Rainy Friday

It has been raining, and raining all week, and yesterday was an especially rain filled day.  By mid-afternoon, it was very clear that everyone needed a change of scenery, so we decided to make a trip down to the Depot so the kidlets could be in the children’s museum, and I could check out the Duluth Art Institute’s National Geographic Photography Exhibit (which was really great, and I am planning on visiting it again before it leaves).  We had a great two hours in the museum.  In the Little Builder’s Exhibit, the kidlets pounded on things, played with Wedgits, and had a great time swooshing plastic balls through air-filled tubing.  The exhibit is very hands on, and the kidlets adorned construction costumes and went right to it.  However, the building was incredibly warm and humid on Friday.  I spent most of my time sitting on the floor in the corner watching them because it was cooler on the floor.  It was so warm and oppressive, and of course, we were dressed for outside rainy June weather.  By the end of the two hours we were all relieved to go back outside.  The kidlets had flushed faces and were dripping in sweat.  I was so warm I was getting a bit grouchy.

The Banana loved  the noise-cancelling headphones that construction workers wear.

Check out how she’s wearing the headphones while she operates the crane.  She continues to have her own sense of appropriate fashion.

On our way home we discovered that the waves on Lake Superior were rolling in quite nicely, and since I just can’t stay away from big waves, we decided to drive up to the rocky beach.  Right before the beach Dr. Peds noticed a group of surfers (dressed in full neoprene regalia)  riding the waves at the mouth of the Lester River, so we piled out of the car in the refreshing drizzle to watch.  Dr. Peds still has magnificent surfing plans.  Mr. Sneaky Pants also thoroughly enjoys surfers.  He is pretty good at spotting which waves they should take from shore, too.  He loves to see them dive underneath the waves when they paddle back out into the water, and he was especially delighted when one surfer did an arial summersault as he tumbled off his board.  Ya Ya was grumpily back in the car after just a few minutes because she was cold (and just generally grouchy about stopping for surfers).  Most of the family could have stayed much longer, but certain people were getting hungry, so we drove our van away in order for other people to enjoy the activity.  Only in Minnesota will you find surfers out in the chilly drizzle on a rainy day with air temperatures of a lovely 52 degrees and water temperatures of barely 40 degrees.   Refreshing.