness to Dan’s relatives and my sister and her husband who bought a cabin in the area a few years later. This turned out to be a real blessing as we’ve enjoyed many family times each year.

This is the 17th year we have gone to this cabin. Some years while Eric had leukemia we went both spring and fall since he needed to be close to pediatric oncologists and you can’t find them everywhere. Since it was only a couple of hours from ours it was an ideal place for us to vacation.

Psalm 37:4 says: “Take delight in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

We’ve really been blessed to see this happen in our lives as the Lord prepared this vacation retreat for our family. We have so many traditions that we can’t do them all in one trip anymore. Of course, in our family if we do anything more than once it becomes a tradition.

Some of our fun things are:

Fishing

Canoeing

Visiting relatives and friends

Pet turtles and snakes

Long walks on country roads

Midnight rides in our PJs while listening to a book on tape

S’mores for breakfast

Silly dancing to the old songs on the player piano

Fireworks – they’re legal in Wisconsin

Breakfast at Jo MaMa’s

Collecting and watching Monarch butterfly caterpillars hatch

Trips to Bargain Bill’s

Father’s Day – we are always there for this and celebrate with breakfast in bed

Rebekah’s half birthday – since her’s is January 5th we celebrate here with family

Eric’s re-birthday – Eric gave his life to the Lord on the dock here so we remember his commitment during this time

Our desires have been more than fulfilled as all three children agree that this is always their favorite vacation.

I hope you enjoy some of our photos and my reminiscing as we prepare for this year’s trip to the Bear’s cabin. I hope my story inspires you to ask the Lord to fulfill some of your heart’s desires.

Finding Joy in the Journey,
Phyllis

Phyllis Sather
Proclaiming God’s Faithfulness at:
http://www.Phyllis-Sather.com

© 2008 Phyllis Sather
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Contact me at: Phyllis@Phyllis-Sather.com