Tales from the "Twin" Cities: { america! }

It's that time of the year for the traditional fourth of July post. And as tradition holds, we headed to the Lodge to spend the holiday on the lake. It was a beautiful weekend (maybe a tad chilly, but that's me being picky and wanting hot and 90!) and we spent a lot of it on and in the water!

The pictures sum up the fun we had (warning: picture overload ahead).

Noteworthy, we hit some epic speeds and bumps on the tube this year and the kids enjoyed the thrills!

Also noteworthy was that Oliver and Stella were crazy brave and decided to try water skiing. I was hesitant and a little uncertain of how their experience would go but we gave it a try anyways. They watched cousin Owen (who is a year and a half older) try and were sold on the idea. We had them test it out on the grass first and then hit the water (literally!).

They both gave it their all and Stella was actually up but we didn't think she was - this caused us to not hit the gas on the boat hard enough and resulted in her holding on and not letting go (as she was instructed) and getting a face full of water for about 10 seconds. It freaked her out pretty badly and that was it for this trip. Oliver was down about 2 seconds after taking off. Regardless, we are SO proud of them for taking on the challenge without hesitation!

We had some fireworks at the Lodge (think big, illegal ones that can't be found in MN) so we didn't venture to any formal fireworks shows.

One of Stella's favorite things from the weekend - homemade donuts by the fire.

And Oliver's - peeing anywhere you want.

And a highlight for everyone, the rented paddle board! Something I have wanted to try in the cities for awhile and never have gotten around to it. It was a ton of fun for the young and old!