"A dream can't come true if you don't dream it."

It's cottage planning season and time to reflect on a lot of hard work to date.

It's hard to believe, that just 2 1/2 years ago, my husband and I purchased a waterfront island property on Rice Lake.  How we would get to our boat access only lot would be our first obstacle.  Problem solved..... acquired with our property was an old fiberglass boat, abandoned in the bay directly in front of our lot.  We pulled it ashore, bailed it out, and took a sigh of relief when it floated.  Phew.

The old shed

The first summer we spent clearing brush.  The bon fires were amazing!  We spent nights sleeping in an abandoned shed.  Although I love camping and was grateful to have a roof over my head, sleeping with insects and the odd creature put the wheels in motion for building a bunkie.  With no running water, hydro, or outhouse, and the discovery of poison ivy,  we knew we had a lot of work ahead of us.

By the end of the first cottage season, we built our 8 x 12 bunkie and outhouse.  What a relief!  We also had enough PC points to purchase a bbq.  At this point, fire roasted hot dogs were losing their appeal!  In Fall of 2009, we we're on the grid with Hydro.  Ahhhh...... refrigeration!  My husband surely appreciated the cold certified (blue mountain) beer after a hard days work.  This is cottage life!

Summer of 2010- The new bunkie!

2010 started off with a bang.  We added a small wrap around deck to the bunkie and heavily seeded the lot with hopes of keeping the poison ivy at bay but the season was short lived as we awaited the birth of our first baby.  On July 28, 2010, the world became more beautiful with the arrival of our daughter.  With no running water, a completely unreliable boat, and a new baby, we knew we had our work cut out for us.  2010 was pretty much a write off.  At the end of the season, we purchased a used pontoon boat from another islander.  We're rarin to go for Spring of 2011!

Our daughter is now 6 months old, and we're getting the cottage (bunkie) itch again!  We are so excited to start the season.  We cannot wait to take our baby to the property.  She seems as though she is going to crawl anyday now which is very exciting but it will pose more challenges having a baby on the move!  Although there will be obstacles ahead, these challenges keep us focused and inspired to create a family getaway.

This blog is a chronicle of our adventures on Rice Lake with our newest little cottager.  We hope you enjoy it and are inspired to follow your cottage dreams!  You can follow my blog by clicking on the Follower widget on my top right sidebar!