Time with Joy

Since both Dan and Erin were working this past week, Erin's friend Joy watched the girls in the afternoons. They got to volunteer at Manna Market twice. On the first day they sorted through expired food to make sure that food recipients did not get any spoiled food. For the first time the girls saw that bugs could be in and on food. They understood firsthand fears that students who do recieve food from food shelfs have about food being expired or contaminated. They had to look for mold and pests. Both girls were a bit grossed out, but very thankful for the food that they do have available at our house. They also began to realize the importance of canning and preserving food properly. If for some reason our crops failed during certain years, using canned goods and things that had been preserved is essential. They were amazed at how long some things last in containers. Besides checking food, they were able to shop for families and select weekly meals. Both girls spoke of the meals they created with materials for things like tacos and cookies. Besides volunteering, the girls went paddleboarding with Joy and her friend on the lake as well as visited the Como Zoo. This round of paddleboard went more smoothly and no one fell in the lake. While at the Zoo the girls saw the Sparky the seal show and got to visit all the animals. Analise had a special encounter with an Orangutan. When she decided to press her face against the glass, the Orangutan decided to copy her and smash his face into the glass. He also put his hand up to hers. Emma said everyone in the area was laughing as they watched him copy her. Of course Analise doesn't like this kind of attention so the interactions probably ended quite quickly.

Finland (Minnesota) Adventures

This past weekend, we travelled up to the North Shore. We started our explorations off with a lighthouse adventure and rock climbing. Analise wanted to make sure that when we hiked we got to climb on rocks. There was definitely a lot of rock climbing to be had throughout the trip. After taking in some amazing views of the lake, we headed to Gooseberry Falls. We once again hiked for a bit then went swimming in the river near the lake. Dan managed to get in the lake. He commented that within seconds he started to feel his feet freezing. Emma and Analise barely made it in. They swam across a small part of the river. As they climbed out, Emma managed to get a leech on her which resulted in lots of screaming. Erin tried to remove the leech with a rock, but it took Dan squeezing it off for it to finally remove itself. Man, those suckers are gross. Emma's experience left all of us in a bit of shock and no more swimming was done for the rest of the trip. After swimming came a hike alongside the many waterfalls within the park. Then we were off to our Airbnb house for the night. The next morning, we visited Tettegouche State Park. Once again we saw lots of waterfalls and hiked down to the lake for a picnic lunch. Emma participated in a park program where she learned how they made rope before machines came into play. She got to take home the long piece of rope she made. In the afternoon, we took a bike ride alongside the lake and hiked around Beaver Creek. Analise and Dan climbed on some really large rocks and we skipped some stones on the beach. Not exactly sure when we visited black sand beach but we added to a cool rock sculpture while there. We also went to mass at a small church in Silverbay that evening and roasted marshmallows over the stove. We opted for the stove because the mosquitoes were pretty bad at night and there was no small wood pieces to start a fire. On our last day, we gathered June berries from a nearby park. Then we headed to Split Rock Lighthouse as well as Duluth. It rained off and on throughout the afternoon. We weren't sure if we needed rain jackets or sunscreen. Erin is known for putting on sunscreen right before it rains. We hiked around Lester Park for a bit and had a picnic lunch. Then we headed down to Cannal Park to visit the Lift Bridge. We made it to the other side where there was softer sand. By the end of it, we were all exhausted. It was hard to think we had a full week of Girls on the Run camp coming up as well as Grandpa Mark's birthday and fun times with Joy. Summer is slipping by quickly.

Fun with Furniture

Over the summer, Erin has been trying to get rid of old toys and items we no longer use around the house. She has started to get rid of a lot of her classroom materials as well. We finally got rid of a couch that Erin has had since college and replaced it with an IKEA couch. When the couch arrived, Analise helped to piece it together. It was like putting together a giant Lego kit. Emma had a fun week at volleyball camp and both girls celebrated Grandma Kathy's birthday with some pool time and a buffet lunch.

