Category Stuff About Me

A Catch-Up

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Is it possible to write a post which can summarize June through October 2015? I’ll hit just a few of the highlights…

A few photos from June 2015

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That Grandbaby

  • Baby August Edward was born on 9/27/15 at 3:08 PM.  I had the pleasure of witnessing the birth, and it was amazing and beautiful. Marissa was so calm and excited to meet her little man and he is perfectly beautiful. He was born on what would have been his Auntie Abbey’s 31st birthday, and that night was the Harvest Blood Super Moon.
    Ah, I love being Nana Nette.

A few photos from July 2015

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Travels

  • Early June, we took a drive on windy roads to Chippewa Falls in an attempt to go through the Leinenkugel Brewery. It was a popular destination that day and we couldn’t get a spot on a tour, so we bought some beer and drove on home. On the way home we drove through Ellsworth, WI and saw signs for “Showdown in Curd Town,” a tractor pull, so we stopped in!  We had a burger and curds and watched FOUR HOURS of a tractor pull! What good people watching that was!
  • Later in June was our week at the Lake. We had family time, alone time, time in the Cities and time at the end of the dock.  We enjoyed searching for a winery in Waconia on our way to St. Cloud to watch the All Star Football game on a blisteringly hot Saturday.  We saw the touring company of “ONCE” at the State Theatre in Minneapols and watched an airshow in Mankato. No pelicans at the lake this year, but it was still great to be there!
  • The 4th of July was filled with family fun, minus Chris as he had to work.  The boat parade was fun, the weather was hot, and the food was good.  Due to the epic road trip coming up in August, Ferragosto was condensed to a weekend this year; relaxing time with girlfriends, meals at the resort, and good cocktails at the end of the dock.
  • After Ferragosto we took a whirlwind road trip in the Mini – across South Dakota, through Wyoming, and to Colorado.  We drove beautifully scenic roads through Rocky Mountain National Park, stayed in Vail, and then drove to the top of Pike’s Peak. We slept in a retro motel, stayed at a beautiful resort, and in the lovely company of family.  It was a great time with great weather and great roads.  Chris is a great driver but I was still very nervous on those windy roads!
  • Late September into October we celebrated the Birthdayversary in the Cities. We planned to stay close to home due to the impending grandbaby arrival, and he arrived just in time to complete the celebrations that week with hours of baby cuddling.  🙂  We also had great meals out (Pizzeria Lola, Salut, Louis Ristorante, and Christos), and went on the Surly Brewery tour and ate at their delicious gastropub.  We stayed at the lovely Covington Inn – a B&B on a boat – and had wonderful family time.

August 2015

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Taylor Swift

  • Koni and I accompanied Gracie and her friend Taylor to the Taylor Swift concert in St. Paul in mid-September.  We thought we were going to hang in the Parent’s Lounge, but Dana surprised Gracie with floor tickets and we took her seats she had since her birthday.  Gracie and Taylor were noticed by Taylor Swift’s mother and got backstage passes after the show, and we tagged along to chaperone and moderate the emotions. 🙂  Ms. Swift doesn’t have to meet her fans, but she does and it was really a sweet time.

A few from September 2015

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Movie Minutiae

  • Spy – Melissa McCarthy vehicle; was fine, but not very memorable 🙂
  • Ted 2 – I never saw the first Ted movie, but I indulged my man and saw this one. Maybe I should have seen the first. 🙂
  • Inside Out – a great movie; that’s all.
  • Minions – I haven’t seen Despicable Me, so the love of Minions is lost on me. But it was fun to take Kaydee to her first movie in the theatre.
  • Magic Mike XXL – a great time with the girls. I still am going to try to get Chris to watch this!  it was so much lighter than the first and a lot of fun.
  • Trainwreck – Saw this one twice; I’m an Amy Schumer fan and this movie was great. So much fun. LaBron was amazing!
  • Ricki and the Flash – This was an unexpected treat! Fun to see Meryl Streep in this role alongside her daughter. Very thought-provoking and it had great music!
  • A Walk in the Woods – An adaptation of Bill Bryson’s book with Robert Redford (looking old!) and Nick Nolte (acting old!). A fun romp.
  • The Martian – a great movie! I don’t like to feel tense during movies and this one was light and fun.
  • The Intern – pretty predictable, but still lots of food for thought. A fun night at the movies!

October 2015 – just a few on the computer so far!

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Book Briefs

  • The Rumour – for book club; Elin Hildebrand’s Nantucket is always a fun place to visit.
  • Paper Towns – I didn’t see the movie, but the book was fascinating.
  • We’ll Always Have Paris – a memoir about mother/daughter travels and facing mortality
  • Someday, Someday, Maybe – an actress-wanna-be in NYC; light and fun.
  • Summer Blowout – a good summer read; very light
  • You’re the Best – the Satellite Sisters ode to friendship – great essays and conversations.

