I have been having a lot of fun these last few weeks seeing some of my very favorite clients out at area parks (or in their yards) as we play and I capture photos (from a distance). Many of these shoots have involved bubbles, squirt guns, water balloons and the like, so you’ll likely see many of those props in this year’s posts.

These photos were from a session last week over in St. Paul. I have been shooting this family for several years now and I think my smile might have been even bigger than the boys’!

This weekend was another holiday amidst the pandemic, and man was it… quiet.

There were no parties, no big fireworks, no hanging with friends… It was just more family time. Which is nice! I have a fantastic family and a hilarious kid and a fabulous husband and two insane but lovable dogs. And yet… holidays right now just don’t feel all that celebratory.

We tried to do our best with Dairy Queen and dipping our toes in the Mississippi River and riding our bikes to the lake and running to catch the ice cream truck. We watched movies and ate popcorn and enjoyed a deliciously juicy watermelon.

But we still missed our friends a lot. And we wish we had a pool. Ah well.

Hopefully next year will be a bit better.

We went up north to a lake for a week and forgot our fishing poles.

Did you hear that? That was my father all the way in Kansas smacking his head at us. Unforgivable to him, I realize.

Anyway, we still invented our own fun at the dock by dangling very thin strips of string cheese into the water and laughing maniacally as the sunnies came up to nibble the cheese or our fingers. It entertained us each morning during the daily “feeding.”

We also discovered a very lovely sandbar in the middle of the lake, where the water was only knee high. It was here that we explored endlessly and found such a variety of snail shells, as seen above. I think I’ve mentioned before that screens are not allowed on my cabin vacations, and this lake provided entertainment aplenty.

Today I’m just showing a few images from up north last week that don’t really fit with a story but that I like for the color and the feel. My favorite thing about this particular spot is the stillness of the water, and how I can hear the wind whispering through the top of the pines while I’m reading. And the loons. The loons always make me happy.

Here’s my kiddo reading to us on the dock.

As a parent (and a huge fan), I was really torn about how to approach Harry Potter with my kid. I wasn’t sure if he was too young for the stories or if I should make him read it himself or how far apart to space each book. I think each family is different on this (which is totally fine), but for us, I decided I would read him book 1 when he was five, book 2 when he was six and then he had to read the rest himself (but I would read them at the same time so we could talk about it all).

Also, I would read the first two to him to answer all the questions (What is a corridor? Why do they call a trashcan a bin? What is the boot of a car?), and then I also bought them on audiobook so he could listen and re-listen after (I find audiobooks to be better than screen time for this kiddo). And yeah, don’t talk to me about how much money I’ve given to JK Rowling.

Anyway, he loved the first book (obviously). And then when Covid hit and we were trapped at home, he was begging me to start the second book. So I gave in. But I held firm on the fact that if he wanted to proceed from there, HE ha to read the books (thinking that would put No. 3 off a year or two). Oh, how I was wrong.

This child read us the entire book 3 at the cabin last week. I was stunned. And then I realized if my own parents had issued a challenge like that, I too would have done it. I don’t like being told what I can and cannot do, and it looks like I passed that right down, didn’t I?

But don’t worry, no book 4 for us until next Christmas. I told him it’s just too scary, and I think after this one he agrees that maybe he should wait. Thank God.

One of my favorite things about this trip up north was Ezra’s age and his sense of adventure. He loved exploring the lake with us and noticing the nature around him.

We found frogs and snakes and dragonflies and butterflies and deer and eagles and loons and their young. I have a strict no screen time rule at the cabin, and the child didn’t ask for it once. It was all about nature and books and stories and exploration, and I don’t know if it will ever be this good again. But man, it was fantastic.

One of the nights this week (I no longer remember days or dates… partially because I’m on vacation and partially because of the pandemic which has erased all sense of time), I decided to attempt a few shots of the stars from the dock.

The milky way was hidden behind the trees, and I didn’t have the motivation to drive to the other side of the lake to try a new shot because 1) It was bedtime and I’m old and 2) Axe murderers.

Anyway, I snapped this and then, as requested, I woke the kid up and carried him out to the dock so he could see full on stars at night (his bedtime is so early that it’s a rarity for him in the summer). I asked him what he thought of the night sky and he responded by saying it was sorta creepy outside when it was that dark out. Yup, he’s my kid.

And back to bed we went.

Side note: How is it that March and April seemed to be approximately 400 years long and June has passed in 72 hours? Seriously.

Last night there were some loons hanging out by our dock, and as we headed out for a boat ride, we got pretty close. I’m not gonna lie, their red eyes freak me out a little, but I do love the water droplets on their feathers and seeing their markings.