Braces

Abby and Norah had a big day at the orthodontist on Tuesday...Abby got braces (just top for now, bottoms coming in a few months) and Norah got an expander (also just top for now...she'll have it on for 5 months and then have a bottom one for 5 months).  Abby should have her braces on for about 18 months.  They both did great, and have adjusted just fine so far!

Abby's "before" picture

Norah wore just one sock to the appointment, because she had a blister...

After picture

Outdoor dance recital

Due to Covid, Norah's dance recital was held outdoors in July this year.  Dance classes were online starting in mid-March and ended mid-May, but the group did get together to practice once the week before the recital.  Norah was so excited to be able to perform, even though their group didn't remember all of their routines.  It was still fun to enjoy the beautiful night at the winery and see her excitement!

Lanesboro

For my birthday this year, I wanted to go to Lanesboro to do some biking and tubing.  We went on a Friday morning, when it wasn't too busy yet.  The bike trail is about 4.6 miles from Lanesboro to Whalan, and it was a pretty easy ride.  It was fun reminiscing about the bike rides I used to go on growing up.  My grandma and I even shared a twin recumbent on that trail once!

When we got to Whalan, we enjoyed some pie/ice cream before hopping back on the trail and riding back to Lanesboro.

Jenny thought it would be funny to recreate a photo like my grandpa used to take of my grandma every time she would come out of a port-a-potty...

We ate a picnic lunch at Sylvan Park, then parted ways.  Dave and Norah headed back to my parents' house in Rochester to relax, and Jenny, Abby, and I went to rent tubes in town.  We did the in-town float down the Root River twice, and it felt amazing!  Again, it brought back memories--this time of going tubing with Dave and camp friends on the weekends when we were college-age.  We had a blast!

Watermelon Day 2020

Watermelon Day this year looked very different due to Covid!  Stanhope's celebration was canceled, but my aunt and uncle decided to host it just for our family.  One of my cousin's little boys even designed t-shirts.  My aunt LeaAnn and uncle Dave hosted it out at their farm, and almost everyone in the family was able to make it.  They had the duck pond, plinko, pop toss, golf, and a bouncy house outdoors.  Later in the afternoon, they also set up a slip and slide, sprinkler, and kiddie pool.  We had beef burgers, baked beans, chips, and (of course) watermelon for lunch.  My cousin Kendra had made pies and my aunt Lori had made coconut cake.  My cousin's 8-year-old, Trice, had even designed t-shirts for the event!

Norah loved meeting baby Tommy

Abby enjoyed baby Tommy as well

Norah earned lots of tickets!

Abby and Lydia were best buddies

Everyone got in on the face painting

We had a lot of fun visiting and playing, and at the end of the afternoon, the kids got to pick from prizes.  My aunt LeaAnn's thought was that the kids would trade in tickets that they had earned from playing games, but it ended up being more of a free-for-all.  Norah was excited to get watermelon-scented slime!

Waiting to pick out prizes

Abby is almost as tall as my grandma!

After a fun day, we headed up to our hotel in Webster City, where we went swimming and had pizza with my grandma for supper.  My cousin Sarah and Gavin came up to visit, so we did some swimming with them, too.

Before heading home in the morning, we stopped to visit with my grandma at her apartment.  We enjoyed cinnamon rolls and visiting more with her!

We stopped by the cemetery to visit my grandpa's grave

My grandma is being funny and trying to look shorter than Abby

Kwik Trip lunch at the park before heading home

Minneopa State Park

We had a fun adventure with my friend Kaysie and her kids at Minneopa State Park!  Once we arrived at the park, we drove through the bison viewing area.  It was fun to see them all congregating right by the road in a water/mud hole.  We then parked near the old windmill and hiked along the trail there for a bit.

After that, we drove over to the picnic area/waterfall area and hiked down to the waterfall.  The kids especially loved the parts where they could climb on rocks and be right down by the water.  This area was much less buggy than the windmill area had been.  

Kaysie and I had to laugh when we showed up at their house and we had the same tank top on (we also have the same water bottles).  The same thing had happened when we went to their house last time, and we were wearing the same color tank top and shorts.  Great minds think alike!

We enjoyed a picnic lunch before heading out, then stopped at a fun local playground that is farm-themed.  We were going to get ice cream at a place in town, but when we realized it wasn't going to open for a couple of hours, we drove to Henderson to get ice cream instead.  It was a beautiful day, and fun to hang out with good friends!