Ages ranged the spectrum. Plenty of adults. Sybil, our teenager of the group, was able to bring her friend Heidi along since the rest of us are either "too old" or "too young" for any teen to appreciate. Several elementary age kids, a couple preschoolers, one "almost one" crawler and of course Jenny's not yet born baby Avrie (who could have joined us any minute) rounded out the group. All in all there were 20 people, 10 adults and 10 kids, included in this family vacation!
Grandma Nola and the grandkids July 2009
(left to right)
Grace, Riley, Tyson, Collin, Kalie, Sybil, Danika & Dylan
Throughout the week, families came and stayed for as long as they were able. Our family, Nola and John's family stayed the whole week. Everyone else stayed for as long as their "real life" commitments would allow.
The week started with...hockey. Yeah, that's right it was July and I said hockey. Cousin Dylan had a hockey tournament nearby in Brainerd which we of course attended. Collin enjoyed the games as usual. He also made friends with a couple of younger kids also at the arena. At the proshop Uncle John bought Collin a stick and hockey ball (yes, I meant to say ball and not puck....). Another little hockey fanatic there had his own stick as well, and during one of the games Collin and this other boy put on their own show in front of the bleachers for a few minutes!
Collin really enjoyed living with a real life hockey player the whole week and took advantage of it at every opportunity, including suiting up in all the gear he could get his hands on....
There was also time for warmer activities the rest of the week.
...Like hanging out by the lake or in the water....
...Or just relaxing in the sun! Collin did not sunbathe for long...too much to see and do! However, he did sit very calmly by himself and just watch the water without interruption for several minutes while he enjoyed a snack....
One day the ladies of the trip took the kids to nearby
"Paul Bunyan Land" while the guys enjoyed a round of golf.
We enjoyed some rides too
(Tyson and Collin. Sturgis anyone?)
And yes, I fed my son Cotton Candy for lunch. Yes, just cotton candy. C'mon, it's a vacation, right?.....
Does it help that we had ice cream before we left?
Does it help that we had ice cream before we left?
Later in the week, many of us took in a more relaxed round of golf: mini golfing!
Grandma Nola also gave Collin a golf trophy (a relic transported to Cross Lake from somewhere upstairs in her house after being among some old odds and ends). I can assure you this trophy has found a loving home with our boy.
He adores it.
And, since you can't be in northern Minnesota without spending time on the lakes, we also rented a pontoon for an afternoon. Doug, Collin
and I also enjoyed a few solitary hours one afternoon fishing from our boat which made the trip up north as well.
Finally, after the packing was done it was time to head home. Many people moved on quickly, but we chose to enjoy the long trip home and make a day of it as well. If you gotta drive it, you may as well try to enjoy it!
At Collin's request,
we stopped for one more round of mini-golf.And some not so "mini" golf. He saw the flags on the real golf course adjacent to the mini course and asked (yes, asked) to have his picture taken with a flag. How could we say no to that!
We stopped for lunch and window shopping in Nisswa. I had the opportunity earlier in the week to stroll through the little town with my friend Katie Bartsch and her family who coincidentally had a cabin nearby for some overlapping time with us. (We also got an adult "double date" with Katie and her husband Darin one evening in town as Collin spent time with the rest of the family).
Then, happy but tired we drove home. Our little guy slept almost the whole way home!
Thanks to everyone for a memorable family vacation!
