Minnesota Zoo

After leaving the Minnesota lake house we made a last minute decision to have a family adventure day.  Ang needed dropped off at the MSP Airport so we headed to the Minnesota Zoo from there.  

The aquarium is always a hit.  

Snack break near the sea lions.  

Roy spotted the brown bears.  

Ivy was waiting her turn at the playground.  They had some unique animal play scapes, making it a cool place to play.  

long legs + long arms 

Ivy was spoiled with a ride on the carousel.  

We had heard the bird show was pretty cool so we checked it out.  Ivy loved it.  Greta was nervous. 

They introduced the various birds who flew on command and were rewarded with treats.  

I love this picture of my boys.  

We certainly got our steps in for the day.  So thankful for this sweet crew of mine.  

Checking out the Llama Trek and the free-roaming llamas.  

  

What is that llama thinking?  

The flamingos...

A leopard...

A family pic before calling it a day. 

We stopped for Chick-fil-a for dinner and this happened shortly after.  Ivy took a long snooze for a chunk of the ride back home.  

 

Week #11 of Summer (August 4)

We completed the first puzzle in less than 24 hours.  

Roy and Hudson were in charge of breakfast on Tuesday morning.  They made homemade cinnamon rolls, which no one complained about.  

We enjoyed lots of time out on the water.  The paddle board, paddle boat and kayaks provided plenty of fun and entertainment.  The water was so refreshing!  

My brother's girlfriend, Meghan, came for part of the time.  She is great with the girls and is fun to have around.  

The lily pad was a common gathering place on the water. We even got Bapa out on it (for 5 minutes).    

Colorado peaches + ice cream + word search = vacation vibe

They love time with their Aunt Ang!  

  

It's always a challenge to schedule this time together, but it always proves to be a highlight of the summer.  

There was plenty of time to play games.  Ticket to Ride, Qwirkle and Cover Your Assets were a few of our favorites from the week.  

Roy and Hudson tried to fish, but they didn't catch anything.  

Greta and Ang treated us to "fancy drinks," a favorite Bomgaars vacation tradition.  

We grabbed ice cream out on our last night.  My favorite was the strawberry rhubarb flavor.  

  

It was a lovely sunset on our last night at Lake Francis.    

   

Soaking up the snuggles at sunset.  

Lovely!

 

So thankful for these sweet babies and the blessing of spending days together making memories at the lake.  

Ang retrieved these flippers from the bottom of the lake.  

Ivy and I were in charge of breakfast on Wednesday morning.  We made monkey bread (and I burnt it). 😔 

We completed a 2nd puzzle.

A family photo before saying farewell. 

Mimi and Bapa with their grand babies.  

Swimming with friends after arriving back home.  

Friday afternoon we played BINGO with Nana and GG Ells and then enjoyed some outside time together.  

An ice cream Culver's date with Daddy on Friday night.