It is Hot Here

The end of every August means two things:

1. School is starting and schools are generally not air conditioned.
2. It is hot.  Very hot.

The same holds true this August.  In-service starts tomorrow at 8 AM and the high for tomorrow is 90 degrees.  I don't know what the official high for today was, but it is nearly ten o'clock at night and it is 85 degrees outside and on our drive home today we saw 97 on the thermometer.  Yesterday was pretty much the same.

Luckily we have air conditioning in our house, so we've been pretty comfortable.  However, we have a daughter who loves to be outside.  So, we did what many people who live next to a very large, very cold body of water do - we went to the beach.

Both days we drove up through Washburn to Bayview Beach (well before Bayfield).  The beaches in Ashland are fine, but the beaches up by Washburn and Bayfied are amazing.  Beautiful (but quite hot) sand, crystal clear water, and no E-Coli outbreaks.

Saturday the water was perfect.  It took some mental power to convince yourself to get your head wet, but not much and you were comfortable.  Nick did quite a bit of swimming and I dunked my head a few times.  Lilly spent a majority of the time playing on the beach, but toward the end of our time, I figured why not take her in the water with me and see how it goes.  The girl had a wonderful time and was asking for more!  She wouldn't let me put her down, but she was laughing and having a blast as I swung her around in the water - even putting her on her back and pulling her through the water.

(no fun collages today - reality hits tomorrow and I really should be in bed now but want to share our last bit of summer with you)

It was windy - her hat blew off into the lake.  So I wore it.

The water was still cold.  We'd guess mid to upper sixties

Lilly tried for a LONG time to wear Nick's googles

Digging a hole and watching the water disappear.

All rinsed off and ready to head home.

We were so excited with Lilly's love of playing in the water that we decided we'd head up to the beach again on Sunday.  Nick needed to do a long bike ride, so he decided that even though it was in the mid-ninties that he'd bike the 30 miles up to the beach and Lilly and I would meet him there.  When Lilly and I arrived at Bayview Beach a band was playing (mediocre band but they played songs we recognized and were fairly quiet, so it wasn't bad at all) and tons of people.  But hardly anyone was in the water.

Lots of people on the beach but the water . . .  not so much.

Why you ask?  Especially since the water was so perfect on Saturday?  Well, Saturday was rather windy.  The winds must have turned over the lake for holy smokes that was some wicked cold water!  It had to be in the upper fifties, if not colder.  All the lake was good for today was quickly cooling off - and by quickly, I mean walk in, splash a bit and come right back out.  I dared to take Lilly in toward the end for she had managed to get herself completely coated in sand - every inch covered.  She again loved it and asked for more - but also felt the water was incredibly chilly.  

Just poking the sand, relaxing.

Father and daughter, playing in the sand

 Here's hoping I can continue to keep posting for all of you once school starts.  I at least have to do an 18 Month post for Lilly but in case you can't wait for her stats . . . .

Head Circumference - 19 inches - the same, 92 percentile

Weight - 24 pounds 4 ounces - the same, 69 percentile

Length - 33 1/2 inches - an inch longer, 92 percentile

Stay cool!!