To wind down from our fishing adventures, we headed over to Detroit Lakes. Summer and DL go together like the Fourth of July and fireworks, one just doesn't exist without the other. Detroit Lakes is a resort town with Big Detroit and Little Detroit Lakes at the heart of it. There are condos and motels and cabins to rent, a big public sandy beach to swim at, all the boating and skiing you could want plus tons of things I am certain I have forgotten about.
While its hard to pick just one favorite place in Detroit Lakes, one of the places we can't seem to get enough of is Zorbaz. Its a pizza and mexican restaurant/bar. Its an institution that has been around for many years. Its the type of place where sandy feet and bathing suits are the norm. The food is great, the atmosphere is relaxing and fun, and it feels like a mini vacation just minutes from town.
It was the perfect respite from our fishing adventures! We were all ravenous, so all bickering ceased as the boys munched on their macho nachos. They come on a tray, cause a plate wouldn't suffice to contain them all, and are covered with melted cheese, cilantro, sour cream, onions, peppers, tomatoes and beans. We about polished them off and then the pizza came. The boys wasted no time in demolishing that as well. And slowly we finally relaxed. I think this is the vision we hold for ourselves when we want to go someplace and take the boys. We tend to put adult-size expectations on small children and forget they require a lot of teaching and instructing.
It occurred to me that last year at this time, going to Zorbaz was still a little bit of a stretch for the boys. Nolan got distracted by the video games inside and Colton complained he didn't like anything on the menu. They slid off their chairs and fought with one another, and half way through our meal Rick and I were ready to run from the whole scene.
But here they were, sitting nicely, eating with good manners, and not fighting. As our stress melted away, the sense of humor kicked back in. I reminded Rick that growing up I longed to do the very thing we had done with the boys that day. While it was a lot of effort and exertion, I felt good that we were trying.
The boys were so tired on the way home they almost fell asleep in the car. It was a peaceful ride home. As we turned into the driveway and prepared to unhitch the boat, Colton piped up. "Don't take it off Dad. Just leave it" he said. "Why is that Colton, I asked?" "Cause. When we go back TOMORROW then we will just have to get in the truck and it'll be all ready to go!" I couldn't help but smile.
