Minnesota Summer Vacation

Each summer it’s our goal to meet my husband’s family at his parent’s lake home in Minnesota. We’ve successfully joined his parents, siblings and our nephews there most summers. My husband grew up spending his summers on this lake and it’s one of his favorite places in the world. I’ve in turn tried to make it my own and though lounging for a week isn’t how I grew up vacationing – I come from a see-new-places, tight-itinerary, road-trip type of family – I admit it’s very special to reconnect with family all together for a week each year without the distraction of holiday obligations that come when we visit for Thanksgiving or Christmas. As the family has grown, there’s more and more to do and it’s gotten louder and louder. Thankfully the lake home is a beautiful log home that’s so much more than the “cabin” we call it. The family crew has grown to include my husband’s parents; his older brother and his wife and two boys; his sister and her boyfriend; me and my husband (aka Husby) and now our little guy, Lil’ O. It’s a full house!

I’ll feature our first air travel with Lil' O and lessons learned in getting to the cabin in another post. For now, here are some of our favorite highlights from the week and pictures!

• Lil’ O got to meet his family! They all adore him. :)
• We got to meet some new cousins, once removed, who are the coolest girls ages five, eight and ten I’ve met.
• I picked wild raspberries that Grandpa used in delicious pancakes the next morning.
• Husby went fishing with his uncle, nephew, brother and sister, plus his sister’s boyfriend. They didn’t catch much due to the heat, but they had fun, especially since it was our nephew’s first fishing expedition. (He’s five.)
• I rode a bike (a real bike, not a stationary bike in a gym) for the first time in years and didn’t fall, though it was close at least once.
• Husby and I got to leave Lil’ O with grandparents and we strolled through town, just enjoying being with each other.
• We also left Lil’ O with adoring grandparents to go for a canoe ride to see the sun set over the water.
• I read a book—a whole book!—and caught up on some magazine reading.
• I experimented a very little bit with my fancy new DSLR camera. (I’ve actually had said camera for over a year now, but until I can actually use most of the settings, it’ll remain classified as “new.”)
• There were games played by all and enjoyed with good wine (and chocolate).
• As a family we went in waves and completed a puzzle. Fittingly, it depicted a log cabin and lake at sunset.
• There was lots and lots of good food. My post-baby diet took a nosedive during vacation week thanks to all the yumminess, but I’m now back on the low-calorie-and-exercise bandwagon (this weekend’s Great Harvest bread purchase notwithstanding).