We Ran Away, Part 3

The cabins are simple but just right. Full kitchen, bathroom, table and beds. 



Everyone had tasty breakfast choices...homemade donuts, doughgodies, cinnamon rolls, scones. And coffee. Always coffee. 







The only thing lacking was a beach at the lake. My boys LOVE spending hours on a lake beach. 



I did homemade Jimmy Johns sandwiches for lunch. 




We swam every day, sometimes twice. Why not when there’s no one else at the pool!



Levi hasn’t done much park play because last summer he was a tiny baby, and this summer they have been closed. It was such a treat watching him enjoy the park!





A couple of evenings we drew our favorite parts of the day, made jokes, practiced calligraphy, and drew our favorite drawings. It turned out to be a favorite way to process our fun days. 

Levi and I snuck out a few nights once everyone was in bed but he wasn’t quite ready yet. I played Canasta and he played with Aunt Beth. They had a lot of catching up to do!

We Ran Away, Part 2

It felt like winning the lottery to play at the park!!! I loved being able to say yes, it’s safe to play. 

Mom and I ran into Yankton for a few random groceries. Mask observations: I have a big face. 

G&G brought badminton which is always a crowd pleaser with this group.

Hanging out with the big cousins was Elias’ favorite part of the trip. They’re exceptional teenagers. Always willing to play and chat and help out. 



Logan worked during the day in our cabin while we did fun stuff, so Levi was able to put Levi down for naps in our cabin with him. Then I could go back to having fun!

We split up the meals and put Grandma on all desserts. She did not disappoint!



Grandpa swam with us every day, and also got naps and reading in poolside. 






Levi did some swimming but he had to get out of the sun and nap more often than the rest, so he and Grandma got quality time each day while the rest of us finished swimming. 

Logan and I grilled pork chops for our dinner to share. 

Onion rings have sounded so good lately so I searched high and low for dairy free. 



I want to eat that all again. YUM. 

After dinner we went into Yankton to walk to double decker foot bridge that connects SD with NE. 


















The boys did some hiking. Samuel said he flicked three ticks off of himself, and my dad said the deer flies were biting a lot so ew. I never hiked. 

We were late to bed every single night, but everyone slept until around 730am each morning. 

We Ran Away, Part 1

My family decided to get away for a few days together since we all stayed quarantined for months, and it was like going back to normal for a few glorious days. 

All the boys were rock star travelers. We went to Broom Tree in South Dakota and stayed in cabins. 



I bought the big boys music players, put tons of music I already have because this 90s girl still has her Caselogic full of CDs, added headphones we already have and BOOM. Three and a half hours of quiet car ride other than some humming.  





We arrived in the afternoon and were the only people staying in the cabins because everyone else booked for the following 4th of July weekend. We had the place to ourselves! The fire pit, playground, pool, lake, trails were pretty much just us other than a few random individuals on silent retreat. 

The boys couldn’t get enough of the pool. 







Everyone slept really well...even Levi! I couldn’t believe it. Levi even took every single nap without a hitch. 

The Difference Between Them

The whip cream is almost gone. Who wants one more squirt?

Augustine runs inside to get a spoon:

Lewis is always ready:

Levi didn’t mind licking it off his fingers. (It’s dairy free.)

And where is Elias you ask? He was too busy talking a mile a minute about his amazing new “recipe”. 

“Mom! I put ketchup on my chip, then some chicken, then another chip on top and it’s SO GOOD! I will make these every day.”