We are already nearing the middle of July. I really can't believe it. I always know that summer is going to fly by, but every time I am still impressed with how fast it really goes.
We've been keeping busy with the usual things around here. We are still running to softball games, camping, working, swimming, and going for summer walks and playing outside with the kids. Also, watching the Twins occasionally and even catching a Canaries game once in a while.
This year for 4th of July, we did something a little different. Barb had a family reunion on her side of the family in Gary, SD. So, we ended up camping in Gary for the entire weekend. Gary was a pretty cute town. It's actually really close to the Minnesota border, and it had a really nice campground area. We even had water hookup, which was pretty fancy for us.
It was also Gary's 150th Anniversary and they were having a big town celebration. So, in addition to camping, we also stayed busy with some town activities. The kids, and Jim and Barb and Katie all went to the rodeo on Friday evening, while John and I got the camper parked and set up. Then, we had a nice campfire in the evening, and checked out the street dance downtown. The band was really good, and we enjoyed a few songs and a couple beers before heading back to the camper to bed.
Saturday was a busy, fun day. The first activity was the city Parade. The kids actually got to be in the parade, which they were really excited about. They rode on the Honda, with Jim driving and Chase riding along. They threw out double bubble and fruit tootsies. They loved every second. It was a pretty good parade, and everyone had fun. After the parade, we had a big lunch at the campers with all the extended relatives. It was nice to visit with some distant family, and the kids all played well together.
After the meal, Katie, John and I did a scavenger hunt around town which was pretty fun. Then, we enjoyed a couple patio beers before heading back to the campers. We went out to a relative's house for supper and more visiting, and then we came back to the campsite. We had another fire, went to another street dance, and then watches some fireworks before going to bed.
On Sunday, they had some kids games in the city park. They had the egg and spoon race, the three-legged race, sack races, and water balloon toss. The kids really enjoyed it. We also did the kiddie tractor pull (which took forever, and I think it might be the last tractor pull we ever do). After all the activities, we were all kind of over it, and we headed back to the camper to just relax and chill. Katie headed home. We put a movie on in the camper to just relax and take a deep breath.
We made a delicious steak stir fry meal, and then when it got dark enough we headed to the rodeo ground for fireworks. They put on a really good fireworks show, and everyone enjoyed it.
By Monday, we were all ready to go home. So, we pretty much packed up and headed home. We spent the day unpacking, cleaning the camper, and just enjoying being home.
We actually had a whole week without softball, because of the 4th, so that was a nice change of pace. We had some nice evenings at home, and enjoyed some time outside at home. Last weekend, we actually had nothing planned for like the first time this summer. So, we went to the Canaries game on Friday night. It was fun. It was a beautiful evening for baseball, and the kids enjoyed the bouncy house and watching some of the game. We also stayed and watched the fireworks after the game, which was another impressive show.
On Saturday, we went to Kids Fishing Day at Fleet Farm in the morning. The kids got to play games and take home some free fishing gear. It was a pretty hot day, so we also took the kids swimming to Frank Olson pool in the afternoon. We spent a couple hours swimming, it felt really good.
In the evening, we had a movie night and just enjoyed the air conditioning. Sunday, was church, and then lunch, and then we headed to Wild Water West. It was very hot out, so it felt great to be swimming. Emma brought her friend Alondra, so John and I hung out with Elliott most of the time. We stayed for 6 hours, and did almost everything in the park. Everyone had a really good time, but we were all super tired by the end of the day. So much for our weekend of not doing anything!
This week has gone by pretty quickly. Monday night was Elliott's last night of softball. He ended up getting 3 hits, and his team won. He got a medal, which he is very proud of. After his game, everyone came to Sherman Park for Bethel's softball games. Elliott proudly showed his medal to anyone who would listen. It was pretty cute. We ended up winning 2 out of 3 games for Bethel, and we didn't get done playing until around 10:30pm. Yikes!
Emma had her last softball game last night. They ended up getting second place, which was pretty cool. I think she enjoyed her season, and maybe we will do it again next year. She also got a medal. I think both kids were ready to be done with softball for the summer. They had fun, but we were on the fields 3 nights a week, and we are all ready to be home a little bit more.
This weekend, we are heading to Yankton to do some camping. We are going up Friday evening, and everyone is excited for some good camping and swimming!
