10 days + zero travel issues + Gigi and Papa's slice of Nirvana in Minnesota = 644 pictures and more fun than can be captured by camera! Once again Gigi and Papa outdid themselves and showed us such a fantastic time up in Minnesota. We spent our first weekend in the great north with the entire Griffin clan...all 50+ of them!! Followed by 7 super fun and relaxing days at Wilson Lake. We hiked, and fished, and laughed, and played the days away in God's country.
Just a little sampling of our northern adventures:
In matching outfits, ready to take off, Harper settles in for her last trip as a lap baby!
Arriving minutes earlier to the site of the reunion, Daddy and Harper instantly headed to the water.
And off came the skirt.
Playing with Gigi in the biggest sandbox she's ever seen (a.k.a. the beach volleyball court)
Hads and Great Grandma off for a stroll
Day 2: Early morning swing
And once again, no bottoms (or tops)
Time to celebrate Harper's birthday!
Blueberry pancakes for 50+. How's THAT for a birthday meal?!
Papa and Gigi reserved the pontoon boat and Hadley helped fancy it up with some fun and gaudy streamers and Dora decorations for a little cake-and-gifts cruise around the lake.
Here comes the lady of the hour to see her fancy surprise!
Papa and the birthday girl
Tunes, grapes, and clean northern air.
This city girl settled into Minnesota instantly. She was so at home up there!
Cake time!
Word has spread far and wide about Harper's Dora obsession, so a load of Dora-themed gifts made her day!
Our sweet little cherub
Squeezing her belly into the Hello Kitty hoodie from Great Grandma
Rocking her bedazzled tee shirt from Great Grandma
This crazy outfit oddly suited Harper perfectly!
Kissing "Small Boots" and holding tight to her new Dora sippy
Goggle eyes!
Hadley watching her cousin, Shannon, filleting the fish she caught.
A little fairy goofiness back at the cabin
Back to the beach!
Walking some "soup" over to Uncle Chris, making him taste it, and taking it back...over and over and over again.
Sweet sweet curls
The first of many To Do's on our list at home that we accomplished on our trip: Build a sand castle
Hadley made her own mini castle, which she proudly showed off, making sure to point out that she even added shrubbery to her design.
S'MORES!!
All the grand children sneaked away to participate in a little art project to be given to Great Grandma at the big dinner on the last night.
What's a party on the lake without a little moonshine?!
This is why they love him so.
Isn't Uncle Chris so pretty?!
Harper to the rescue!
But to rescue someone they kind of need to want to be rescued.
Clearly she was definitely happy right where she was!
Final night fiesta!
This picture pretty much sums up their two eating styles.
100% great grandchild-built firewood pile
Cousins
More cousins
Sunday came and it was time to head to Gigi and Papa's house on Wilson Lake!!
First things first: The girls immediately fell right into the routine and took off on some trails.
Chris followed the routine as well by hitting the beer fridge!
Arts and Crafts with Gigi. They made butterfly magnets, endless amounts of pictures, and bird houses!
Cocktail cruise time
Day trip to Grand Marais
Back on Wilson Lake in her favorite boating position
Driving lessons from Gigi on the nightly cocktail cruise
Hadley, a seasoned pro, is still the most nauseating boat driver ever!
But she loves every minute of it.
Picking veggies in Gigi's amazing garden
Papa's famous wild rice: the perfect breakfast food!
Face painting with Izzy
Sweet goodbye for Uncle Chris
Daddy and I took the girls on a moose hike because I am determined to see one!!
Harper kept saying, "MOOSE, THAT WAY!"
No moose sightings, but there's something so wonderful about walking in the woods with my family. Ya just kinda have to be there :)
Breakfast at this awesome little restaurant up there in the middle of nowhere. Out of this world french toast, chocolate milk, and taxidermy! Harper, not surprisingly, was totally into it.
Yes, that's right. That's an old school exercise bike. Classic.
Beavers
Hadley could not even look at them!
After saying "MILK SHAKE" over and over and over, when forced to share one with Mommy and Hadley, the owner sweetly brought the girls their very own.
Baking muffins with Gigi
Fishing lessons with Gigi
Hadley picked up the corn, that was meant for the fish, and decided it looked too good to waste on them.
Crawfish...who knew?!
Harper handed over some of her graham cracker for a little experiment.
He liked it!
Girls only fishing
The Trestle Inn
Off to play a little foosball with Papa
Something tells me this won't be the last time these two are saddled up in a bar together...with Harper being more appropriately dressed for the venue than Hadley.
I know I'm biased, but COME ON...wow, she's pretty!
Rope swing madness
One final fishing trip...
...which resulted in Harper falling overboard! Scary at first, but she was wearing her life jacket and Mommy caught her leg before she went all the way in. It wasn't until Daddy could yank her out that we realized her head was submerged! Thankfully she bounced back quickly and was laughing about it by the time we got back to the dock.
Animal shelter fundraiser at The Trestle
Lots of animals to pets and see.
Painting a water bowl for Wilson
Hadley decided Wilson would prefer princess stickers on the food bowl she made for him.
And the pink paint is STILL in Harper's hair 7 days later!
Hadley getting cozy with a little snake.
Thank you Gigi and Papa!!
XOXOXO
No comments:
Post a Comment