The Maas Munchkins: July 2018

Monday, July 30, 2018

Blue skies, bike rides

The weather has been perfect for outdoor adventures this past month. One evening, Mommy and Daddy took the girls to Como Pavillion for dinner and a theater performance. Once Mommy checked in with the theater performance group, she realized that the show was going to last longer than a young child's attention span. Luckily, we discovered some push pedal bikes that could seat the family. We took a couple trips around the lake on our bike while the girls chowed down on their ice cream. As we tend to be known for our boo-boo abilities these days, the evening could not be complete without a mishap. Tonight's mishap was Mommy convincing the girls it would be fun to wade out in the pool next to the waterfall like other families were doing. As soon as Analise stepped into the water, she slipped and her dress was drenched on the bottom. Thankfully the bathroom had some air dryers to help Analise move beyond her feelings of "wetness."

Dress is all dry. Ready to bike!

On July 29th, Mommy, Daddy and Emma took students from third through fifth grade on a bike trip down the Gateway trail. The day was perfect for biking and the group came well prepared with snacks, lunches and water bottles. We completed a twenty mile trip with a picnic and hike in the middle. We even finished early and decided to spend some time down by Silver lake beach. The group ended their trip at the Dairy Queen. Because the event was such a success, Mommy plans to do another ride next year with the possibility of an overnight at William O'Brien State Park.

Bike Trip Group Summer 2018

Playgrounds, Beaches and Ice Cream...Who could ask for anything more?

Braids and Birthdays

The girls attended many birthdays this summer and Mommy learned how to French braid from our Spanish tutors. Mommy definitely needs a bit more practice with her technique but she was really proud of her first ever French braid. Below are some pictures from Camille's birthday at the nature center. The group read nature books, did a scavenger hunt in the garden and made flower pots to take home. Emma and Mommy built a fort in the Discovery Center after the party was over.

Mommy's first braid

A story with a garden theme

Emma designing a flower pot

Olivia and Analise making flower pots

Our amazing fort had a door in the front and back. Our roof was made of sticks that were then covered in pieces of bark we ripped from a dead tree.

Helicopter Ride

Although our first attempt at going up in a helicopter was a flop, we managed to go out on a beautiful Sunday afternoon for a ride during the Stillwater Lumberjack days. Originally, Mommy and Daddy had reserved a spot on the helicopter for a date night. However, rain and wind caused the helicopter to be down for the night. After much disappointment and frustration (having to run after the truck as it drove away from the landing pad), Mommy was able to talk with the company and get them to not only take up 2 people but instead 4 people if we came back a different day.

As we drove into Stillwater, we thought we might be running late for the ride again due to traffic and blocked off roads for the parade that we had not expected. After making a quick detour around the parade, we arrived at the lift off spot just in time. Analise and Mommy went up first, followed by Emma and Daddy. Analise was very fearful of the loud noise and rotating blades. However, Mommy convinced her to go up and get over her fear. She bravely wore a headset and held onto Mommy's hand with the death grip. When we lifted off into the air, the flight was smooth and peaceful. Analise mentioned that the objects below looked like toys and began noticing many things like cars, houses and pools. Before landing we saw a hawk flying alongside the helicopter. The pilot said it could be a problem if the bird got too close. Thankfully, we landed safely and were able to see Emma and Daddy go up for their ride. Daddy and Emma both enjoyed their trip. Daddy mentioned he was a bit frightened having no door on his side of the helicopter but had made it beyond his fear just like Analise. Next up...flying somewhere in a plane.

Friday, July 13, 2018

Vacationing in July

Everyone was off on vacation during the end of June and beginning of July. Mommy went to Colorado with her teammates from Matoska, and Daddy took the girls to Madison to celebrate the 4th of July with grandma and grandpa.

The girls also got to hang out with Michael and his girl friend, Ashley, as well as Becky and her boyfriend, Shawn. While Mommy hiked in the mountains, the girls took bike rides in a neighborhood parade, spent plenty of time on the boat (and behind the boat on a tube) and time at Uncle Mike's house. The girls were excited to see grandma Jan's new cats, but to their surprise, the cats didn't really want to come out and visit. On one of the last days of their vacation, Emma was able to pet the orange cat named Cheddar and tease him with a feather. When Ani was asked what her favorite part of the trip was, hands down it was the Fourth of July popsicle and going behind the boat. Emma's favorite moment was petting Cheddar. Some day that girl will own a cat.

Mommy's trip had many adventures with people getting altitude sickness and needing to buy oxygen (thank goodness Mommy never experienced all the suffering others did). During the group's stay, we hiked in the mountains, witnessed wildfires that were getting a bit close to the local towns, sat in outdoor jacuzzies at twilight and visited a dinosaur footprints and bones dig site. On the way back to Minnesota, Mommy was telling her friend Dave that she would like to have a dog again some day. The second she said, "I want a dog again," a scrawny, black chihuahua mix emerged from under her legs and jumped up on her lap. See the picture below with the dog giving Dave face licks.