Work continues to be challenging and humbling, the Cosmo Girls are up and running for another year, the baseball season turned into the football season and now we are looking forward to basketball.  I love getting to as many events as work allows!

At the last football game of Trajan’s junior year I was talking with Kai, a 5 year old we know and love, about my new grandson. He was very astute when he said, “So you’re a grandma AND an aunt!”

“Best jobs ever,” I said.  The best.

What’s up?

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It’s been a while since I did an “update” blog, so thought I’d ramble a little.  I listen to a new podcast by Gretchen Reubin about Happiness and she said that a tradition that she and her family have is weekly email updates to each other.  I think it’s a great idea and wonder if it’s something that we could establish in our family.  I started a “Grimsrud Women” Facebook group, hoping that it is somewhere we can use, so we will see!  I love communicating and remaining connected with those I love!

Deadra and I used to email each other weekly – we should do that again.  Last time I spoke with Deadra she mentioned that she thinks of this blog as a way that I keep people updated, and I suppose it is.  It’s also my way of remembering – storing the activities and thoughts of the moment in one place.

So in an effort to update

  • Not so many movies, in the theatre anyway.  Pitch Perfect 2 at the late show on a Tuesday is about it since McFarland.  I have caught up on some Netflix, though.  Binge-watched Grace and Frankie, which was fun. Now watching Season 2 of Orange is the New Black – season 3 comes in June.  We watched Non-Stop the other night – a Liam Neeson scary thing – and a few others from our DVR that aren’t memorable right now.  I am watching the finale of Season 1 of The Outlander as we speak – using the blog to distract me from it!  It is a little more violent and graphic than I like.  Uff.
  • I really enjoyed reading Me Before You – a wonderful story! SO original an interesting.  Really captivated me, which is good for my reading slump.  I finished listening to The Weird Sisters this morning – that was fine. Took me a while, so the continuity gets lost.  Now what to read next is tough.  I started one on the Kindle but it is not grabbing me, so I’ll move on, I think.  Maybe my DNF (Did Not Finish) list will exceed my TBR piles.
  • We celebrated quite a few things in the past few months – so much to celebrate!  I passed my LICSW test, Gunnar turned 18, Trajan turned 16, Chuck and Carolyn were surprised with a 25th wedding anniversary party, and Sierra passed her GED!  We also celebrated with our Christmas gift of Billy Joel tickets!  It was a great concert, even from way up high!  He is a fun performer to watch.  To add to the evening, we had dinner at Gluek’s before the show and they were playing all Billy all the time, and believe me, there was a lot of singing aloud at every table!  Because, who else can you sing to, but Billy Joel!  There was a moment when three women – all strangers – were singing at the top of their lungs together in the bathroom – and we sounded great!  Good times…
  • Cosmo Girls went bowling in April and had a Garden Party in May!  It was a great way to end the year… in a seasonal porch, listening to the rain.  So much fun with those girls!
  • We had our Take Note! Spring Concert and it was great!  A good concert with SMU students there to add to the show!  Singing is just sooooooooo good!
  • You know what isn’t good?  My new haircut.  Uff.  That was a tough lesson.  I don’t believe I’ve ever cried over my hair before – I don’t think I’m that kind of person.  But I cried on Friday.  I’m over it.  I hate it but I’m over it.  I can handle a bad hair day, but I guess a bad haircut is a different story.  Luckily it’s summer and my hair will grow fast! And I won’t need it cut for quite a while!
  • We tried some new restaurants – Schweich’s Hotel in Kenyon, Casablanca’s in Rochester, and Riverside on the Root in Lanesboro.  It’s so fun to try new places, especially locally!  We also took the MINI to Winona with Jenny and ate at the Blue Heron cafe, explored the Marine Art Museum (a MUST SEE!) and walked around Lake Winona.  Was a perfect day!
  • And of course, we learned the gender of my new grandbaby!  It was a wonderful meeting of two families to support these two youngsters as they journey towards parenthood!  They had the ultrasounds with the reveal in an envelope and picked out two outfits at BabyGap and the clerk was the first to know!  She wrapped up the little BOY outfit and the moment we all learned was priceless. Chris and I joked that we were going to show up in t-shirts that said “We’re here for the SEX,” but we held back.  It was a great night.  So much joy with babies.  Can’t wait.

So there’s an update.  I would like to challenge Marissa to spend a little time with her blog, as she is an incredible writer and it would be a great way to remember her thoughts and feelings and joys during this time!  Are you up for it, Mo??

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Well, off to read!  For real!

