Work-play day

Sometimes in life, you just need someone to pull you over the hump. That seems to be the expertise of our friends, Doug and Katie, who have developed a knack for showing up at Loveless at just the right time with their work gloves on.

Both grew up in small Minnesota towns and easily embrace the “barn raising” ethos. In Katie’s family, they schedule Fun Days where the extended clan gathers to do chores around the family farm and then enjoys a great meal en masse.

Last Sunday, Doug helped Chris put the last boards on the front deck, finally moving it out of the 90-percent club. Katie folded herself into the zen of painting, and almost single-handedly got the first coat of paint on one side of the walkout basement. Their small fry, Liv, brought a couple hundred toys and a babysitter to play with when she wasn’t lolling around with Chipper.

Only Doug was brave enough to douse himself in Loveless Lake on this freakishly cold “summer” day, where air temps were in the high-60s. “Refreshing!” he said, with amazing sincerity.

It’s been almost exactly a year since they last made a family trek for a little work and a little play at Loveless. Thanks to their “many hands make light work” spirit, we've made great progress along the way.