My family, grandpa, and Aunt C all went camping in Minnesota's Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness for a week. We left home on June 29th, and returned July 7th.
Here's a pretty sunset - isn't it gorgeous? We saw a plethora of wildlife, including turtles, toads, snakes, eagles, and a mink or a weasel.
We stayed in tents, of course. Aunt C and I were in this one, grandpa was in his own, and everyone else slept in a larger tent. I was asked upon my return what it's like to sleep outdoors. I was rather dumbfounded by the question; it' hard to describe. For readers who have never had the experience, it is hot and muggy, even when it's cool outside the tent, and if it rains, it's damp. You can also hear everything through the canvas, so you get woken up by the birds in the morning, and you go to sleep hearing the drone of the mosquitoes.
Our street had a block party last weekend, which was a lot of fun. A fire truck and police car stopped by to visit and give demonstrations; the little kids (and some of the bigger ones) all got to spray the fire hose. We grilled out, got to know each other, and the dozen or so younger kids raced each other on tricycles and played on the water slide.
I got dragooned into helping with my mom's church's annual Vacation Bible School, but luckily, I got to avoid all the religious drama by volunteering in the Arts and Crafts department. Over the course of a week, the kids made swords, shields, tunics, catapults, and more, in accordance with this year's Medieval theme. I've been doing art with VBS for years now, and usually I'll make a couple of the crafts for myself. This year, however, I didn't really care for a lot of the designs. Yesterday, though, they made lanterns, complete with little electric candles. I thought it'd make a nice altar addition, especially because I'm not allowed to burn my real candles, and since there were extra kits, I made one.
Last but not least, our town puts on an event called Summer Celebration at the end of July every year. Among other things, one major attraction is the town parade, in which different clubs and companies enter floats. My mom and I are members of our local choral society, and have been working on the society's parade float. Since the parade's theme this year is Broadway, it was right up our alley. I can't post pictures of the completed float yet, but here's me with the topper for the giant Tony award we're using as the proverbial icing on the cake. I drew the design on both sides and painted it. Quite the production.
You can also see in this picture that my arm is in a splint. I've had tendinitis since March, and am now seeing an Occupational Therapist to get my wrist healed up. Send positive energy, please; I want to get back to having full use of my thumb ASAP!
Whew! I think that's about everything. On with the regularly scheduled program!
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