It rained for the two days before Melissa (our daughter), Reid (son-in-law) and our two grandchildren Connor and Kylie arrived on July 7th for a three day stay.  They arrived in the afternoon so we took the Ferry over to the Burlington, VT from Essex, NY and rendezvoused with them to take in the Church Street Market in Burlington.

The next morning they came our way on the ferry so we could get in a day of boating.  The  weather promised to turn sour in the afternoon so we took a short spin and let our four year old grandson, Connor, drive the boat.  We then picked up a mooring close to the marina and the McLay men swam in the 65 degree water.  I had never seen a four year old with in a wet suit.  Connor loves the water.  Amazing.  See the picture above.

We also got to try out our new water toy, the Pete Hornbeck Black Jack canoe.  This 11 pound canoe was tried by just about everyone.  You can see pictures in the Family Boating Photo Gallery.

On the third day there was serious rain.  We met at Burlington's downtown waterfront and the children enjoyed the interactive play at the Lake Champlain Basin Science Center.  It was tough to pull Connor away.  After lunch we visited the Vermont Teddy Bear factory - after all, what are Grandparents for? Melissa and Reid decided given the rain, they would get a head start on the trip home.  We had a great visit.

The weather cleared the next day, July 10th.  We got underway to Malletts Bay.  The day was beautiful.  Wouldn't you know it.  We anchored in a northern cove and decided to hang out for two days.  We will return to Essex Tuesday, July 12.

On Wednesday we will return to Annapolis by Car to enjoy a Tai Chi Camp the following week. We will return to Essex the weekend of July 24.  The next week we will be at the Wawbeek Resort in the Adirondacks the following week.  Our next Log entry will be the first week in August to cover the Adirondack trip.