We started a tradition in 2008 of taking a photo of the Sullivan cousins on the dock at the cabin each summer. We missed 2010, but will try very hard to keep the tradition going as long as they will let us.
Sullivan Cousins
Park Point Beach
One of my summer bucket list items was to spend a day at Park Point Beach. This past Sunday, we grabbed our swimsuits and towels, slathered on the sunscreen, packed a picnic lunch and headed to the beach. The day was very warm with a few passing clouds. There was a threat for isolated thunderstorms, but we checked the radar before we left the house and decided to take our chances. We ended up having a perfect beach day. No rain, lots of sun and a very light breeze.
*All photos were taken with my old Panasonic DMC-FZ8. Mike recommended leaving my Canon DSLR at home to avoid potential damage from the sand. Definitely good advice as we had sand on and in everything when we got home.
The kids wasted no time in getting started on building sand creations.
Here are few pictures of the beach, grass, water and sky with a little Photoshop magic applied.
And here’s the same Photoshop application applied to the picture of Sebastian and Sophia working together on their sand creation.
For the first time ever, Duluth has had 25 days during the month of July that have been in the 80’s (or 90’s). If August is anything like July, we may have to head back to Park Point Beach.
Summer Bucket List
I haven’t made a formal summer bucket list, but have made a few mental notes of things that I would like our family to do before the kids go back to school. We were able to wipe out three of them this weekend – eat at Gordy’s Hi-Hat in Cloquet, visit the recently renovated Enger Tower and swim at Park Point Beach. We also had a night out with friends (no kids) at Mexico Lindo on Friday and enjoyed drinks and appetizers on the outdoor deck overlooking Lake Superior. Earlier this summer, we attended a Huskies game, threw rocks in the lake at Brighton Beach and went for a walk on the Lakewalk. Some of the things in Duluth I would still like our family to do include riding the Alpine Coaster and Zip Line at Spirit Mountain, going to the Farmer’s Market and having ice cream at the Portland Malt Shop. I would also like for us to make a day trip to Gooseberry Falls, go to a Minnesota Twins game and spend a day at the Minnesota State Fair. We will likely do only half of these things, but since there are still five weeks left before the kids head to school, we will try our best to accomplish them.
Here’s a look at what we completed from the list this past Saturday.
Featured on the Food Network’s Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives, Gordy’s Hi-Hat restaurant in Cloquet. Definitely not the healthiest meal we have eaten this summer, but certainly one that everyone enjoyed.
Sophia and Sebastian each ordered chicken strips. They split an order of fries. Mike and I may have had a few too.
Mike ordered a chocolate malt. We shared it. Sophia had some too. It was wonderful.
Mike also ordered onion rings. I had a few of those too.
Here’s my cheeseburger. Mike had to help me finish it. Probably because I ate some of his onion rings and malt.
I can’t believe we ate it all, but we did. All of us agreed that we need to go here for dinner at least once each summer…or maybe twice.
We snapped a few photos before we left.
I had to beg and plead with Sebastian to be part of this family photo. I’m sure he will enjoy looking back at this when I have it up during his grad party in seven years.
On our way back home, I made our family stop by Enger Park. The Tower has an amazing view of Duluth, the Aerial Lift Bridge and Lake Superior. I knew the sun was just right for some perfect harbor photos.
We were lucky and watched a ship come in under the bridge.
The kids were tired from a sleepover that they both attended the night before. They weren’t too excited about checking out the beautiful gardens at the park so all I could do is take a few pictures on our way back to the car.
We took Skyline Drive home and enjoyed more views of the city and lake. We made sure to let the kids get a good night’s sleep before heading to Park Point the next day. More about that summer bucket list item later this week…
M. Sullivan Photography 