An Early Father's Day

A few weeks ago I heard a morning show describe the difference between Mother's Day and Father's Day. It was stated that Mother's Day is a day when mothers everywhere get to take a day off to enjoy doing something for themselves while dads watch the kids for the day. Father's Day was then described as a day very similar to Mother's Day in that dads get to be dads and spend a day by themselves with the kids.


I know they were attempting to be humorous and I did laugh quite a bit, but if their definitions hold true then I got an early Father's Day yesterday! Jessi and her three sisters spent the day shopping which left me alone with our three children. I decided the kids might get a little antsy if we stayed home all day and to be honest, I might go a little stir crazy myself. So what to do on a Sunday afternoon?

Prior Lake is just a few miles from our home so I pulled out my real estate map book to see if there was a park on the lake that we could picnic at. I immediately noticed the massive green space on the map that was labeled "Lakefront Park". In the 6 years that we have lived in Shakopee I can't believe I haven't discovered this gem until now.


I packed a picnic, loaded up the kids, and headed out to see what the park had to offer. This park has it all! We found a very clean picnic shelter fully equipped with bathrooms waiting for us to enjoy our lunch. The kids behaved very well and Tate and Avery were very patient as Beckett took his time finishing his lunch. We then headed past the skate park (which was of great interest and conjured up many questions from the kids) to the large playground. The kids loved everything but probably would say the pirate ship was their favorite.


After some playtime, I was able to coax the kids into taking a walk while enjoying some nature along a portion of the more than 3 miles of trails. We headed toward the swimming beach and on the way we saw turtles, dragonflies, and ducks to name a few. I found out that there is a sandy beach with life guards on duty as well as boat slips available to park and swim. I couldn't be more pleased about the boat slips. This will give me some more ammunition to hopefully convince Jessi that a boat would be a great idea for our family!

If you are ever in the southwestern suburbs looking for something to do, I encourage you to check out this wonderful resource. From party pavilions to beach volleyball, this place seems to have it all. They have a very comprehensive website to check out photos, maps, and more information on the available amenities. Just visit: http://www.cityofpriorlake.com/parks_lakefront.shtml With gas prices continuing to rise, this park may become a very popular entertainment venue for our family this summer!

A Sunday Off For A Realtor, Priceless!

Sundays are generally a key day of the week for Realtors as we usually hold open houses or show homes to buyers. In fact, I can't remember the last time I have had a Sunday completely off. That streak ended today!

So what did I do with my day off? I spent some much needed time with my family! I started the day sleeping in. Okay, Tate actually woke me up at 6am as usual but I did get to take a little bit of a snooze on the couch while he watched Sesame Street.

After breakfast, Tate and I headed to Holiday to fill the Jeep with some gas, grab a coffee, and run the truck through the car wash. Tate loves when the car wash squirts the "colors" on the windows.

We all headed off to church at 11am, followed by lunch at Panera, with a quick stop at Menards. (Jessi ran in while I hung out with the kids in the car.) We made it home just in time to get the kids down for a nap. Okay, Avery had already started her nap in the car but was happy to continue it in her crib.

I decided to take Wrigley out to play some fetch with his favorite pheasant dummy while the kids napped. Wrigley was obviously in the house a lot this winter as it was pretty easy to wear him out this afternoon. While Wrigley took a break to drink some water, I decided the time was now to get my Christmas lights off the house. Yes, this is one of the latest dates I have removed my exterior illumination but the icy 2nd story roof prevented me from taking them down earlier. That excuse clearly was now invalid on this 70 degree day!

After the Christmas lights were packed away, I pulled the grill out of the garage, had my neighbor Troy help me get it up on my deck, and grilled some marinaded chicken. After supper we loaded the kids in the stroller and headed out for a walk. Tate even got to hold Wrigley's leash for the first time and it actually worked out pretty well. We finished the evening by reading books and putting the kids to bed.

Not only have I not had a Sunday off in months, I can't remember the last time I have had a day full of such quality family time. On a weekend that started with a slight feeling of guilt for not holding an open house on Sunday ended with a feeling of complete happiness and relaxation. A day off with my family has completely rejuvenated me and recharged my batteries for another busy spring market that is already underway. I am expecting my increased energy and production levels over the weeks ahead will more than outweigh any business that did not get completed on this unusually mild March day.