My own MINI March Madness

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keep-calm-its-my-half-birthday-2

Here we are again – the beginning of a new month!  I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, I have an affinity for the 1st of any month.  April 1 happens to be my half birthday, so now it is also my SIX MONTH ANNIVERSARY!  Wahoo!  Seems like that just happened AND that he’s been in my life forever… life is so good.

Here’s a recap of all the goodness of March –

We started the month off with a double date with Beth and Doug to see “Almost, Maine” in Lanesboro.  It was such a great play and a fun night out in Lanesboro!  Highlight (outside of the theatre) was asking at the Legion if they served any food and the (harried, busy) waitress said, “No.  We just have pizza.”  We chuckled, ordered it, and it was sooooo good! Hegge’s pizza is the bomb!

We ended the month with celebrations for Beth’s birthday at Osaka for a Tepanyaki style dinner, followed by a Blues Fest at Wicked Moose.  I got Chris on the dance floor, which was a first (and won’t be the last time!) So fun!.

Singing the birthday blues!

In early March, Chris and I attended the Minnesota Monthly Food & Wine Show at Target Field in Minneapolis!  Jenny and I had planned to go for months, but she was ill so Chris went instead.  We didn’t get even close to falling down drunk, like some that we saw, but we did enjoy the little corner of spirits and made sure to stop sampling with plenty of time for metabolizing before driving home.  It was a lot of fun – and a lot of people!

Outside Target Field on a beautiful day!

March brought me my MINI!  Chris and I drove to the Cities to look at a few cars one beautiful Saturday.  I was certain I was going to get another Honda, but manual transmissions are becoming fewer and fewer… so we went in search of some different car dealers in the Cities.  We never got past the first, as I knew I didn’t need to look any further after I drove the MINI Cooper S.  So we went back the next week with my car and did the trade and then back the next week for my “Second Delivery Date” with an expert and to get the bonnet stripes installed.  Ah.  It’s a fun ride!

My MINI! Woohoo!

March also brought sunshiney warm days and a big snowstorm.  We looked for patio dining and couldn’t find any yet, so we encouraged friends to open their patio and enjoyed a roaring fire with s’mores.  Good stuff.  And then the snow came and schools were closed.  Crazy Minnesota March.

A campfire at the Chalet

March brought $2 burgers with the family a few times.

During Lenten season, I went to confirmation with Gracie and got to talk with her about what we think it means to be a Lutheran.

A 3 movie month is pretty solid!  I saw Cinderella with Gracie, the March birthday girl.  We loved it – it was beautiful and romantic.  The story you know and love told wonderfully.  I saw The Second Most Exotic Marigold Hotel with Jenny – and it was very fun!  Many laugh-out-loud moments, some tears, and a big old dance scene!  Yay!  And last night I saw McFarland, USA with the crew in Rochester.  What a movie!  It was so good.  A story about coaching, field-working-high-schoolers, and the community.  It was very incredible – and the end with the real guys was the best. Just so good.

I binge watched The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt on Netflix, and that is a hoot.  Very clever and fun!  (Dang, now I have the theme song in my head!)

I read The Kitchen House for book club and am listening to The Weird Sisters.  It’s hard to know what to read next, as my TBR piles continue to grow and grow!  Someone, help me out here!

And lastly, we celebrated Tony’s last night in Madison with Supper at Bandung Indonesian followed by champagne cocktails and martinis at Opus Martini Lounge.  Tony and Chris left early yesterday morning for their trek across country to move him to Rhode Island. They arrived safely this morning, a mere 24 hours after leaving Madison.  Tomorrow Chris will get to New Hampshire for some family time in before flying home to me on Sunday.  Ah.  Next time I’m going with.

Looking forward to April, although it will be a different sort of month with Chris starting to work overnights.  I work overnights the rest of this week and again the end of the month, so that will keep things interesting around here!

Happy April, all!

February Fairly Flew!

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Time just keeps “March”ing on, doesn’t it?  Hard to believe we are moving into the end of the first quarter of 2015 – and creeping up on the 6 month anniversary of my wedding/birthday!

So far #marriedlife2015 is just grand.  We both work crazy hours at our job, which means we have random days off during the week and every other weekend off together.  We try to make the most of our time off.  In January, we had a daytrip to LaCrosse, WI where we met Chris’s friend from high school who is moving from Madison to Rhode Island in a few months.  We visited the Dahl Automotive Museum and Pearl Street Brewery, Buzzard Billy’s and the Starllte Lounge and then drove to the Ponderosa for movie time by the fireplace.