Time with Relatives

We spent the first weekend in July with Dan's parents. On Friday evening we went to the Shakespeare in the Park performance of "Much a Do About Nothing." The evening was a perfect temperature to be outside and the actors were very talented with their facial expressions and body movements. The play was long but definitely brought Shakespeare's words to life. On Saturday, we visited Como Town. The girls had been talking about the rides they would go on for the past week. Although a favorite was the spinning ride, the group went on the pirate ship and swings quite a bit too. After rides, the girls went with grandma and grandpa on the Swan paddleboat. Erin and Dan went on a quick bike ride around the lake. Next was a Dairy Queen visit and a stop at White Bear Lake for a quick swim. The sailboats were out doing a race that day. The evening was followed by chatting on the deck. On Sunday, we went out on White Bear Lake kayaking and paddleboarding. Emma and Analise were on a paddleboard together for the first time. Unfortunally, there were quite a few waves and the wind was strong. The girls found it hard to get back to the starting point. Somehow Analise got knocked off the board as Emma tried to paddle. It was a rough first time out boarding but everyone made it safely back to shore.

Friend Meet Ups

This past week, we were able to visit Carolyn and her girls, Angelica and Samantha, as well as Wade and Li Ming and their daughter, Kairis. We visited both Woodbury and Stillwater parks. When the girls went out with Carolyn's girls, they got a bit adventurous on the slides. Samantha really got a wild ride shown in one of the photos. Somehow I managed to take all pictures while Angelica's head was covered by her hat. We tried for a full group picture, but it was a bit too challenging to get everyone facing the right way. I also proved to be the world's worst photographer by not getting close ups. Hopefully Carolyn got a few that turned out better. As for adventures with Kairis, she was a bit shy at first and played hide and seek on the trains. About halfway through the get together she played in the sand and the girls were able to sit next to her. By the end of the visit, she raced them on the Stillwater bridge and willingly held Emma's hand. The girls wanted me to take a picture of them on the big bear at Teddy Bear Park. It has been a while since we have visited the park and old memories were sparked. In between get togethers, the girls decided to camp out on the trampoline. Smart move, because at the time we were unaware there was a cougar roaming through our neighborhood. Being up high and having an extra net has its advantages.

Festivities

The past two weeks have been filled with lots of swimming, biking and reading. The girls lucked out when we ran into friends, Lily and Violet, from school while visiting Lake Elmo park. We also found some new swimming holes on White Bear Lake. Birch park and Chautauqua park seem to be our new favorites. We can bike to both easily. We had to give up our old favorite, Willernie beach, this year because the lake is too shallow with the lack of rainfall. Thank goodness we can bike further distances and the City of White Bear is working to make a bike trail that goes all the way around the lake. Next year we will have access to the downtown and all the beaches using the trails. Over the weekend, Erin and the girls attended the Swedish Maypole activity at a farm in Scandia. We toured all of the historial buildings to learn how the Swedish people lived when they first came to America. The girls were fascinated by the story of the Tomte told by one of the historians. Erin was impressed she got to stand in the oldest functioning church in Minnesota. The church was made with no nails and the boards were put together in a Lincoln log like fashion. Following our building tours, we participated in a variety of activities. The favorite activity seemed to be making flower crowns with wildflowers. Coming in a close second was running with the metal hoops followed by milking the cow and wringing out clothes using an old fashioned tool. Everyone was impressed by the amount of Swedish we were hearing families speak as we passed by different groups. We had to leave the Maypole ceremony a bit early due to rain, but we got to hear the Swedish National Anthem and some songs in Swedish.

Unfortunately, the Canadian wildfires have made it hard to breathe outside for the last week, so we have had to make due indoors. We walked at the indoor ice arena and found some free bowling tickets for kids to pass the time. Hopefully, the ash won't last all summer.

Belated Birthday

Emma decided she wanted to celebrate her birthday at the sand castle building contest on White Bear Lake this year. She invited three friends to build with her. Analise decided to have her own team, including her friends Ellie and Emily. Both teams worked hard for the entire time given. Emma's team created a porcupine with tons of quills. Each girl told a fact about porcupines when they presented to the judges. Analise's team built Old Jerusalem. When they presented they talked about all the key places within the city. Emma's team ended up getting 3rd place for the "Creatures" category this year and Analise's team got 1st place for "Castles" category. After the judging, we all walked over to Cup and Cone for some ice cream. We were lucky it was a clear sky day and everyone had an enjoyable time. The girls hope they can get their friends together again at some point this summer.