Today was SO refreshing and fun with my two boys!  We spent this gorgeous SUNNY day doing things that we love to do as a family~ This of course meant starting out the day with a delicious BREAKFAST!  Breakfast is my very favorite meal of the day--other meals kind of fade away for me if I've had a good breakfast with a steaming cup of black coffee or bitter tea (yep, we like our tea bitter around here, think *Clouds & Mist* from TeaSource.  (www.teasource.com)  So today we hopped over to the quaint and cute little town of Zumbrota to eat at Bridget's Café.  It was midmorning so we were already adequately hungry (okay, this is an understatement).   Malachi had already had his first breakfast of the day and was ravenous for MORE (insert sign language "more" sign here) :)  I had the Egg Skillet plate (scrambled eggs with peppers, onions, mushrooms, bacon, potatoes and cheddar cheese) and Elijah had the basic eggs & pancakes & bacon plate.  Malachi ate from both plates.  Then he proceeded to win the hearts of the other diners before we went on our way.

Next we parked near the library where there happens to be a beautiful series of bronze statues of children dancing and other tall pieces of art with poetry (think crisp air, beautiful sunshine, morning glory, POETRY and a happy child to boot!  Bliss!)  Malachi, Elijah and I had so much fun playing chase around the statues~ We took a walk across the historic covered bridge which M LOVED to walk across.  You could see the rushing river waters through the slots on the floor and that was probably fascinating for him.  He kept saying "wawa!" and pointing to the river.  I love that he delights in nature like we do.  We played at the wooden castle park and met new little friends there.  It sadly ended with Malachi slamming his face into playground equipment and getting his first bloody nose... Sigh..  We revived ourselves in the public library and he loved running through their aisles and playing with their toys.  (I can imagine the gasps here as you imagine him running & squealing through a quiet library, but it wasn't that bad! haha)

After a nap and lunch at home, we went back out to enjoy the day, this time to a set of lakes in Rochester that I had never been to before.  We walked (the simple act of walking is SO FUN for Malachi since it's new and his joy makes everything feel more exciting for us, too)  Elijah identified lots of waterfowl on the water, including migrating Loons, Coots and a Horned Grebe!  Malachi excitedly pointed out every dog that walked past us and even pointed out the moon that was faintly in the sky!  Smart boy! We met lots of interesting people at a park (nearby Mayo)-- especially a cute family from Chile, South America!  Loved hearing their beautiful Spanish, especially spoken by their darling preschool-aged daughter.  ("Higher, Higher, Daddy!" she'd exclaim while being pushed on the swings)

Days like today are a needed bit of JOY in a life that is so often work-driven~  Family. Sunshine. Food. Discovering.  Beauty.  Laughter.  I am thankful for all of the above :)  Thank you God!