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Two weeks later we drove to Madison to see them before Tien moved mid-February.  We weren’t able to make the going away party, so had our own time with them, which was very fun.  Chris and I got there early and enjoyed a Restaurant Week restaurant, a Mustard Museum, and then we enjoyed a pub meal before retreating to their bar for darts and drinks.  Saturday we walked on State Street, went to the Madison Modern Museum of Art and then visited my old “haunts” – Ella’s Deli and Few Street!  Was quite a blast from the past.  My old stomping grounds revolved around a 4 year old, so they weren’t too exciting, but it was a great reminiscence.  We also had a delicious Vietnamese meal before we travelled back to Rochester.  It was a great weekend.  Next time we go there it will be to drop Chris off for his road trip to Rhode Island / New Hampshire with Tony!  Less than a month away!

Mom, Marissa, Gracie and I had a little daytrip to the Cities for Mom’s birthday in early February.  We went to Marissa’s apartment and said hello to the kitties, and then went to an art open house at Pam Weisdorf’s home  Afterwards we had a delicious hibachi meal and avoided all malls.  It was a nice little road trip!

In January, Chris’s new little granddaughter was born – Emilee Ashlyn.  What fun to hold a baby!  And what fun to witness Chris’s discomfort at the same.  He says he’s afraid he’ll drop her. She is a little peanut, but growing every day, as babies are supposed to do.  We took her big sister, Kaydee, to Soccer World one bitterly cold morning and played during their open gym time.  That was a hoot.  Fun to be inside, warm, and running around on fake grass.

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January and February means there is basketball almost every day of the week if you want.  It was fun to watch Rees, Gracie and Trajan play basketball.  And fun to witness Gunnar sign with SDSU for his collegiate football career. And I made it to section wrestling to see Trevor wrestle a few!  Phew, there is an abundance of sports in the winter!

February also means SocialICE – a yearly festival of the cold!  They moved it back a few weeks, so it coincided with Marissa’s birthday weekend.  They were hoping that it would be warmer, but it just wasn’t to be.  Chris and I went for about 45 minutes on Thursday night and it was sooo cold (-5).  Hot drinks were not hot, cold drinks were freezing – literally.  Chris had a beersicle.  We eventually moved inside for a cocktail at the Doggery.  Saturday we went back during the daylight with the kids, because the ice sculptures are really fun to see, but it got cold and windy and crowded fast, so we didn’t last long.  We celebrated Marissa’s birthday with the family tradition of pizza and ice cream cake!  Delicious…

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And the Oscars 2015 happened, as well!  I haven’t seen all the movies up for Best Picture, including the winner, but I did see a few.  I already loved The Grand Budapest Hotel and Boyhood.  I thought The Imitation Game was ok and American Sniper was very hard to watch.  I haven’t seen Birdman (the winner), Whiplash (looks painful), Selma or the Theory of Everything.  I have seen a few movies in the theatre in 2015 – Into the Woods (Rees’s “worst movie ever,” but I loved it!), The Imitation Game (just OK, not super-great), Paddington (sooooooo fun… used to LOVE Paddington!), and Still Alice (the book is SO much better – this is a watered down version, but with a great performance).

At home we’ve watched The Long Way Round series (documentary about a motorcycle trip around the world! Love it!  Ewan McGregor, so fun), The One I Love, The Wolf of Wall Street, They Came Together, The Hundred Foot Journey (nice little movie – I read the book!), The Edge of Tomorrow, and 84 Charing Cross Road (such a sweet story about this eccentric woman – so fun! Very true to the book!). 

And speaking of books, we had book club last week.  We read The Perfume Collector and had great fun planning our French food theme!  Lots of fromage, French Onion dip, potatoes au gratin, quiche and croissants.  Topped off by French silk pie!  What was the book about?  Hmmm…   It happened in France in the 50s and was about gifts and independence and the role of our senses.  I read it in December, so had trouble with the details but we had a good discussion anyway!

Other books I’ve read in 2015 include: The Beautiful Daughters (see review here – it is released soon!), Yes Please (audiobook read by the author, Amy Poehler!  Loved it!), The Supreme Macaroni Company (Adriana’s book continuing with Valentine’s life in NYC), and Apple of My Eye (sooooo good!  Helene Hanff is quite the character and brings NYC in the 70s to life!  Loved it!)

I can’t decide what to read next… so I’m catching up on magazines.  Looking forward to diving into that next good book, though!

Would love to hear what you’re reading, what you’re watching, what you’re doing, while waiting for spring weather to arrive! Comment below!

No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn. ~Hal Borland

Where have I been? What have I been up to?

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I’m overwhelmed.  I like to blog about the “goings-on” of life, but wow. There’s been a lot going on.  So, instead I’m going to give you lists of the good stuff with very little commentary – if you have questions, ask!

First, I got married in NYC.  I have hundreds of photos but instead I’ll just share with you my “check-ins” from the SWARM app on my phone.

