busy summer

My calendar from November to May is completely empty. My calendar from June to October barely has an empty day on it. Since we're only home for a short time we make the most of it - festivals, sports, time with friends, swimming, kayaking, birthdays. The list goes on and on...

Emma probably had the busiest summer of all of us. We joined a gym and she went with me almost every single time (including to a cycle class which she said she would never do again). She also did two pottery classes, horseback riding lessons, two weeks of volleyball camp, our town's annual rib competition, plus a variety of other random activities.

Olivia spent most of her summer roaming the neighborhood with the neighborhood kids. She also did a month of tennis, a pottery class and a volleyball camp.

Emma celebrated a milestone birthday in August and we now officially have a teenager in the house.

If you've talked to Braden at all in the last year you would know he had been planning to take a boat down the Mississippi River. He spent part of his summer purchasing, working on and boating down the Mississippi River. He's hoping to recruit some more boats for next year, so if you're looking for something completely ridiculous (my words, not his) to do in August 2027 join The Great American River Race.

Of course a summer in Minnesota isn't complete without spending at least one day at the MN State Fair.

It's always better if you go twice though! Especially when you didn't get everything you wanted the first time around.

For the first time in 4 years our summer had an official end. Olivia has been BEGGING to go to school for years. Since we're usually in Minnesota until the beginning of November we told both girls they could go to school until it was time for us to get back to the boat in Puerto Rico.

Olivia was beyond excited to get to do a couple months of 5th grade at her former elementary school. The last time she was in school she was 7 years old, so she barely remembered anything about going to school.

Emma claimed she was not excited at all about giving 8th grade a try, but I think deep down under all the nerves there was a tiny bit of excitement. She was in 4th grade the last time she went to school, so it is a whole new school with a whole new routine and a lot more kids.