Weekend in Duluth

This weekend we headed up to Duluth to participate in the Relay for Life in support of my Mom! When the relay began on Friday at 6pm the weather was perfect -unusually warm, sunny skies, and not a cloud in sight! At about 8:00 Graham became pretty grouchy and tired, so he and Jeff headed back to the hotel to get some sleep. I on the other hand, stuck it out all night long until the event ended at 6 am. Once the sun went down, the cold and wind began to set in and so began our night in an open field with mosquito's and an obnoxious DJ who had a strange love of Neil Diamonds "Sweet Caroline"...I'm still hearing that song in my head! Who would have thought that we'd be wearing winter coats, mittens, and blankets for extra warmth in July?!?!?! ? Yes, it really was that cold! I was so happy when the sun finally came up and it was time for me to get some sleep!

Graham and Grandma before the relay began

After I got a few hours of sleep on Saturday morning, our plan was to spend the rest of the weekend hanging out on the beach in Duluth. Apparently, the weather gods laughed at our plans because we were met with rain and highs in the mid-50's...in JULY!!! Duluth is a pretty touristy town, but unfortunately most of the tourist spots focus on being outdoors so it took some creative planning to keep Graham entertained and my tired eyes open. This creativity is what led us to a train museum. We learned that Graham really enjoys looking at trains both real ones and toys!

After the train museum, it was still raining,and too early for me to convince the boys that it really was bedtime (I was DESPERATE for sleep at this point!) so we headed to the Duluth Children's Museum. It was here, that Graham got to dress up in armor and wear a crown while perched in a throne!

Thank goodness our hotel had a pool complete with raining mushroom for the little kids! Jeff sat in the kiddie pool (which apparently had unusually warm water) for quite a while while Graham played under the mushroom and tired himself out. Now, it was finally bedtime for all of us!!!

We woke up to cool weather and a grey sky on Sunday, but at least it wasn't raining. We decided to head down to the lake for a walk before starting our drive back home. Graham was having a great time throwing rocks and watching waves but as soon as he discovered a dead muskrat that had washed ashore, I made the executive decision to end our beach time. We did take some time to stop and feed the seagulls which Graham found hilarious. Each time the birds would fight over the bread Graham would clap his hands! I have to admit, those birds did put on quite a show!

Our last stop before heading home was a really cute toy store. It was here, that Graham discovered an entire wall of Thomas the Train paraphernalia. Judging by the excited squeals coming from his little body, one would have thought his dreams had come true!