NYC via SWARM app

MONDAY-

  • RST – our flight was cancelled Sunday morning, so we had to re-book with a different airline, avoiding O’Hare on the way to NYC.  Got in a few minutes earlier than we would have, so it was all good!  
  • MSP
  • LGA
  • Brooklyn Bridge
  • Office of the City Clerk – Marriage Bureau – Got dropped off at City Hall, which was not open, because it’s not where you get married!  I had the address, just not the correct name!
  • London Terrace Towers – Where Troy lives!  Love his hospitality!
  • Toshi’s Living Room – a Funky place; met everyone here and moved on… 
  • O’Reilly’s Irish Pub – good grub and quieter atmosphere!
  • 230 Fifth Rooftop Lounge – beautiful place!

TUESDAY

  • London Terrace Towers – up and at ’em, heading out for a walking tour!
  • Staten Island Ferry – Whitehall Terminal
  • Battery Park
  • Bowling Green
  • Federal Hall National Memorial
  • Trinity Church
  • National September 11 Memorial and Museum
  • City Hall Park Gas Lite Bulbs Fountain
  • Wafels & Dinges – Pagadder Card
  • Wo Hop Restaurant
  • Chinatown
  • Becco – great Italian restaurant with a prix fixe meal before theatre!  Toasts, tears and laughter!
  • Lyric Theatre – ON THE TOWN! A great musical during preview week. Appropriate for a bunch of people experiencing NYC for a short time – and getting the most out of it!
  • Times Square – the Red Stairs
  • O’Lunney’s – birthday drinks! I almost forgot that my wedding day was actually my birthday, as well!  So after midnight we had a toast to the awesome day ahead! I still don’t remember that I turned a year older, so maybe I’ll remain 45 forever?  

WEDNESDAY – WEDDING DAY!

  • Office of the City Clerk – Marriage Bureau – #woohoowedo2014 ! A perfect ceremony!
  • Starbucks – a brief reception, due to drizzle!  Then on to our ROLLING RECEPTION!
  • Grimaldi’s Pizzeria
  • High Line
  • Central Park – Bethesda Fountain
  • LOVE Sculpture
  • Empire State Building – 86th Floor Observatory
  • Archer Hotel New York – checked in and met the crew at the rooftop bar, Spyglass!
  • Periyali – Greek dinner! 
  • Marie’s Crisis – singing along with every song!
  • Archer Hotel New York – what a beautiful day!  

THURSDAY 

  • Times Square
  • M&M’s World – met Rob here and also went to the Hershey store!
  • Pie Face
  • MSG Entertainment HQ
  • High Line – the newish part!
  • Joe the Art of Coffee
  • Archer Hotel New York – a disco nap!
  • Guy’s American Kitchen and Bar – dinner with Troy!
  • Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre – “It’s Only a Play” – a fun play with a star-studded cast!  
  • Junior’s Restaurant & Bakery – treats for morning
  • Shake Shack – treats for now! “Great White Way” 
  • Times Square at midnight

FRIDAY

  • Carnegie Deli
  • Bethesda Terrace
  • Heartland Brewery
  • Stephen Sondheim Theatre – “Beatiful – The Carole King Musical” SO GOOD!
  • Swing 46

SATURDAY 

  • Chelsea – leaving in a downpour!  
  • Queens – Midtown Tunnel
  • LGA
  • ORD
  • RST
  • Whistle Binkies on the Lake – with Tony and Tien!
  • The Doggery

SUNDAY

  • Willow Creek Golf Course – our wedding reception!  
  • Whistle Binkies on the Lake – with Kim and Eric, Maureen and Dennis!  Yay!

MONDAY – Chris back at work, Danette unpacking!  

That was a whirlwind of a week – and I know there were stops I didn’t “check in” but it is a fun way to keep track of a vacation!

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Design K_

And then life after the wedding …

  • There was FOOTBALL!  Gunnar’s senior year, filled with wonderful highlights and honors!
  • There were meals – at Burdey’s, at Panera, at Caribou, at Jessie Street Java, at Four Daughters Vineyard & Winery, at Victoria’s, at Chester’s, at The Thirsty Belgian, at Cowboy Jack’s Saloon, at Chipotle, at Brothers, at Pho Chau…
  • There were movies – GONE GIRL, ST. VINCENT, DUMB AND DUMBER TO, and HUNGER GAMES: MOCKINGJAY PART I.
  • Garrison Keillor came to Rochester and we enjoyed his live radio show
  • Basketball has begun and I look forward to watching TRAJAN and GRACIE and REES play during this season!
  • Thanksgiving was a blast – relaxing and fun.  Highlights were sledding with Kaydee, listening to what everyone was Thankful for this year, and playing HEADS UP.  Download it to your phone or iPad if you haven’t!  It’s a hit!
  • Notice: Not a SINGLE BOOK WAS READ!  Oh my.  I have been catching up with my Oprah magazine, and slowly reading a great book.  I am going to fail miserably at my Goodreads goal, but I’m really ok with that.  Life is SO good.

