Tuesday

Another absolutely beautiful day! We had another beach day, today. We went to Itasca Park (our 4th annual trip there) and had fun exploring the headwaters of the Mississippi and playing at Lake Itasca. The boys made countless trips from the water to the top of the beach to make their rivers.....
After supper, we watched Macy play baseball. The boys learned how to eat sunflower seeds. Eric had a slight mishap when he and I were playing catch. In his words, "Mom threw the ball at my ear". In my words, "Eric did not catch the ball" There is just a bit of a bruise-nothing 2 pieces of licorice couldn't heal.
Jonathan told me today he misses his Dad. I gave the option of going home a day early. It was declined.

Monday

Megan was crowned "Queen Megan" overnight, saying goodbye to her previous status as Princess. She was up from 1-4, not really screaming, but not sleeping either. I finally got her to cuddle w/me in bed and she slept. When I woke up, she was in the middle of the bed sleeping on her back with her hands behind her head. I would have taken a picture of Queenie, but I was too tired to get my camera.
The kids had their picture taken at Hubbard Studio this am. Some are linked on the photographers blog-www.hubbardstudio.com. Follow the link to her blog-our pictures are the "cute kids" entry on 6/23.
Lots of relaxing and driving Mom crazy today. Grandma bought the boys a rocket toy that was lots of fun, except when Mommy launched it on to the roof. Grandpa saved the day. Queen Megan throws a fit every time we have to come inside. We played at Aunt Amy's for a bit after supper too. The boys have started mentioning that they miss their Dad...only a few more days until we return home! We have had great weather for our getaway so far.

Sunday

Today was the big day the boys have been waiting for (after the big night last night of having the campfire....) BEACH DAY!!! We headed to Detroit Lakes w/Grandma, Aunt Amy, Uncle Whitey, and the girls for a day of sun, sand, and water. Megan had a blast! She loved the water and playing in the sand. Eric went into engineer mode and constructed a sand castle with moat and river system back to the lake. Jonathan assisted Eric a bit, and had fun in the water.
The boys went home with Amy for a sleepover. Megan and I had fun w/Grandma and Grandpa. She had fun playing w/o being attacked by her brothers and cousins.

Saturday

It was a great day today. Nice and warm, not too windy, no icky bugs...just a great day to be outside. The boys helped Grandpa pick up pine cones in the backyard. They also helped him cut down a tree. Two five year olds with a tree trimmer-not Mom's idea of safe family fun, but I was shopping with Grandma and Megan.
Took the boys to "Kung Fu Panda" after lunch. We are all wiser with our Kung Fu skills now. Lots of giggles from Jonathan and Eric during the movie. Played with the cousins all afternoon-Megan did not share Grandpa very well-she had to kick Macy off his lap a few times.
Had a campfire after Megan went to bed, complete with s'mores, ghost stories, and campfire songs.

Friday

Day one of vacation....
We stopped at Pioneer Village in Jamestown to stretch. The kids had fun running around and burning off some energy. The horses were up close to the fence, which the boys enjoyed but Megan did not. The highlight for the boys was a pony ride. Real cowboys in the making. Megan thought it was funny.
Got to Grandma and Grandpa's at 3:30-Megan only napped 30 minutes the whole ride :-(. Only had to threaten the boys with painful spankings 17 times.
Made a spontaneous trip to Bemidji w/Amy to get tattoos....the tattoo man was grumpy, so we did not give him our business.

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