Sayonara Summer

Our last day of summer break had so much potential to be great. It was a good day, but not quite as amazing as it should have been.

My morning began at 6:30 a.m. with a 6 mile run. After a week in Nashville, Asheville, and Lazy 5, it was my first run in eight days! It was also my first long run wearing my new running shoes. I had jogged for a half hour in them on two different occasions and didn't have any issues. Unfortunately, after five miles, my feet were really bothering me. Once I took my shoes off at home, I discovered multiple blisters on the top of my toes and the sole of my foot. 

Our family spent the day together in Salisbury. Jesse's father told us about Super Hero Day at the Harley Davidson shop near them. After a 45 minute drive, we were excited to participate in the festivities. To our surprise, the only thing we were greeted by was a small group of elderly women shag dancing in front of a live band. It took us fifteen minutes to find The Avengers playing in a small back room.

Jackson happily ate free popcorn and watched the movie. (Let's just pretend it's rated PG.) The parking lot was blocked off, so I let the trio run around outside with the music and eat the lunch we packed. Finally, super heroes emerged. As far as we could tell, their only agenda was to pose for the occasional photo. We took a few pictures, grabbed a free poster, then left.

Since Super Hero Day was a bit of a bust, we went to nearby Dan Nicholas Park. I'd been wanting to take Jackson paddle boating. I thought he would love it. We had fun for all of 30 seconds. Jackson couldn't reach the pedals, which meant he couldn't do anything and I had to do all the work. I tried to let him steer, but he kept steering us straight for the "No Boats Allowed" signs. We were both hot, cranky, and dripping in sweat within a few minutes. Our paddle boating lasted a mere five minutes. 

Jesse purchased $1 worth of fish/duck food, which is strangely served in sugar cones.

It took an exceptionally long time to find one lone duck who would eat the food.

We wrapped up our afternoon at the playground. All four kids excitedly navigated to the top of the play structure, which was easily 10 feet high. Only Jackson was brave enough to go down the large tunnel slide. I had to climb up and coax the trio down.

They preferred the familiarity of the wagon.

Once home, the kids and I relaxed while Jesse mowed the lawn. Jesse's parents agreed to watch the kids the same evening so Jesse and I could have a date night. (We had to meet our goal of two dates this summer.) Jesse wanted to walk around NODA, which is Charlotte's arts district. I don't know what he envisioned, but we ended up walking in the rain (with my blistered feet!), standing in an overcrowded coffee shop, and listening to some very amateur comedians. We then drove to Amelie's, a very trendy French bakery. The line was absurdly long. Our date confirmed that we are not a hip, trendy couple. We ended up eating dessert at Macado's, which was a staple during our college years.

Elvis Twist--Croissant sandwich with peanut butter, banana, and chocolate ice cream 

Jesse returns to work tomorrow, signaling the unofficial end of summer. Waa!