Simple Summer

Bereket loves to smile for my smartphone. It seems like we are snapping photos of her doing cute things all the time.  I caught one of my all time favorites snapshots Monday.  We were having a special mommy-daughter day that started with brunch at Coffee Cabin in St. Charles.  We had our coffee, chocolate milk and warm cinnamon rolls out on the deck and then Bereket stretched out in one of their over-sized wooden chairs.  She looked so blissfully happy. To me this photo says, "I am content in this sweet moment of a beautiful day."

Our summer has been filled with sweet, simple moments. Like Bereket trying her first onion ring on an outing with my parents to the old-fashioned A and W Drive-In in Spring Valley.  They were so good! (As was the ice cream that followed!)

We spent the 4th of July at one of our favorite places near where Jason's parents live, Sunset Gardens Farm where you can enjoy live music and yummy wood-fire pizza.  Bereket was so happy to pet their sweet farm dog, her smile lit up the night! 

People stop us all the time to remark on Bereket's beautiful eyes. Yes, they amaze me, too! 

The simple joy of not having to comb Bereket's hair for a few weeks has been one of the greatest summer blessings! Her new braids produced a few tears at the hair salon,  but afterward she got to pick out a small treat at the nearby toy store to reward her 90 minutes of sitting.

Perhaps summer's sweetest small gifts can be found at a county fair.  We've been to two this year.  In addition to eating pizza and petting bunnies at the Winona County Fair, Bereket loved every second of her pony ride and got to pick two carnival rides on the midway.

In all honesty, the spinning strawberry in the Berry Go Round didn't sit will with my stomach, but it was so worth it to see B's big smile as she wend round and round!

This week we had an outing to the Olmsted County Fair with Bereket's special neighborhood friend, Carson.  They share a love for adventure and got a big thrill out of milking a mechanical cow together.

Love these smiles, Love Summer. I wish it could last forever.  We've got another month to go and we will savor every simple pleasure.