August Adventures

August deserves its own post simply because the events were big and I actually took some pictures.  During the second week of August, David took Jacob on his first Boundary Waters trip.  For the non-Minnesotans out there, a trip to the Boundary Waters means you carry all your gear plus a canoe to the water, paddle to your camp site (portaging where necessary) and then camp with no amenities.  They were gone 4 days and 3 nights.  Dennis, Abby (age 12), Kate, Brian, and Ben were part of the expedition and a good time was had by all.  From what I've been told the food was good and the swimming and hiking were great.  Jacob can't wait to go next year and Charlotte is already asking when she can join the group.

While the boys were away, we did our best to have a phenomenal girls weekend.  The time flew by as we read together, played games, and hit the community pool for FOUR HOURS (a record for me as I tire of the pool after 2).  But on Thursday we did something more refined - we visited the St. Paul Cathedral.  The Cathedral has always been one of my favorite spots in the Cities because of all the art it holds and is - from architecture to sculpture to paintings to stained glass.  I loved the Cathedral so much that David chose that spot to propose to me so many years ago, only making it all the more special to my heart.  I tried to capture our time there with pictures, but they seem woefully inadequate - you have to actually visit the Cathedral to really experience it.

Spot where David proposed

After enjoying some beautiful art, we visited another favorite place of mine: Cafe Latte.  As you can see below, they offer divine desserts and we thoroughly enjoyed ours.  This day has already become one of my favorites of the summer and the girls have a whole new appreciation for "girls weekend."

Our adventures continued in August when David ran the Ragnar.  193 miles, 12 person team, 2 vans, 48 hours of running with very little sleep.  Talking to him during the race via cell phone and directly afterward in person, David said he'd never do it again.  But within 3 days of finishing, he decided it was great fun and wants to do it again next year.  I don't understand the fun in running all night literally, but I try to be supportive . . . and it keeps him in good shape.

Van 1 (left to right): Doug, David, Camie, Matt, Darci, & Aaron.  The team had just finished their third and final leg at this point.  Van 2 had just begun their third and final leg, so they are not pictured because they are on the road but included Carrie, Scott, Jamie, John, Natalie, & Carey.