A Few More Pics From Vacation

On one of the over cast days, we took Ella to the Kabetogama Visitors Center. It was basically a nature center with little things that teach you about the environment and all the animals in the state park. It was just nice to get away from the cabin and explore at that point since we couldn't go sit on the beach.

In front of the visitors center there was a "island" of trees and flowers just as you pull into the parking lot. I was told by one of the ladies at our resort to look for the Ladyslippers. She wasn't sure if they were in bloom still, but she said to keep an eye out for them. So as Keith and Ella were browsing around inside, I went on the prowl for the Ladyslippers. I can remember them as a kid back in Massachusetts and remembering they were a protected flower. They were always so mysterious to me then because I knew I couldn't pick them. Although there wasn't a ton of them at the visitors center, there were still a few dozen left in bloom.


Ella loves to pick "Dandelion Fluffs". If your child has ever watched Little Bear, that is where she gets the name. I don't remember calling them that when I was a kid....but what we used to call them slips my mind at the moment. Anyways, on Little Bear, before he blows on it, he says, "I wish for 2 pieces of chocolate cake". So every time she finds one, that is what she wishes for.


There was a beautiful inlet where the boats could dock with this peninsula on it that seem to stretch out so far. Ella started walking with Keith and it was so sweet....


....And then she took off like a bat out of hell. She started running and would turn around and say, "Come on slow pokes!"


One last thing. As I mentioned in my previous post about all the bugs and flies up there, Ella seemed to have picked up a few words from Mommy from last week. We were sitting in the kitchen last night, she looked out on the deck and saw a swarm of gnats flying around.

She said to me, "Mommy, look at all those damn flies!"

I said, "Where did you get that word?"

She said, "I got it from you Mommy."

I said, "Sweetie, those are just flies. You shouldn't use that word because its not very nice."

She said, "No, those aren't flies, those are damn flies!"

As I was telling my Mom about it today, she told Ella, "Damn flies are only up at the cabin. We don't have damn flies down here, so you shouldn't call them that."

Ella say, "Okay."

Easy as that for my Mom. Always a struggle for me! But at least she only picked up the word "damn" and not some other four letter word that may have slipped out around her. :0) Oopsie!