The First AND Second Muskies of my Life

[this was the first one i've ever seen so up close and personal & even had the privilege of netting for lee]

[the happy first muskie of my life picture!!!]

Since the first summer I started dating Lee, we have been after muskies together & until the other night been muskie-less. Clarification: he's caught plenty, but never once have I been with as net girl or caught one of my own. Though I love fishing with Lee, I wimp out on him and the fish quite easily and usually resort to reading a book or flipping through Pinterest to take away the pain of not seeing any fish. With muskies I become even more of a wimp 1/ because the lures are large and so heavy to cast and 2/ because they are a hard species of fish to come by and since (until this past weekend) I had never experienced the thrill of catching one I usually have no desire to continue casting when my arm is about to fall off. Now I know the feeling & maybe just maybe it will help me to be less of a wimpy fisher-girl next time ;) 

Itasca State Park

Over the 4th, Lee & I decided to take a day trip to the headwaters of the mighty Mississippi [as I typed that just now i sang in my head M-I-SS-I-SS-I-PP-I]. We had both been before, but seeing the world together is a whole lot better. Creating "us" memories as I like to call them. We rented beach cruiser bikes & rode all around the park. We only had one minor accident - one in which I saw my entire life flash before my eyes. The story goes like this:

Lee braked abruptly in front of me to do a trick & had no clue that I was directly behind him because usually I'm quite slow, so I had to hit my brakes fast and went flying through the handle bars as a crowd of about 10 was gathered to peek at the map nearby... I cried mostly due to embarrassment...A lady in that crowd brought us her first aid kit and another kind woman brought us an ice cold water bottle...MN nice I tell ya...He bought me DQ on our way home...My knees are nearly healed. 

Exploring this big beautiful world on day trip's with this boy as a fiance makes me so excited for real vacations as a married couple where we can stay the night or week anywhere we please. 

Exploring

{Lee's face looks a bit distorted due to the tree- woops}

Lee & I love to explore the woods together. I enjoy the time spent holding his hand and getting my work-out on & he gets to be near animals. It's a win win for both of us. On this particular occasion Lee wanted to show me a spot he had in mind for wedding pictures. Eeeek! Still can't believe we get to have a wedding & be married people who sleep by each other and such. I am getting lots done as far as planning goes and plan to share bits & pieces of inspiration and ideas here as we get further along. Hope your week is peachy!