June 21 Lake Itasca

Survived the major thunderstorm, but we had water leakage in several places one being under the kid’s bed/couch. The blankets were wet & the carpet underneath was soaked which meant the clothing bag underneath was also wet. Ugh. Can we catch a break with these thunderstorms already? Every single campground. Sheesh. I’m wondering if God is trying to tell us something? I don’t have an issue with the water, it’s the funky smell that comes afterward when it can’t dry up quickly. You know that mildew smell that leaves a moist damp yuckiness in the air. Yeah that. Of course it’s been a bit humid as well so it wasn’t drying up anytime soon. Blah.

Anyway I tried to look past it & just have a good time at the lake. We packed up & drove out there. What’s the first thing Annika sees? You guessed it, the darn gift shop. Really? Nope no way, move along nothing to see here. She was already cranky because the mosquitoes had followed us once again. I gave her the baby’s blanket to cover up with & she looked like Mary with the blanket over her head & body. I have a photo of her wrapped up. Such a drama queen. A short walk over a bridge & we were in the thick woods….yay more mosquitoes…ok sorry, focus. We could hear the water & it was beautiful. There it was a huge lake with gorgeous trees lining it all around & a set of rocks going across where we were which made a smaller river area where people could walk across the Mississippi river. Kurt got in with the kids. They also walked across this long tree that was cut in half to make a bridge. I stepped in & brrr the water was a bit nippy. I took Emry out of the carrier & sat her on a rock so she could say she too put her feet in the water. It was all going great until I dropped my cell phone in the water….eeeck! As quickly as I could I bent down (with Emry in the carrier) & grabbed it, took it apart & tried to air it out on a tree stump. Woops! I told hubby to get insurance on it when we got it, but he didn’t. Umm hmm. Anyway I put it back together a few minutes later & it started right up. Whew! My photos were safe. Gotta back up those puppies pronto onto the laptop. Oh but the fun didn’t stop there. As we were getting ready to go Kurt is sitting on a rock & he notices something in the water. A leech. Gross. He told Annika what it was & mentioned how they attach to your skin. This leech was kind of swinging itself underwater & attaching itself from one end to the other on the rock so it wouldn’t float away. He quickly dipped Dalton’s feet into the water to scare him (I’m assuming) and that leech attached himself to Dalton’s toe. It happened so fast & Kurt laughed “oops”. Dalton didn’t know what was going on (thankfully) & it took Kurt probably 8 tries to get that sucker off my baby’s toe. What was he thinking…sheesh! It was then that Annika jumped out of the water & didn’t want to go back in, not even to get the sand off her feet. I was worried that now my kids had leeches in their crotches. Never a dull moment I tell you. On our way out there was a park ranger with different animal skins & Annika touched them (the porcupine was interesting). Oh but the fun doesn’t stop there because we had to walk past the gift shop. I wanted some post cards & t-shirts, but Annika wanted a stuffed wolf. Nope no stuffed animals, sorry. Melt down begin in 3-2-1. We left with nothing but a screaming, crying, jumping up & down foolish looking child. Why? Every single time, why?

So we took the scenic route all the way around the lake & stopped at one area to eat some lunch. We walked over to the water & Kurt showed the kids how to skip rocks. Dalton had fun just throwing the rocks in the water, but Annika did try. We had to get on the road to Bemidji to our next camp site. Once we got into town we saw the famous 1937 statues of Paul Bunyan & Babe. They were pretty big, but not the biggest from what I understand. Alrighty checked that off our list. Now to the campsite. It was packed & seemed like a tight squeeze compared to what we had been to. I felt like a sardine in a can. They had a nice playground area & while the kids played with other kids I did laundry. They had a nice beach & swim area as well, but my mind quickly went back to the leeches. Wonder if there are any in that lake?

Kurt noticed a blond headed family walking & he said it reminded him of the family from that tv series “Viking”. I had to agree. The guy looked like him & had that big build to him. Kinda funny. We decided to grill out & hubby made some yummy pork chops. You know they’re good when Annika eats them & says they’re her favorite. That child is so picky so I was glad she got a belly full. They once again requested smores & sat outside to make them. Not a lot of mosquitoes here so that was a huge bonus. It’s so easy to let time get away from you because it stays light out so long. Before I know it, it’s 8:30 & I’m gathering children in to get ready for bath & bed. Annika found the glow sticks that cousin Cindy got them so I made bracelets for each of them. Annika’s had a hole & her shirt was glowing purple. Thankfully they’re not toxic (or so the bag said), but a quick wash of the hands & shirt change & she was once again ready for bed. Dalton was so cute because he fell asleep all curled up with that glow bracelet in his hands. We may be having a crazy time on this vacation with thunderstorms, melt downs, injuries & more, but it’s these cute little moments that make it all worth it.