Now it’s December.  I am hoping that in December I can connect with many friends and family, enjoying TIME and conversations with everyone.  I tend to enjoy Thanksgiving more than Christmas because I get stressed about presents, but I hope that I can focus on relationships instead of receipts this December, so that Christmas can be celebrated as it is intended.

Ah, life is good!  I am blessed!

30 Days Hath September

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And since we’re already 3 days in, that means that our wedding is 4 weeks from today (meaning Wednesday!)!  It’s getting to be crunch time, and the to-do list keeps growing, but it’s all good and exciting stuff!

So much to be happy about – August fairly flew by and was filled with awesomeness!  For example –

  • A course at the U of M brought me to the Cities for a few days and Chris was on vacation so he tagged along!  He enjoyed daytime adventures on foot in St. Paul and Minneapolis and we both enjoyed nights out in the Minneapple!  We ate Mexican at Masa on Nicollet, yummy bar food on a rooftop off 1st Ave and desserts down below at Hell’s Kitchen;  we drank cider and beer at Sociable Cider Werks with Marissa and her guy, and walked through the sculpture garden at the Walker Art Center!  The highlight of the trip was seeing Paul McCartney at Target Field – amazing!  What a beautiful and fun night – and what an incredible entertainer!
  • Many date nights with wedding planning as a topic of conversation.  We’ve been to Cowboy Jack’s a few times, the Tap House and the Doggery (Chris discovered the Shallow End), and we saw “Boyhood” and “The November Man” in the theatre.  We took a trip to IKEA and the Mall of America for wedding paraphernalia, and have shopped for furniture!  Always on the go!
  • Ferragosto!  It was an abbreviated version this year, but no less fun!  We had wet campfires, hot hazy humid weather, no mosquitos, and many trips to the Hoy’s Resort for BYOB!  No shortage of good food, good drinks, good talks, good belly laughs, and good relaxation!  We watched a few movies and even danced and sang on the deck, while planning wedding reception songs! There will be photos – eventually!

Every day off in September is precious and filled with planning!  So many details – but it is all so good!  Looking forward to take-off on 9/29 and everything that week brings!

Yay, September!

Spoon and Cherry at the Sculpture garden MPLS.

Spoon and Cherry at the Sculpture garden MPLS.

6.30.14

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Milestones.

SIX years ago June 30, I closed on my townhome.  Time flies, doesn’t it?  When I moved in, I didn’t have much.  Two beds.  Chairs.  Lamps.  And my old TV.  Now I have more furniture than I need, my home is comfortable and my closets could likely use some culling!

Six years ago these little guys were 3!

Nephews - 6 years ago!

Nephews – 6 years ago!

Six years ago my house looked like this:

New furniture and used furniture - still mostly looks the same!

New furniture and used furniture – still mostly looks the same!

Lots of laughs around this table in six years!

Lots of laughs around this table in six years!

These shelves are filled... love the loft!

These shelves are now filled… love the loft!

Gotta love milestones.

So thankful for everything.

And time is marching on…  it’s about ten days since the first day of summer.

I had a great time around a summer solstice campfire in Rushford and celebrated a milestone birthday (4-0!) with my guy.

And speaking of milestones, July 1 marks one year since my first date with this guy!

He enjoys coffee as much as I do! Although, he likes it sweet! Guess that's why he likes me! :)

He enjoys coffee as much as I do! Although, he likes it sweet! Guess that’s why he likes me! 🙂

Seems like we just met and that he’s been in my life a long time.

I look forward to celebrating more milestones with him by my side.

(Aww shucks!  I’m not usually schmaltzy!) 

Happy JULY everyone!

6/21/14: Summer Solstice! And summer begins…

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It is a pleasure to walk outside at night and feel the warm summer air!  Aside from all of the rain we had this week and last, we have had good June weather so far!  It’s also a pleasure to have some weekends off to enjoy the summertime!  But, as I’ve said before, I don’t usually let a little thing like work slow me down…

Here’s what has been bringing me smiles from the past few weeks:

Movies

  • Saw “A Million Ways to Die in the West” with Chris – I’m not a Family Guy watcher or a Seth McFarland groupie, but this was fun.  It’s a Western with modern language, with shocking humor and interesting characters.
  • I saw “The Fault In Our Stars” by myself on opening night.  Well, not by myself, but with a theatre filled with Tweens and Teens, swooning and sobbing.  I wish I hadn’t gone that night, because I felt more like an observer of the theatre than a movie-watcher.  I thought the book was so much better (no surprise) because I liked the parents so much better in the book, I liked their relationships so much better in the book, and the movie felt watered down and immature.  \
  • Tonight I saw “Chef,” which I think is my favorite movie of the year!  I’ll have to think back for sure (“Grand Budapest Hotel” was this year, too… hmm) but it was so fun!  A fun story about having passion for your work and doing what you love, about fathers and sons, and about Cuban sandwiches!  I almost danced throughout the movie, because the soundtrack was incredible (and is now purchased!), and I had tears spring to my eyes twice, just because of happy emotions!  Loved it!

