The (fishy) fruits of our labor.

Sam and I went home to Colorado for the 4th of July. Among the many fabulous events of the long weekend - barhopping downtown, dinner at the back patio, a fiesta party with old family friends, swimming in the spring fed pool, patriotic music on a picnic blanket - we also took our first successful fishing excursion as a family. And we caught fish. Lots of fish.

Which we then ate.

We had fish prepared three ways: with lemon and herbs, cooked on blanked cedar, and stuffed with bacon pieces. While they were all delicious, stuffed with bacon was the best! What is it about bacon that makes things taste so good. We ate all ten fish sitting together on the patio, enjoying the cool Colorado summer nights. It was so good, and it almost seemed unfair because it was so easy to catch those darn fish.

It was easy because we cheated a little bit, and we went to a stocked trout pond near Mt. Evans to do our fishing. You see, my parents were feeling upset that they had never taken us fishing. They kept saying "One of our great regrets is that we never took you girls to catch fish." Honestly, if not catching fish with your daughters is one of your only regrets, I think you are living a pretty great life. But who wants to live with any regret? So we went fishing and it was fun.

The scenery was lovely, and the place rented fishing poles, stocked bait, and basically guaranteed as many fish as you could catch. Not more than 90 seconds after the first cast, we were already reeling in the fish. They even gutted and cleaned the fish for you when you were finished (unless you're Blake, in which case you gut and clean your own fish).

I am not going to lie, there was a bit of guilt involved in catching the fish. It is sad to pull a lovely living thing out of its habitat and let it suffocate at your own hands. And pulling that hook out of the throat was a bit gross and a lot painful on my sense of kindness. But eating that fish, and feeling that sense of satisfaction for having caught my dinner, quickly erased the gross parts of fishing. Plus, it's good to wipe a regret off the list.

Anne casts her line.

Blake shows off is catch.

Removing the hook.

Kate's trouble casting.

Three cheers for fishing success - thanks Ellen and Dad.

A true father daughter moment as I learn how to hook my fish on the line.

Mom and Ellen scoop one out of the water.

Fishy kisses Annie.

Blake guts his own fish.

Sam displays the trophies.

The Rawley crew after a successful trout fishing adventure.