The end of fun/The start of school

Holy crap, two in a row. That counts as a streak, right? I sent these clowns off to kindergarten and third grade yesterday. There were a few tears from Eero, who is a big emotional teddy bear, but when they got off the bus they ran to me yelling "IT WAS THE BEST DAY OF SCHOOL EVER!" Which is meaningful even if it was their only day of school ever.

My column, published 9/7/16

The end of fun

            Overheard in the yard this past weekend during a family game of bat-and-ball: “Daddy, how ‘bout you put your beer down so you can catch the ball. That was terrible.” Can’t put much by these kids, even at age 5.

            I’m wondering if this is just us . . . seems like as the summer winds down we all of a sudden have an “oh crap!” feeling that time is running out on all kinds of summery activities. Then we spend the last week or so trying to pack them in and promising to do the ones we missed next summer. I’ve been saying for two years that “next summer we’ll go to the waterpark in Willmar”; I don’t know how much longer they’ll believe me.

            For some reason our kids think that once school starts, fun stops. This last weekend, on top of other regular activities like catching up on laundry and mowing the lawn, we had to play ball, go to the ice cream stand, take a bike ride, use the grill, roast marshmallows, have a family movie night, and take a cruise in one of the old cars.

            Don’t get me wrong- it’s all good stuff and we enjoyed ourselves, though the kids’ excessive begging for fun makes it a little less fun.

My children have lovely smiles but I swear when the camera comes up
they are Chandler Bing trying to take engagement photos. 

            Labor Day Monday we decided to take in the Sunburg Trolls car show in the ’48 Ford coupe. I think hanging around my husband this long has affected me more than I thought . . . walking around oogling classic automobiles is a very enjoyable way to spend a summer day.

            It’s also very mean to bring a bunch of kids who can’t help but touch everything they see to a “look but don’t touch” event. But a great lesson in restraint. They get that from me – I’ve been scolded more than once for getting too close to art in a museum. We’re a curious bunch, I guess.

            In spite of my new minimalist way of living I wouldn’t mind having a ’68 or 9 Corvette convertible, and a ’59 Impala. Apparently I’ve also become a lover of Chevrolets. Hmm.

            Since we were already halfway there I suggested we head up to Glenwood, grab a bite to eat, and wander through the car lot the kids and I checked out a few weeks ago while we waited for a train. There were lots of Corvettes and Camaros to drool over. And there still were, if a person has $72,000 for that kind of thing.

            Before our continued coveting of cars we lunched at the Lakeside Steak and Chophouse, voted by WCCO viewers as Minnesota’s Best Lakeside Dining, and for good reason – fantastic view of Minnewaska right at the water’s edge, delicious food, lovely accommodating staff. The lunch menu is quite condensed compared to the after-4 version, so it’s probably even better in the evening!

            We watched fish swim by the dock, threw rocks in the water, and just enjoyed the breeze. It’s a great place.

Our stop to throw rocks and watch fish in Lake Minnewaska - I think I will always love this picture.

            There is a beautiful new playground across the parking lot from the restaurant, so we let the kids burn off some steam before getting back in the cozy car to go home. Since we had the equipment to ourselves Jesse and I joined them on the climbing apparatus, and I was relieved to know I was still not afraid of heights and could move. The white hair I spotted a couple weeks ago has me nervous.

            At the risk of sounding sappy (apparently I made a lot of moms cry last week), I couldn’t have asked for a better way to spend the last day before school starts. Together, doing things little boys love, without crazy planning or spending a lot of money. Simple family time.

            They were a little whiny at the car show, and I reminded them that that attitude is what causes them to stay home from things like the State Fair, which Jesse and I visited alone on Thursday.

            Our kids have been to the big fair a few times, which is certainly fun, but it’s hard to beat adults-only wandering around the fairgrounds, having a Red Sangria beer from the Schells booth at 11:30 a.m., meandering through the International Bazaar without the worry of people breaking things (I left Jesse by the Summit-on-a-stick stand), and taking in the Alabama concert that night.

We were not too disappointed to find that the fair has been overrun with beers to sample. 

We tried a deep fried Milky Way (eh) and tater tot hot dish on a stick. 

The shape of it made me giggle because I have a dirty mind as I age, but also I had a large beer before that.

            That concert was a bucket list item of mine, and though my husband can school me on a lot of music trivia, I sang along to every song they played while he swayed back and forth. I win. Hearing Mountain Music live has got to be one of my all-time favorite concert moments.

            If you’re a fan, and you can find them performing somewhere, do go see them. They have to be just as good as they have ever been.

            Summer is over, but that doesn’t mean the fun ends. Next week the boys start piano lessons. That should give me some material.