The 4th of Covid-19

This years 4th of July felt a little different than normal. We skipped out on going to the cottage as there was too many people going.

Well, that's always the case, but more so with Covid-19.

Someone always ends up sick when my family is all together. I had plans for us to go canoeing for the day and no one else wanted to so I was in a sour mood for most of the day. Plus it was the 10th day in a row of being over 90 degrees.

I'm not sure which of us suggested it, but we figured the beaches would be dead.

Apparently most of the city left for the weekend because the usually packed Lake Harriet was eerily quiet.

Meadow is a little fish and never wants to leave the beach.

She's learned to swim underwater. I'm not sure how it's possible, but once she tries to swim on the surface it's a no go.

A lot more brave than she was in past years.

I guess we weren't leaving quite yet.

The kids never want to leave the beach. We've been avoiding them most of the summer, but I've now read that a beach is probably one of the safer places as long as you keep your distance.

Staying out late means the bike lights go on. We were going to take a bike ride to Glam Doll donuts but they close early now. Instead we watched the city light up with fireworks from our living room window.

Shannyn invited us over since Meadow didn't have a birthday party. It was hot once again so the kids played in the kiddie pool in their backyard. This is the first time Meadow has played with other kids in months.

I'm hesitant to let her play even at this point, but sometimes you've got to break your rules.

We moved to the front yard as it was getting so hot with no shade in the back.

Theo had been afraid to go in the pool until all the kids left.

We had lunch, hung out some more and then called it a day.

Comments

Mayday in Minneapolis 2025

It's Mayday, the greatest day of the year in Minneapolis. I warned Theo that it was going to be hot today but he still insisted on wearing his high wool socks. Can you blame him. They look so cool. We biked over like we always do. So much easier these days living just across the highway from the South Side. We left later than planned and didn't have our bikes ready so by the time we arrived there were no more spots on the curb to sit. We hung out in the shade until we heard the Battletrain coming. It'll be here soon. Or will it? Every 30 feet this giant cardboard castle did a little show. That would explain the long hold up for the parade to start.

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...

Work Trip to Dallas

Another work trip for Scott means another Chinese buffet. I had to try the best Chinese buffet in Dallas. It just feels like something you do in Texas. I was down in Dallas for a shoot at Parker University. Yeah, I'd also never heard of it. After the shoot and the buffet, I explored the Oak Cliff section of Dallas from L.O. Daniel to the Bishop Arts District. When I go to a sunbelt town I typically look up "most walkable neighborhood" on Reddit. Almost always your best bet in these sprawling metroplexes. Yup, definitely in Texas. I wasn't hungry at this point, but next time I'm in Dallas, I've got to eat at Taqueria El Si Hay. This place just screams, "Really good tacos, here!"

Search This Blog