Clouds over Conneaut Lake

See if you see the same things we saw in the clouds.

See the Mickey Mouse head?

A bear cub's head facing to the left...

A close-up of Mickey Mouse...

Pymatuning Spillway Update

Looks like the people have spoken. January 1, 2009 was to mean the end of feeding bread to fish at the Spillway in Linesville. After much public outcry, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources decided that the feeding can continue for another year. This doesn't necessarily mean the end of the debate, however. It's merely another year for the Department to evaluate the decision. Until then, enjoy watching these giant carp flop on top of each other as they fight for loaves of bread.

Pymatuning Spillway makes the New York Times!

Today's New York Times reported on the bread controversy at the Linesville Spillway. Click on this link to read the article. Many thanks to my brother for pointing this out.

End of Summer in Conneaut Lake

Our summer at the lake has come to an end. While my daily blog posts will end for now, I will continue next summer and will also post any important or interesting news from the lake over the winter.

With a barn cat...

On the boat...

Lemonade stand...

A prime location next to Midway Beach...

Lightning bugs...

On the boat...

Sandcastles on Midway Beach...

A cookout...

Building a sandcastle...

Fun with Cousins in Conneaut Lake

Our kids spent a lot of time this summer with cousins from both sides of the family. The past week was spent with all of their cousins from my husband's side, and the week proved to be one of the highlights of the summer.

A captive audience for a kayak lesson from a fun aunt...

The boys playing dominos on a rainy day...

Fishing...

Roasting marshmallows...

The girls...

Enjoying a s'more...

With the grandparents...

The siblings...

The whole gang...

A new captain for the boat...

A boat ride...

Dog Days of Summer in Conneaut Lake

The Dog Days of Summer ended yesterday, and I realized that our time in Conneaut Lake overlapped almost exactly with the period defining the Dog Days of Summer. In honor of that, here are the dogs that shared our summer lake experience with us.

Unlikely friends - Charlie, Sport and Greta...

Charlie...

A rare photo of Greta resting...

Sport...

The three buddies...

Sport at the beginning of summer, before his visit to Classy Canine in Meadville...

After being groomed at Classy Canine...

Sesquicentennial Parade in Conneaut Lake

Conneaut Lake went all out for last Saturday's parade celebrating the town's 150th birthday. People came out of the woodwork for a parade that was both small town in feel and more grand than expected.

The crowd lined both sides of the street...

The Grand Marshall...

Best seat in the house...

There was even an ice cream social following the parade...

A log cabin float...

The best part of the parade for the kids...

Lighting Luminaries for Conneaut Lake's 150th Birthday

This year marks the 150th Birthday of Conneaut Lake. The weekend celebration kicked off with lighting luminaries around the lake on Friday night. The fire alarm sounded at 9 pm, signaling lights out and luminaries on. The idea was to recreate what the lake would have looked like 150 years ago. After lighting luminaries on our dock, we walked around part of the lake to enjoy the beautiful scene the candles created. The feeling was quite magical, with many people out of their porches and docks.

Lighting our luminaries...

Another dock...

View of the lake...

Funny Photos from Conneaut Lake

Over the course of the summer, we've had our share of funny moments.

My kids must not have read the 'not to be used as a flotation device' label on this wagon...

Nice hair...

I had to laugh when I saw this mini s'more. I assumed it belonged to my 3 year old niece...

I laughed even harder when I found out that it belonged to my husband...

You see some strange fish at the Pymatuning Spillway. We've always been warned that a diet of white bread is not good for you...

No, this isn't a wig...

His mother is so proud...

Playing in the sand...

My daughter styled 'grandma's' hair...

Midway Beach Area Cottages in Conneaut Lake

Earlier this summer I exchanged emails with a friend from our New York days. She remarked that it was wonderful that we'd be spending time at our 'country home'. Bob and I got a good chuckle out of that, because our summer cottage is just that - a summer cottage. When I say 'cottage', I am not merely being modest as some people are when they refer to their summer homes in posh areas as 'cottages'. The Midway Beach area is full of modest cottages that have one thing in common - they all have names. In fact, when my husband was growing up, the cottages were only known by their names, not street numbers. None of the cottages even had phone numbers, and my husband would spend his afternoons as a messenger, delivering phone messages from the real estate office to occupants of the cottages. He knew each cottage by name. Some of the cottages have been in the same family for generations, and have names that go back that far.

This darling cottage is called 'Dream Cottage'...

The 'Front 9' sits at the front of this property, with (you guessed it) the 'Back 9' behind it...

Some appear to be named after owners...

And others have a deeper inspiration...

This tiny cottage, the Priscilla, is one of my favorites, and seems so appropriately named. My mother-in-law says it's been the Priscilla for as long as she can remember. I'd love to know who Priscilla was...