minnesota week 3: jack's early birthday, aunt lea arrives, goodbyes

one thing that was different this year was that we spent the entire 3 weeks at my mom's because thatcher's siblings and their families needed to stay at durant and cheryl's. i know it's not easy to host people in your house for such a long stretch, but we are so thankful she was willing to have us. 

sunday july 21st it rained all morning, which thwarted our plans to go to a thai market in st. louis park with thatcher's siblings and their families. we went to durant and cheryl's in the afternoon and hung out with everyone. 

then when the weather improved, we got to go to the thai market and my mom met us there. we got some delicious food and hung out.

 then we came back to my mom's, so thatcher could start packing up the car for his journey back to seattle the next morning. 

monday, july 22nd thatcher hit the road at 5am to start his drive back. wowza. the kids and i met up with anders, nith, and moss at the pershing wading pool in the morning because they are staying at a nearby airbnb this week. 

my mom picked us up from the park and we got brueggers bagels for lunch. yum. we hung out at my mom's for the afternoon and then we all met up with thatcher's family at davanni's again. this time to celebrate jack's early 17th birthday. we are becoming regulars at that party room :) 

we went back to durant and cheryl's after for french silk pie and gift opening. i can't believe jack is 17. where does the time go?! 

tuesday july 23rd in the morning the kids and i went over to viv and dennis' to hang out with addie and clare on their weekly grandma/grandpa day. 

azalea went back after lunch to hang out with addie while clare napped. in the midafternoon i took the kids to my aunt cindy and uncle corey's to see them one more time before they leave on a trip. then my mom and i dropped the kids off for dinner at cheryl and durant's, and she joined me for a work happy hour at utepils brewery. every summer they do a gathering there for current and former employees of the company i work for. it's always fun. we ended the night with more drinks on my mom's patio with her neighbors jeff and francisco. such a fun night! 

wednesday july 24th we spent the morning getting ready for my aunt lea to arrive from new jersey. lea is my dad's younger sister and we've always been close despite the physical distance, but ever since losing my dad i cherish our time together more than ever because being with her feels like being with a little piece of my dad. she hadn't been here since my dad's funeral 9 years ago, but we have seen her twice since then. i went to pick her up at the airport and it took forever due to crazy construction traffic. the kids had a special date in the afternoon with anders + family and cedar + family to the lake harriet trolley and out for ice cream at sebastian joe's. lucky kids to have such awesome aunts and uncles :) they had so much fun. 

my mom, lea, and i hung out on the patio for a while. jeff and francisco stopped over to meet her. my brother came over after work and the kids, lea, my mom, brandon and i all went to 'pizza luce' for dinner. yum! we ended the night with scrabble on the patio. thatcher arrived back in seattle that night. 

thursday july 25th lea and i started the day with a walk around lake harriet. it was a beautiful morning for it. we also ran into cedar and eric there.

 then my mom took all of us to minnehaha falls which were really flowing due to all the rain. we hung out on the playground for a little while and then decided to go to 'longfellow grill' for lunch. i hadn't been there in a few years and i love it.

 the kids got picked up by anders to go to durant and cheryl's for the evening so my mom, lea, and i could go see 'the belfast cowboys' in rosemount. we also took my mom's friend linda with us. it was a long drive out there, but worth it for a fun night out. there was a festival going on called leprechaun days. we got food and drinks from food trucks and set up our chairs for the show. the band played for 1.5 hours, took a break, and then played for over another hour. we had so much fun watching and dancing the night away up by the stage. it was after 11pm by the time we made it back to durant and cheryl's to pick up the kids.

friday july 26th in the morning we made a reservation to do mini golf at the walker art center. it's an artist inspired course and all of the holes were really fun and creative. beautiful views from the top of the museum too. 

we went back to my mom's for lunch and most of the afternoon. then my mom dropped off the kids and me at durant and cheryl's to hang out/say goodbye to cedar and family who were leaving the next day. i'm so glad we got to see them while we were here. then my mom and lea picked us up to go to my brother's place for the evening. lea enjoyed seeing it for the first time. we got chinese takeout for dinner and watched some of the olympic opening ceremony. 

saturday july 27th lea and i did another walk around harriet in the morning. we went at 9am but it was already steamy! my brother came over and we all went to 'convention grill' for lunch. it recently re-opened after being closed for 4 years. we are so happy it's back in business! we all left so full, but totally worth it. 

my mom, lea, and i went back to lake harriet to find my dad's memorial brick and also went to lakewood cemetery to see the new beautiful building that opened there. it was in the 90s and humid so we were not eager to spend much time outside. 

my brother came over in the evening and my mom made margaritas and nachos for dinner. we had hoped to be on the patio, but it was just too hot. 

sunday july 28th it was time for lea to head back to new jersey. i dropped her off at 9:30am for her flight. once she got through security, she found out her flight was delayed. then it happened 2 more times. she was worried it might be cancelled, but she was able to leave 4 hours after the original take off time. the kids and i met up with our friends carolina, naomi, adella, and ezra at a park in st. anthony in the afternoon. it was hot out, but we managed to keep the kids mostly entertained while carolina and i caught up. then we went straight to durant and cheryl's for our final dinner there. we also got to hang out with anders, nith, and moss for the evening. 

monday, july 29th (i know this is going over a week, but we're in the final stretch). in the morning the kids, my mom and i met up with anders, nith, moss, and cheryl at mall of america. i hadn't been there in about 5 years. it was fun to see what's new/changed. the boys mostly hung out with moss near nickelodeon universe and the girls went shopping - 3 generations!

 we had lunch in a food court and then said our final goodbye to anders, nith, moss, and grandma cheryl :( in the evening, my mom and the kids and i went to culver's for one last dinner. then we stopped by kelli's house to spend a little more time with her and the girls, as well as her mom and my brother. it's always hard to say goodbye, but i'm so happy kelli is back in minnesota for good. 

tuesday, july 30th was leaving day. we spent the morning at my mom's packing and getting ready then she took us to the airport. it was not very busy there and it took us no time to get through security. the flight went smoothly and thatcher picked us up in seattle. we are happy to be with him again. it feels weird being in our house again after a month, but i'm sure we'll get back into a routine soon. 

i can't believe another summer visit to minnesota has come and gone. i am so thankful our schedules allow us to do this each summer. it makes living far away a little bit easier.