Minnesota Vacation Day 20

This morning, I finished painting one tiny strip of wood at the ground level of the cabin on one side.  Tim split wood, and the boys stacked it.  They were WOUND up this morning, so I thought we'd better get them out of the cabin.  I packed a lunch, and we took the boat to Lake 2.  We went to the springholes (the area of the lake where the springs that feed it are supposed to be) then to "Case Island."  We brought both dogs, though Josey needed some help getting from the boat to land.  The kids immediately started exploring, and eventually wound up walking along the rocks to another tiny island nearby ("Hicks Island").  Tim and I swam just a bit, then we went to see what the boys were doing, and Zachary was in the water!  (He still had his life jacket on.)  He said that he walked on some rocks and "the next thing I knew I was swimming."  He eventually swam all the way around the island (in 388 seconds).  Jeremy swam a little, too, but then he discovered a cut on his finger.  His response?  "And I was having SO much FUN!"  He soon seemed to recover, as we spied him climbing a tree not long after that statement.  He also found a stick that would be perfect for making a bow, and he brought it home.  We saw a bald eagle while in the boat on lake 2. 

When we came back, Tim and I went swimming.  Zachary went inside and helped Grandma make dinner.  Jeremy went to Lydia's cabin.  Tim and I played a game of Scrabble on the boathouse (nice of him, since I like it a LOT more than he does).  Jeremy went on a boat ride with Lydia and her parents, and Zachary snorkeled. 

Dinner was chicken and dumplings!  After dinner, Tim and I went fishing by ourselves.  There was the MOST beautiful full moon low in the sky over our cabin.  When we came back from fishing, there were dragonflies swarming over the boathouse.  Suddenly, I saw what at first looked like a huge dragonfly.  Quickly, I realized there were now at least half a dozen bats flying right overhead.  I love bats - I don't know why.  The boys came out to see them.  We ended the night with a round of pinochle (we are still playing partners, as the boys are just learning).   It is now 11:20 and they are just heading to bed.  They will probably read for a while, too.  I don't know how I'll get them back into a normal routine when we get home!