Books!

  • There have been a few rainy days, so I’ve been reading on my Kindle and catching up on Oprah Magazine.  I finished a smutty book while on the dock, “Bettie Page presents: The Librarian,” and then returned to the world of Pride & Prejudice with “Georgiana Darcy’s Diary.”  Ah, there is something about that book and those characters.  Good stuff.  Now I”m working on “Wild” and almost finished with listening to “Whistling Past the Graveyard.”

Road Trips and Adventures!

  • For Jenny’s birthday, we had lunch at Trempeleau Hotel and went for a tasting at Elmaro Winery.  It was a beautiful Sunday and the winery was in a beautiful setting, so we sat outside and enjoyed live music, a fruit and nut plate, and some delicious wine.
  • Chris and I went to the cabin for his June vacation.  We had two great weather days, one washout day, and one very windy day.  There was reading, DVDs (Breakfast Club, War Games, The Upside of Anger, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), and good cabin food.  There were a creche (I think) of White Pelicans who must have stopped there for the summer, and they were amazing to watch and learn about!  Who needs TV when you can watch pelicans?  And as always, the sunsets were spectacular.
  • One of the days we drove to Northfield to have dinner with Deadra for her birthday!  It was fun to explore Northfield and we had a delicious dinner in a Tavern there along the river.  The day started out breezy, cloudy and cool, but it ended up clear and calmer.
  • When I got home from the lake, I joined some peeps at the rooftop of the Tap House for Sunday Night Trivia!  We rocked (mainly one guy rocked) and got one free round of drinks and 3rd place overall.  I love trivia.  And the weather was perfect for a night on the rooftop!

Looking forward to celebrating the first day of summer at an International festival in Rochester and then I’ll travel to Rushford to see Mom and Dad and hopefully some Rushford friends!  I’m counting on a campfire to celebrate the shortest night of the year!

Chris has a Summer Solstice birthday, but he gets t work.  I’ll bake him a cake for when he’s done with this 7 day stretch!

Yay summer!

There shall be eternal summer in the grateful heart. ~Celia Thaxter

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Always so much to be thankful for!  We are marching in to June and the calendar is filled with fun things on the days that work isn’t scheduled (and even on some days when work is scheduled!).

Here are a few things I am thankful for from the past few weeks —

  • Friday nights!  Spent a seemingly rare Friday night off at Jabbers (and evidently the last Friday night we’ll spend there, as it just closed!) getting in some Jabbering with Jabber Juice.  Fun fun.   And even after work last Friday night, it was fun to sit outside on the patio at Fat Willy’s!  Fridays still rock!
Love this selfie with Rushford in the background!

Love this selfie with Rushford in the background!

  • Rushford friends and family – had a lot of fun showing Chris around Rushford – the bluff, the new coffee shop – and hanging out with friends.  Take Note! sang at the ExpoCulinaria and it was a lot of fun with good food tastes and good company!  Followed by more good food and a good campfire at Brenda and Roger’s!  It was chilly so that fire felt good!  It was a Starry Starry Night!
  • Speaking of Starry Starry Nights – loved the time with Beth at the painting event by Wine & Canvas!  It was a challenging painting but I think we did a respectable job – and it was so fun!
Love Starry Night with Rochester Wine & Canvas! And Beth!

Love Starry Night with Rochester Wine & Canvas! And Beth!

  • Memorial Day weekend I had to work overnights, but I still was able to indulge in a last minute invitation to hear Temple Grandin speak on Friday night, followed by coffee at Chester’s!  And Monday Chris and I went for a good meal on a rainy afternoon before I went in for night four. I always manage to fit in the important stuff!
Love last minute invitations and loved hearing Temple Grandin again! She's something!

Love last minute invitations and loved hearing Temple Grandin again! She’s something!

  • Trajan turned 15 in May and we celebrated him at Texas Roadhouse!  I also love that I’ve been able to help out and drive him to his basketball practices in the Cities and to watch him play a few games.  He’s on a competitive team and they are all so fun to watch!
Love this kid who isn't afraid of the saddle on his 15th birthday!

Love this kid who isn’t afraid of the saddle on his 15th birthday!

