#95. Soakin' up the Summer of 2021

Our past summer was packed with fun moments and memories.  Here's a blog post dedicated to unpacking some of the highlights!

We celebrated the start of summer at Prairie Joe's!

Before summer could officially begin, a very unique 1st grade experience came to a close. 

Here are the twins on their last day of school...in front of a building they never entered in 2020-2021!

Here is the first in-person gathering for the twins 1st grade class...on the last day of school!

We were extremely thankful for the learning group (known as 'the POD') we formed with four other families.  This group survived a year of rotating homes (though we weren't part of the rotation during our home renovation) and crazy day-to-day schedules.  It was kind of like a modern one-room school house!

So thankful for the families and 'fairy pod mother' for a successful year.  We will be bonded forever!!

Once summer break officially started, we got busy enjoying our normal summer activities.  

The weather in June was great, so we wasted no time hitting the beach...

...and made it to the pond to feed the ducks!

We made our annual trip to the Bahai Temple on a gorgeous day.

As usual, the views didn't disappoint!!

This summer, we went low to find some new poses...

...and stood tall with flowers the same height as Luke!

These two are getting better at being patient during this annual photo shoot...

...and this fountain photo shows how much they've grown in the past 4 visits!!

With covid 'more contained', many summer activities re-commenced.  The twins both participated in karate camp, 

and soccer camp too.

Everyone was still masked up...

...but that didn't stop everyone from having a great time!

Cheers to a great week of camp!!

Clare experienced her first year of organized softball.

Here's her first 'career at-bat'...she made herself known in the on-deck circle!!

She really learned a lot skills...from throwing...

...to hitting...

...and enjoyed playing catcher.  

The best part was all of the new friends she made and the fun she had playing on a team.

We're sure this won't be her last softball button!! 

We were fortunate enough to take a few summer trips, the first being to one of our favorite places, Door County, WI.  

This year we enjoyed having cousins join us for the trip north.

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The weather wasn't the greatest (which meant less pool time), but we still had fun go-karting,

arcading (Clare worked on her jumpshot while Luke 'hit it big' on the wheel of fortune...earning 1000 tickets...that took over 5 minutes to dispense!),

and visiting PC Junction, 

where everyone enjoyed climbing around, 

and having lunch served on the PC Junction trains!!

There was indoor dining at Shipwrecked,

outdoor pizza by the lake,

and a trip or two out for ice cream!!

But it seems as though the most fun was had on our nightly walks down to the beach,

for some fun times in the sand, 

and a lot of good photos by the bay!

The only thing that slowed this group down was darkness!

We watched a lot of fantastic sunsets during their playtime!

Our next summer trip was down to Eureka for a weekend of camping and the 4th of July.

This meant more fun time with cousins, 

tube time at the lake,

                                                      and a fun glow necklace dance party!

The twins definitely enjoyed visiting with Grandma and Grandpa Knapp,

and seeing their older cousin Keira who moved back from Germany.

Mid-summer meant the beginning of another trip around the sun for these two,

and we secured the annual 'tree photos'!

The twin's cousins came to town to celebrate...Luke and his cousin Nick were inseparable!

We snuck in a fun afternoon at the beach,

with family and close friends.

This year's birthday party was a repeat of 2020's outdoor party at Howell Park,

where unicorn and Minecraft cupcakes were served!

Of course, there were presents,

and, also of course, Grandma Steffie was there for it all!

As the days of summer break began to fade, we made one final trip to visit friends in Provincetown, on Cape Cod. 

Such a fun place to visit!

There was plenty to do,

including a hike through a forest,

which might be the first time I heard either of them say 'I like hiking'!

We didn't see any (real) sharks,

but we did enjoy a whale watching cruise,

with plenty of great views on the water,

and back on land.

The search for whales did not disappoint,

and we saw many whales surfacing and then diving back under the water.

The whales were definitely a lot bigger than this one on land!

Papa & Daddy enjoyed the trip to the Truro Vineyards,

where the twins learned about farming grapes,

and hung with their dads for some wine tasting.

One highlight was our dunes tour of the Cape Cod National Seashore Park.

It was a great experience driving in a SUV up and over the dunes,

but it was even more fun getting out of the truck and running up and down the dunes!!

                                        

We sure had a great time on the tour and in Provincetown!!

Back in town, some were not impressed with Papa's oyster indulgence,

but all was forgotten when we took pedicabs home!

Too soon it was time to head home, taking the morning ferry over to Boston to make our flight home.

It was a summer to remember and we look forward to more adventures to come!