Sunday ride.

Yesterday was the most gorgeous day, so Alla and I were off on another adventure.We put on our new sneaks and headed out.We had a destination in mind, one from our summer list, but there was lots to see along the way.Like this amazing sky that followed us everywhere.Under-the-street murals.Egrets.The Shoreview north water tower. I recently read it would cost 950K to paint the south one.
Giant sunflowers.Great hills.And then, forty-five minutes or so later, our destination.Golden Lake Park, isn't it lovely?

You can't go wrong with a park and a lake put together.

What a really nice Sunday afternoon with my beautiful daughter.

Lunch to go.

We didn't have the energy to try the beach again today, probably because the sun was out in full force. So we read, painted, played, and then at 10:30 decided to make lunch and pack it up for a picnic at the park. Again, I ran in and grabbed the point-and-shoot. Love that thing.

Fisher was in charge of the picnic basket. He wouldn't take off his Wall-E pajama top. Whatever.

I love that kid.

And this one.

She spent the morning collecting nuts, presumably for the squirrels.

And then pushing Lily in the swing.

What a beautiful [hot] sun!

I did mention it was hot, right?

Time to eat, Alla.

We got right to eating and stopped with the pictures, but I did remember that one September I snapped a photo of her here, so I put her right back on that spot to compare. You can't really tell that she's under the picnic shelter on the same table, but I know.

Ten on Tuesday.

1. I just can't win. It's miserably hot, so I decide to take the kids to cool off at the beach this morning. We spent 20 minutes in the parking lot watching it pour. Alla counted thirteen lightning "strucks."

2. I love that she's five and funny things like that still come out of her mouth.

3. She starts kindergarten four weeks from today.

4. Backpacks have been ordered and are on their way!

5. Both kids need new school shoes.

6. Despite the heat, I spent nearly all of Sunday in the kitchen making and baking: Zucchini butter (who knew!), beer bread, coconut shrimp with pineapple salsa, and strawberry cake.

7. The heat is totally messing with my runs.

8. I finished The Penderwicks, which was completely delightful, and will be picking up Catching Fire today at the library, yay!

9. It's been too hot to go to the Farmer's Market - imagine!

10. Paint the house update: way more than 50% complete! The end is in sight!

Proof.

That we actually did go out for our anniversary! Here we are driving five houses away to drop the kids off at our friends' house. They were most excited to just sit in the backseat not in any kind of way strapped in. We had a two-hour, uninterrupted dinner for which we are so very grateful to our friends Craig and Nicole! Fisher was bathed and in jammies when we got back! Thanks for a wonderful eight years, babe. Here's to eighty more!

Best lunch ever.

I have very clear memories of being about thirteen and standing in our bright kitchen with a knife and about a billion different fruits, making myself a giant fruit plate for lunch. Kiwi, a nectarine, strawberries, banana, melons, pineapple, apple. Whatever we had I cut up an put on my plate, most days, for lunch. So today, when I realized we also, thankfully, had about a billion different fruits (thank you, summer), and that I had just pulled zucchini muffins from the over, well, the simplest and best lunch came together and had me remembering hot summer lunchtimes spent slicing and peeling in barefeet and a bathing suit (not that we lived near the beach).

It really doesn't take much coaxing to get them to the table when there's simply fruit and fresh muffins involved.

Morning at the Mississippi Park.

On our way to Mississippi Regional Park this morning, I handed the point-and-shoot to Alla, thankful I had grabbed it on the way out. I knew there'd be water there, but I also knew we were going someplace new. Must have a camera. So glad I did. Here's our morning at the Mississippi Park, as the kids called it.