Breakaway Tri | Ry's First Tri

Yesterday, Maple Grove put on a triathlon for around 500 kids. Kids up to 14 only - there was not an adult wave. Pretty cool to see so many little 'athletes' excited to race.

His wave was set by his age and gender

Swim (100 yards)

Pulled off his swim gear and running into the transition!

Bike out

Bike back in (4.5 miles)

Obstacle course run

We love taking advantage of this type of stuff to help teach our kids about staying active and living a healthy lifestyle. We are also so thankful for all the training help from our neighbor Erin! That helped Ry be calm and focused on race day :)

Camping Trip | Day 8

This morning, we had breakfast at our campsite (making coffee and waffles in the picnic shelter since we didn't have power at our site), packed up camp, and then headed to the falls for some hiking / wandering.

Today was the warmest day of our trip. We have been in the upper 60's and today was about 80. Made for an enjoyable barefoot walk around the falls.

Around noon, we headed back to the RV for lunch and then started the drive home. One more carsick kid to keep us on our toes and then we finally made it home by dinner time.

You would think after so many days of camping and being off the grid I'd be anxious to get back to the conveniences of home, but I still feel like I could stay up there a couple weeks longer!! The kids were good, we ate well, we slept well, we had plenty to do, and lots left to explore. 

Already looking forward to our Duluth trip in a few weeks :) 

Canada | Day 7

Today we packed up at Sleeping Giant and headed back across the border to the US. But we were in no particular hurry.

After packing up camp, we headed into Thunder Bay. We drove into town a little to find Sleeping Giant Brewery. It was there that I got to have Mikayla's first legal beer with her! :) She's 19 and that's the legal drinking age in Ontario. Funny thing is - they didn't even card her! Haha. They had just opened their tasting room 3 weeks ago and it was beautiful. The kids played giant checkers (everything is bigger in Canada - haha) so we could just chill and taste some of the beers. (Since Shawn was driving the RV, he opted to grab a couple to take back to the campsite instead.) Great stop.

We made it to Grand Marais around 3:00 (not sure what time zone) and hung out in the harbor for a bit before heading in to Gunflint Tavern for a late lunch. One of our favorite North Shore spots.

After lunch, we walked Artist's Point. Such a pretty walk. At the end near the lighthouse, there was a girl who kept jumping in and I swear every time I heard that splash, my heart missed a beat and I had to check all my kids to make sure one of them didn't fall in! Or daringly just jump in!

After a coffee from Java Moose for the road, we headed toward Gooseberry - our next campground.

We made it just before dark, so were still able to get a good sunset hike in.

This is totally inappropriate, but super funny at the same time: Brecken is not potty training, but has started 'peeing' while hiking, just like the other boys. Lol!

We had a late dinner and one last vacation bonfire. Shawn is getting good at putting Breck to bed in the RV, so I was able to enjoy almost all of the fires on this trip :)

Canada | Day 6

Today was another rainy day, but not rainy enough to prevent us from getting outside. I did take advantage of having a dvd player and played a movie on for the boys mid morning, but the rest of the time, they were outside.

Shawn went on a bike ride around the campground lake while the three boys played together in the campsite. Logan and Ryder spent quite a bit of time just riding their bikes around our huge campsite as well.

After lunch, we all decided we were healed enough for another (short) hike. We parked at the trailhead and hiked to the Sea Lion.

It wasn't a very long hike, but it was so pretty. I think the light rain made the colors seem extra vibrant.

We also got Ryder and Brecken out for a kayak today.

And I got to go out by myself (while Shawn put Brecken to bed)! So nice and relaxing :)

Our site was right by a nice big beach with two playgrounds, so we spent a little time there as well - even though it wasn't quite swimming weather. At least not to me - I had our kids in fleece and hats while others were swimming with their kids. Haha.

The rain cleared up for another great bonfire. Our last group fire of the trip. I am not ready to think about heading back yet...I could easily stay at this site for another week!