Galleries

Joint Birthday Party

Griffin and Maggie, turning seven and four respectively, agreed to have a joint birthday party this year. Each of them invited seven friends, and we all gathered at a local park for cupcakes and fun. It was a gorgeous day, and the whole event felt unusually relaxed. The kids rampaged around while the adults chatted, kept nominal watch, and guarded the cupcakes (my strategy: eat them).

Escape to the Cabin

After our glorious summer, the school year feels like we’re barely hanging on to a runaway train. On Friday, we fled the crazy for another taste of summer (with a dash of autumn).

The yellow cabin delivered big time. Not only was the weather outstanding, but the kids were 100% engaged,  hiking with gusto, begging to get out on the water in the kayaks, and playing together relatively peacefully during down time. We also enjoyed some unexpected firsts: Griffin’s first time fishing, and our first family D&D game (more on that in an upcoming post). It felt like we were away for far longer than a weekend.

Enjoy the gallery below. Remember, they look best if you click on one to engage the full-screen slide show. (Also, don’t miss the postscript below for a glimpse backstage.)

PS: The last picture looks idyllic, and it was, but the picture misses a few telling details. As I floated in my kayak, taking in the stunning colors, Griffin, far behind me in the center of the lake, decided to start playing “echo” across the water. The echoes were, indeed, spectacular, so he proceeded to yell louder and louder, until his tremendous battle cries reverberated across the lake, drowning out all other sound. He was far enough away, and focused enough on his bellowing, that he couldn’t hear our fierce, whisper-shouted admonishments to cool it. As he continued ramping up, I wondered if any of our well-armed neighbors would take things into their own hands. Fortunately, and I’m not naming names, one of us channeled the voice of Thor, delivering the following carefully considered advice at 150 decibels:

“GRIFFIN . . . SHUT . . . UP!!!!”

As the echoes faded, we were aware that this sonic event was not only permanently etched into the minds of the Spring Lake community, but that scientists of the future will be able to see evidence of the interchange in tree rings and sediment cores.

Yup. That’s how it’s done at the Yellow Cabin.

Franconia Sculpture Park

On Saturday we completed our annual pilgrimage to Franconia Sculpture Park, which remains as magical as ever. (In my understated way, I referred to it as the 8th wonder of the world when we first visited in 2011.)

This trip was further enhanced by the presence of our friends Katrina, Jason, and Hendrick who moved to Minnesota at the beginning of the summer. They were part of our birthing group in the bay area, and Hendrick was born just a month before Griff. It’s been fun seeing Griffin and Hendrick play together as full-size kids, when they used to gurgle on a play mat together back in Oakland. We’re grateful that both of our families have landed in the same place again.

I tried to mention the artists and the titles of their sculptures in the captions, though I didn’t record the outhouse one and can’t find it online. Most of the artists haves pages linked from a page at the Franconia website.  They all have interesting stories, but I was particularly struck by the story of Michael Richards, the artist behind the “Are You Down?” sculpture featuring three Tuskeegee Airmen in a black sand circle. He created the original sculptures in resin in 2000, and then began a residency at the World Trade Center. He was killed on September 11, 2001. Franconia led a successful kickstarter campaign to have his pieces cast in bronze (his original intent). The fully realized piece was unveiled on September 11, 2012. It is the only permanent installation at the park.

"Are You Down?" by Michael Richards
“Are You Down?” by Michael Richards

Travail Kitchen and Amusements

Sarah and I spent nearly four hours in food heaven last night. The place is Travail Kitchen and Amusements in Robinsdale, just northwest of Minneapolis. We arrived at 5:45. We had a table at 7:15. We worked our way through a spectacular ten course tasting menu (plus numerous extras). We left, with goofy grins, at 9:35. It was long; it was expensive; we can’t wait to do it again.

They sing and dance; they shout and laugh; they cook unbelievable food; they explain everything; they chat with you and it’s all live — the kitchen is right in front of you. Their cocktails were outrageously good (and so fun to watch them make). The music was loud, eclectic, and perfectly enhanced the festive mood. They transform a weekday dinner into a celebration. This is where all the great chefs go to party, and we were invited along for the ride.

Update: Travail’s 2013  kickstarter page does a great job defining their vision for the dining experience. (They blew past their goal to the tune of an extra $180,000!)

Adventure Week, Day 4

Today we headed to the always engaging Tamarack Nature Center. It’s a fantastic, free, county park that features rocks to climb, caves and tunnels to explore, an extensive stream and sand area (great for building huge dams), and a massive demonstration garden. Although we’ve been many times in the past, this was the first time this summer, and it’s very adventuresome.

Enjoy the pics — click to see big ones.

Adventure Week, Day 3

Today’s adventures were constructed around Sarah and Andrew’s dental adventures. The main excitement was at Nicollet Commons Park in Burnsville, about 20 minutes south of Saint Paul. It’s a free “splash pad” style park, with an extensive set  of pools, waterfalls, and fountains. It’s another new park for us — we read about it in a magazine highlighting local water parks.

Click on a picture to see an immersive slideshow.

Adventure Week

Today is the first day of Adventure Week. This, as everyone knows, is a week when you don’t already have lots of summer plans, so you go on adventures every day. (Yes, I know that I call just about every outing an adventure, but the kids don’t yet roll their eyes at my hyperbole.)

Our adventure today was heading over to Como Town, a little amusement park not far from here. It’s popular, but not mobbed like a real amusement park; this one is aimed at a younger crowd. Griffin is now tall enough for almost all of the rides, and there are lots that work well for Maggie too. And they don’t charge for chaperones if you need to go on a ride with a younger kid. (Lots of places do… grrr… I love paying double for the tea-cup ride.)

The only fail was the Tilt-a-Whirl. Maggie basically screamed like she was dying the whole time, while Griffin howled with glee right next to her, and Sarah and I attempted to not throw up on both of them.  (In retrospect, I wish I’d pulled out my phone for a family selfie.) Maggie recovered quickly, though she may be burdened with a lifelong fear of spinning, lurching hemispheres.

 

Summer Fun at Grandma and Grandpa’s

This weekend we went down to Courtland to celebrate Grandpa Jeff’s birthday and visit with  family friends. But I didn’t take many pictures of all that good stuff (oops). Instead, my camera usually came out when we were outside, playing in the sprinklers, checking out the nascent tree house, and, of course, riding around on the mini-ATV from Uncle Bruce.

As always, click on the pictures for an immersive slide-show.

Home Again

We’re back!

Mileage: 105916 (Trip total: 4750 miles; about 92 hours of driving.)

It was a fantastic trip, but we’re happy to be back home. Some images from our first few days, with perfect summer weather: