Blake's Annual Visit

The kids requested waffles, which meant that I was making my go to oatmeal whole wheat variety using our Nordic Ware pans of course.

A stack of library books means it's library day.

Blake was in town for his annual Teamsters gathering.

We had to take him to our new favorite buffet, Q.Cumbers.

Salad buffet and Veganopolis. A match made in heaven.

Blake needed to get comfortable after filling his belly.

Blake's just a big kid when he's around Theo and Meadow. They adore him.

We told Blake he had to teach Theo how to ride a bike.

No dice.

I tried my hand at an Annika (our friend from New Mexico) breakfast but not sure what the issue is. My Finnish pancakes are never fully cooked in the center.

I don't get it. Think you need to get her recipe.

It was a nice day so a bike ride it is.

What could be more Minneapolis than a good bike ride?

We took the Blaisdell protected bikeway in front of our house to a quiet east-west route and hopped over to the Byrant even-more-protected bikeway. Gotta love biking in Minneapolis.

I love the Blaisdell two-way curb protected lanes, but Bryant is even nicer. 10/10 put this on every fourth block.

First stop was the new playground at Meadow's old school.

Meadow was disappointed that they'd replaced her playground form kindergarten to 3rd grade. I thought the old one was pretty nice. It seems that the richies splurged for an early upgrade since this became a neighborhood school.

I'm just impressed I can still get my legs up.

Sometimes I miss the old, not so far away, neighborhood.

We played along Minnehaha Creek before heading home.

And then did a lap around Lake Harriet.

It was a good day for a bike ride in Minneapolis. See you again next year Blake.

Comments

Brooke Turns 40, We Return to the Riverside Cabin at Voyageur Canoe Outfitters

This year is my 40th birthday. We originally thought we'd go to Mackinac Island and also played with the idea of going to Montreal. With a spring break trip coming up we settled on a cabin on the Gunflint Trail. The Gunflint Trail is one of our favorite spots in Minnesota. So, why not? We'd also decided to go on another campervan/RV relocation adventure at the end of the month. So don't act like I don't treat my honey. On our drive up we stopped at Tobie's to get cinnamon bread for french toast. Just like a few years back we stopped at Hungry Hippie Tacos in Duluth. I feel like we have to document whenever these kids get along as it's a rarity these days. We got the frybread tacos, but the kids stuck with the corn tortilla options. We brought along our projector and stopped at Blake's house to steal his internet to download videos. Once we got to Voyageur Canoe Outfitters and unloaded our stuff, we crossed the river to explore the trails briefly. Our feet ...

A 39th Birthday Cottage Visit and Ice Skating "The Glide" in Boulder Junction

Back at the cottage for my (early) birthday weekend. Where else would I go for my birthday? I'm a simple man. Grandpa cleared a rink and a little loop for us. Theo just wanted dig in the snow. Meanwhile Meadow and I went cross country skiing on the Anvil Ski Trail. Meadow said she would only go with me if we did a trail with hills. We hiked this a few years ago and it was quite hilly. She was an old pro on the hills while I wiped out. We didn't make it too far as Meadow complained her boots were too tight. I made her check the fit a few weeks ago and she claimed they were fine... Was a beautiful trail in the Nicolet National Forest.

Backcountry Camping with Kids in Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Day 1 Back in May I stumbled upon Theodore Roosevelt National Park. I had no idea there was a National Park in North Dakota and that it was the northern end of the Badlands. Usually our summer vacations coincide with Scott's work trips. Since he didn't have any this summer I thought we should take advantage of actually taking a vacation. What, my workcations are always classics? I suppose a second real vacation this year wouldn't hurt. We definitely have more time than normal. As long as we took Covid-19 precautions and avoided people. We finally settled on a time to go. Blake joined us so we borrowed our dad's van so we could ride together. Scott had just driven from Michigan the day before. Blake had met my parents in Wisconsin to get the van and then drove from Duluth to pick us up. I offered to drive since I literally only drive twice a month. I was still pretty tired from a long drive home. Since we were near Fergus Falls we had to stop by the abandoned state ho...

Search This Blog