Taking Daddy to the Lake

As it felt kind of warm during our morning run in the nearby forest (the one you can see in the background of the pictures below), we had a quick change of plans for the afternoon and decided to go to the Unterbacher Lake in the afternoon rather than taking a trip to the city. Sophie loved the idea when we told her after preschool.

 It was perfect this time. Enough kids for Sophie to play with, but otherwise pretty empty even though it was sunny and warm. 

Plus, finally Daddy had the opportunity to join us.

Everyone Had the Same Ideas

The hottest weekend of the year. 

We decided to cycle through the forest for a cool down at the Unterbacher See together with our neighbors Mark, Andrés, and Adrian.

 However, this was the line to enter the beach park. These must all be people who had circled in their car for ages to find parking only to be standing in this line now. 

 There was no way I was going to stand in that line, so we headed to the nearby playground in the forest to stay somewhat cool.

 Andrés and Sophie playing frog.

 After a couple of hours in the woods, we gave the lake another try as we were desperately longing for a dip in the water. The line was much shorter, it was still very busy inside, but manageable and above all the kids had a blast and wore themselves out. 

See if you can spot Sophie in this picture above.

There's a good way to handle the heat. 

At the Lake

One last warm and summery day before a predicted cool down. We arranged to go back to the nearby Unterbacher See this time with our neighbors Sissi and Jessica from China. When I apologized to the girls' mother, Chris, that it might be crowded there, she reminded me that in Shanghai this kind of place would be absolutely packed. It's all just a matter of how you look at it, I guess.

Anyway, the girls were happily playing in the water for hours, just coming back to us on a regular basis to refuel on snacks. 

Unfortunately we had to leave early as some dark thunderclouds were approaching rapidly and they were closing the beach. 

The girls continued playing inside and Sophie and I were invited for a delicious home-made Chinese vegetable and noodle soup. 

A Day by the Lake

The weather is somewhat nice, it's a Saturday, and there is a big lake with two beaches nearby. Needless to say, we joined our neighbors, jumped on our bikes, and rode a couple of miles through the forest to the Unterbacher See. Even though the temperatures were not scorching hot, it was a perfect place for kids. A beach with a water play area, shallow water and life guards. 

 Sophie and her friend Andrés spent three hours in the water and on the beach.

What a perfect afternoon in fun company.

The kids were so tired by the end of it that they fell asleep in their bike seats on the way home. 

Did I mention that there is a nudist beach right next to the beach we went to? Had a not so nice view of some fat old Germans airing out their jewels. The hot young guys must not have been out that day.