Thankful for the Polar Plunge jumpers

January 9th marked the 10th annual polar plunge for Angel on My Shoulder and we were there, once again, to document the event. :)

All the people lined up were jumpers, but Mr Green-britches was the most scantily clad. lol

The first jumper turned to his girlfriend, ring in hand, and asked her to take the big plunge with him!

She said yes, then he scooped her up and they went to take the cold jump.

There they go!

They a quiet, cold, moment to celebrate their choice!

Too funny not to share.

Think that water was cold? Lemme tell you, they have to keep skimming the ice off while waiting, so yeah, it
is cold.

They look a little nervous.

I cropped in so you could see the expressions. I think dad is saying a prayer, wondering what his wife got them in to. The little girl looks like she'd rather be anywhere else. Even mom, seems she might be having second thoughts.

Hosted by Cecily and Michelle

Yay! They did it!

Even the devil took on an angel.

But this hairy angel is taking that devil with him.

I'm truly thankful for the people willing to brave the frigid water, and air, to raise money for such a worthy cause!  Sorry this one is a little late.  But it was too good to glide over.

LAST year's plunge photos are here :)

Partying with some Packers

Hmmm, wonder what’s going on here. Do you have any ideas?

Well, first up is me with Gilbert Brown. I know , I look goofy!  I think he had just told me to eat a cookie!

Here he is signing a photo for me. These Green Bay Packer players were at the huge annual fundraiser for Angel on My Shoulder. It’s a huge event that happens every June - maybe you want to plan a trip up here for the next one? Gilbert was there last year as well and he is loads of fun! This year he brought his brother with him - they look a lot a like. About a month ago they were in our favorite Chinese restaurant when we picked up some food.  So you never know where he'll tunr up, but if you see a Hummer painted like the Hulk, he's nearby.

Here’s William Henderson signing my photo. He brought his father and his sweet son along. The families spent the day fishing while we all went to the golf course.

Craig Newsome was also there and here he is signing my photo. He was the quietest of them all. They all like to raz the 'paparazzi' and we give it right back!  We were impressed that they all prayed together before eating.

And here’s the one of me with Craig and William. All of these were taken during the Party with Pack on Thursday evening.

Before the golf course, Friday morning starts with a breakfast at the Wolf Pack Café, and those Packers were hungry! But I will not let them in the door until we get the mandatory shots of them with the owners of the café in front of the sign. Amazing that lil ole me can stop three huge football players isn’t it?

We spent 14 hours shooting photos on Friday but had loads of fun doing it!  All of the photos in this post were taken by my husband, which might be obvious since I'm in so many of them but I feel I should say anyway.  Credit where credit is due kinda thing - ya know? ;-)

If you want to know more about Angel on My Shoulder or see Leroy Butler and Gilbert from last year then please visit this post.  It's truly a great organization that I'm proud to help out!

Camp Angel

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

The kids had a great time at Camp Angel. Although they all have an immediate family with cancer their weekend is about having fun. Getting away from it and spending time in the rocking chair room, spending time getting to know some animals and rock climbing.

Doing crafts and getting their faces painted.

Snowshoeing, when the weather finally warmed up a little from the -14 degrees we woke up to.

Riding on snowmobiles on the lake.

Thumbs up! Think they’re having fun!

Sledding.

This little boy wiped my husband out. Camera’s fine, and laughs all around.

They also got to ride in a horse drawn sleigh and on dog sleds! Needless to say they all went home exhausted. It’s one of the best things Angel on My Shoulder does. And it’s free for them to come!

Further proof that Wisconsinites are crazy ;)

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

Wonder why all those snowmobiles are parked on the frozen lake. Yes, that is a lake, as far as you can see, clear over to the tree line. And there is a snowmobile path growing straight across the lake.

And honestly, I don’t remember the exact temperature when we were out this day but I know it was frickin’ cold. Probably either near negative or in the negatives.

But this is what brought us out, and all those snowmobilers. Do you know what’s happening yet? Well, a big hole has been cut in the ice, a platform assembled, and that guy is scraping off the forming ice to make sure we have water. He did this several times while we waited. It was freezing quickly!

Soon, people are all lined up to the platform and the crazy people are jumping in that freezing water! Are they nuts? This guy has a cigar in his mouth, can you see it?

Ker-splash!

Uncle Sam and the Statue of Liberty jumped.

They just got a tiny bit wet. ;)

Don’t you just love the water draining from the tip of his hat? The guy in camo was there to help people back out of the water. And there were two ambulances standing by.

Now here’s some brave girls! I loved their expressions and how they all seemed to be “in it” together.

And some more brave girls! Look at those expressions! That water is cold! Remember it will freeze if not kept moving.

Apparently frogs like freezing water.

There were 144 plungers, and they weren’t entirely nuts. This was an Angel on My Shoulder fundraiser and they raised over $29,000!

They don’t look cold at all, do they?

When it was over, the jumpers went to warming tents and hot tubs. And the snowmobilers went back to the trails.

The snowmobile with the flag is the trail patrol.

Princess for an evening

Angel on My Shoulder, along with Golden Eagle Log Homes, hosted a wine event and there were so many details to capture and share.

A couple of raccoons carved into the railings.

A version of the house carved into its own mantle.

Plenty of beer.

And pretzels.

Wine for all.

Magnificent views!

Amazing surprises sculpted into the walls.

Silly seductive celebrities. Stephanie Klett, with Discover Wisconsin, is such a hoot!

Now, what would you make with a whole bunch of corks?  No seriously, an ideas?

Book Giveaways are here! :)