Mother's Day Weekend

The Marquette grandchildren came to town and were ready for some adventures.

Time to switch bow paddlers.

First secure the life jacket so that it is snug.

Off we go.

Next, big sister's turn.

This fellow has rock lifting in his genes.  My great-grandfather in Finland, Juho Wiitala, once lifted a huge boulder that no one else was able to move and carefully placed it on a wagon.  The boulder became a test of strength for the young men of the village but none were able to lift it.  When my grandfather, also named Juho Wiitala, returned to Finland for a visit after a stint of working in the copper mines, he also tried.  He was a powerful man in his prime, and when he exerted himself witnesses claimed that a bit a daylight appeared between the rock and the ground, but the boulder rose no further.

Later we took a hike.

The girls are sitting on an enormous boulder left by the glacier.  Since it could not be moved, the farmer who cultivated this old forty piled up field rock all around it.  The old Finnish settlers spent their lives moving rock -  in both the copper mines and in their fields.  They were tough men.

Today the old field has reverted to forest and all that remains of the old settlers' efforts are rock piles.

Where their descendants play.  Sometime in the future these children may pause to consider - and respect - just how much hard physical work went into creating these piles.

Someday this little guy may find himself piling rocks also.

Later we enjoyed Marja's delicious lasagna.

The littlest cousins made some coffee afterward.

Six of our seven grandchildren helped celebrate Marja's birthday, which fell on Mother's day.