SKOL

Sure it was preseason, but pair of Medtronic Club level seats (the ones with the complimentary drinks and buffet) on the 50 yard line fell in my lap, as did a couple field passes and super fan #19 just so happened to have a free evening... so S and I had one helluva an evening at the Vikes/Seahawks exhibition game (her first experience at US Bank).  Heck, she even got to blow the Gjallarhorn!  ;-)

Cross Lake

The Jungs hosted us at the Island View Lodge for one last weekend "Up North" before BTS reality sets in.  We spent most of our time on (or backflipping into) the water, in front of a fire, or at Zorbaz... like all good Minnesotans do in August. 

Zach's Carnival

Sawyer and her BFF Vinny jousted it out at Zach's Carnival in Bonaire while Evie got crafty with spin art.

Happy 12th

A delightful dozen with this party animal...

The Walker

Another bucket list item for the kiddos this summer was a trip to the Walker Art Center, where the feature artist Jason Moran's exhibits "embrace the intersection of objects and sound".

Summer Soccer

The girls ran back another season of Corcoran soccer, this year on separate teams.  It's not a favorite sport for either of them, but they have a blast out there (S sometimes has too much fun, as you can see), and we love watching them mix things up.

Kavanaugh's

We set a new record this year at Kavanaugh's, with 62 Backers on premise at this summer's annual long weekend getaway.  

The girls and their (2nd/once-removed/whatever) cousins are now old enough where they (pretty much) have free reign of the resort, which is SO incredibly cool for them, and SO incredibly relaxing for L & I.  They spent most of their time going back and forth between the beach (and the diving raft), the pool and in & out of whomever's cabin had the coolest snack-of-the-day. They each snuck in a shift or two of tubing, got fancy braids from the big cousins, and worked in some kind of competition daily (kickball, tennis, basketball).

Us adults, we caught up with each other and leisurely tailed the kids across the resort (of course, breaking for adult competition, like the annual beach volleyball tournament... I mean this is a Backer get-together, after all).  

My favorite moments of the trip this year were the sunset fishing expeditions by canoe each night with E or S, and Joe with either Lucy or Alex.  The weather was perfect, the view was gorgeous (a "lemonade" effect of the CA/Canada forest fires), the fish were biting and the dads got some 1:1 quality time after a long day of chaos.  Oh, and seeing (and capturing a photo of) an eagle plucking dinner out of the water was pretty spectacular as well.

Uptown Art Fair

In between the thunderstorms, the crew snuck in a couple hours of culture at the Uptown Art Fair.  This year's longest pitstop was in the pottery "wing" where the kiddos learned how to work the wheel, and got to make their own crafts (that we'll most certainly never remember to go pick up after firing).

St. Paul Saints

Nana spoiled S with a Saints game (and all their shenanigans), mini donuts, Saints gear and night on the town in St. Paul.  You're a lucky kid, Sawyer!

Beach Bum

Buster cooled off with the wind off Fish Lake as the girls the same on the beach after a hike on the nearby trails.

Valleyfair

With summer ticking away, the girls created a list of must-do's before the school year hustle and bustle kicks in, and Valleyfair was at the top of their list.  It was a scorcher, so the Water Park and the Flume provided much needed cool downs throughout the day.