Our time in Lutsen was so restful! It was rainy and cold and so we spent a lot of time inside our cabin watching the rain, warming by the fire, playing games, taking naps, reading, & eating good meals. It was just what we needed!
Our final evening it stopped raining & we went down to the shore to play.
Afternoon playtime.
McKinney's hair is starting to curl a bit in the back!
McKinney and I played a game with the canon lens cap. I would roll the lens cap & she would quickly crawl to get the cap & bring it back to me. She did this over and over again.
Elizabeth loves to play with a hairbrush. You can barely see it in the picture below:
Now the hairbrush is a telephone. She has one of our old cell phones & she will put it up to her ear and say something that sounds like, "hello".
Elizabeth is ready for her nap.
One evening Jon got home early enough for us to take a walk while Jonathan rode his bike. We were just getting back home as the sun was setting.
Jonathan is weary of having his picture taken. Poor little fellow. I have to be creative with the situation in order to have a willing subject. :) So, he gets to jump on beds & stand on furniture for pictures. In this picture below he is sitting on Daddy's desk for a rock and roll picture. He really is such a great sport!
Every morning the books are stacked neatly in rows on the bookcase in our living room and every evening the books are in piles on the floor. I love this!!!! It's precious to me that the girls enjoy looking through their books!
One of the perks of living in Olmsted County is that the girls receive a book every month. Two books arrive in the mailbox addressed to Elizabeth Anne Caudill and Martha McKinney Caudill. Jonathan is the 1st to read them, though.
We also have precious books that have been gifts from family and friends. We think of each of you as we read the books you've given to us....and we're thankful. 
Jonathan LOVED today!!! We had the day with my cousin Eric's family as they stopped by on their travels from the West coast back to Cincinnati, Ohio. Their boys, Keane and Kaden, are such a blessing. Jonathan and Keane have so much in common and it was fun to watch them play and talk together. Brittney and I were comparing notes on parenting, schooling, practicing,.....and this conversation will continue, I'm sure!!
Kaden
Keane
Our final day in Toronto we visited the Distillery District which turned out to be a great spot for pictures.
We ate some of the gelato & it was amazing. Sweet cream with chocolate shavings for Mom, Jonathan, Elizabeth & McKinney. Chocolate for Dad.
On Saturday we took a 10 minute ferry ride over to Centerville Island, a city park with rides. This was Jonathan's favorite day!
Jonathan was hoping for a little more control of this car and so we went to the next ride....
....this car had an accelerator and the steering wheel actually turned the car. Much better.
"Let's Go Again!"
This is evidence of my love for this little boy. I do not like rides. During the ride Jonathan told me that I am a scaredy cat. It's true.
I have always loved the Anne of Green Gables series. I've watched the movies & read the books more times than I can count! Jon scouted out several of the filming sights for us to see.
Green Gables
After we stopped at Green Gables we decided to drive out to a small town History Center where Anne of Avonlea was filmed. It seemed perfect....Elizabeth & McKinney were asleep and the drive would be pretty...through the countryside...right? Well, we hit traffic & it took us 1.5 hours to get there. We rounded the corner & this is what we saw:
Can you believe it?!?! CLOSED! We could not even see any of the buildings from the road. We tried to think of something to do in this small town but eventually decided to head back to the hotel...which was a good decision because we hit some heavy traffic....
stop and go....stop and go....stop and go....
Jon turned on the radio and the refrain playing was,
"damn, damn circumstance". (please don't be offended)
We laughed. It just seemed so fitting. 3 1/2 hours in the car, lots of time stuck in traffic, for absolutely nothing. Well, I say nothing. We did have some good laughs, time to talk, and we arrived back at the hotel ready for a fun swim,....
...a good meal & a relaxing evening in our hotel room overlooking the city.
Here are the other sights we were able to see around Toronto:
Maplehurst
Aunt Josephine Barry's Home
I am a bit behind in updating our blog because we are enjoying our time here in Toronto, Canada! The night before we left town we were so blessed to have Uncle Bob, Aunt Rita, Rosanne, Arabelle, & Kayla for supper!! These little girls are just too precious & they won our hearts immediately.
Arabelle
Sweet Cousins
Kayla
Sunday, after morning worship and afternoon naps, we loaded the car & drove over to Lansboro. We just love this little MN town nestled in the valley. We pushed the girls in the stroller while Jonathan rode his bike along the old railroad bed that has been turned into trails. 
Lansboro park was crowded due to "Buffalo Bill Days" celebration and so we drove over to Chatfield Park to eat our picnic supper (which wasn't all that great because I forgot the can opener for the tuna!). But I did bring the camera...and even an extra battery, which I needed while at the park! It's all about priorities....
We played for awhile and then went to a vintage DQ for ice cream which we enjoyed while driving home through the country....
Such a great day!