  • The weather has been great so I have been getting in some great walks!  Some with friends, some with Chris, and some with his daughter and granddaughter.  It’s been fun to play with a 2 year old again!
Love this guy and love hanging out with a 2 year old every once in a while! It's been a while...

Love this guy and love hanging out with a 2 year old every now and then! It’s been a while…

  • Books – I’m finally on a little reading streak!  I finished Allegiant, moved on to The Fault in Our Stars (heartbreakingly beautiful… just lovely), and Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares (a fun little read with dares all over NYC!).  I bought a used Kindle so it’s exciting to fill it up (it holds a TON!) and look forward to reading it at the end of the dock.
  • Audiobooks – I’ve officially been an Audible member for a year!  Yikes… I have purchased more than I’ve listened to (sound familiar??  I guess I’m growing my TBL (To Be Listened to) pile, as well!).  I tend to buy the long books that I want to read but doubt I’ll have the time or stamina for.  So far I’ve listened to 11.22.63, Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?, Fin & Lady, Ready Player One, The End of the Affair, The Goldfinch, and The Boy Who Was Raised As a Dog.  I’m currently listening to Whistling Past the Graveyard for book club (if they don’t give up on me!).  Love listening in the car, still, but much less commuting time so now it’s while puttering around.  Love it!
  • Movies – always thankful for movies!  Movie nights at home on the couch, movies while trying to sleep, movies in the theatre with a tub of popcorn.  Love them!  This month in the theatre I’ve seen Neighbors (pretty funny, Seth Rogan stuff) and Belle (interesting story about Britain’s position in the slave trade business).  From Netflix on DVD I’ve seen Here Comes the Boom (very funny and fun!) and Love Is All You Need (unexpected story about Danish people traveling to Italy for a wedding, with Pierce Brosnon! Pretty good!).  Mindless instant viewing includes Drop Dead Diva (series) and The Sweetest Thing (Cameron Diaz craziness that was pretty fun).
  • Of course, Jimmy Fallon always makes me laugh, which is a thing to be greatly thankful for.  Fun stuff.  Look for his clips if you can’t commit to an entire week of shows!  🙂

As usual, I have much to look forward to, as well.  We are working fewer weekends than last summer, so I’m looking forward to that!  I am penciling in fun plans with friends and family – so give a shout if you want to get together!  Let’s make this the best summer ever!

If a June night could talk, it would probably boast it invented romance. ~Bern Williams

It’s May! Tra La!

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It’s crazy how fast the days and weeks go.  I’ve had the goal to post weekly for the past few months, but I have not been successful for many weeks in a row!  It’s good to have a goal, right?

Here is a list of a few things that have made me happy in the past month or so…

  • The first Friday in May I finished my class!  That meant that in April I wrote four papers, participated in online discussions, and read books and journal articles to prepare.  I’m glad that’s behind me and now only wait (with bated breath) for the grade.
  • For that class I read the book “The Boy that was Raised as a Dog,” which is a good book about the research that Dr. Bruce Perry has done on the brains of children who have been affected by traumas.  It was good and I recommend it to people who want to know more about trauma and children.  We’re going to read it for work, which is going to be fun.  Always better to discuss books!
  • After that last class, I stayed at Deadra’s and we had a good chat, with good wine, followed by good sleep and good donuts (Glam Doll Donuts!) for breakfast.  That weekend was also filled with basketball, choir practices and performance at St. Mary’s University, and the Kentucky Derby at a Mexican bar.  Gotta fit a lot in when I have the weekend off!
  • Not a single movie in the theatre in the last month!  Lots of meals out and ordering in and DVDs, though!  I’ve watched all three Iron Man movies, August: Osage County (really good!), 10 Years (Channing Tatum, why not?!), Blazing Saddles (classic comedy with crazy racist storyline – meh – don’t think I’d recommend it!), and tonight I watched What’s Up, Doc? (Babs and Ryan O’Neal – comedic genius? “Love means never having to say you’re sorry” “Corniest thing I’ve ever heard!”).  Marissa and I rented Labor Day (just ok – sad life, she had) and Chris and I are slowly watching House of Cards (I hate politics – why am I watching?? It’s good!).
  • I’ve read Divergent, Insurgent, and am currently reading Allegiant.  Looking forward to finishing and discussing with the 12 year old who told me this last book “would hurt me.”  Also ripped through Where’d You Go, Bernadette? which was so quirky and good!  Next (or soon) I’ll read The Fault in Our Stars so that the 12 year old and I can discuss that!  So many books.. have some catching up to do!
  • World Book Night happened!  My peeps and I met after we got done with work that night and we book-bombed the hospital downtown and went out for cocktails afterwards.  It was a nice night – and giving people free books is harder than it seems!  Maybe I’ll blog more about it later.
  • I had to work overnight for Cinco de Mayo, so I just had to reminisce about celebrations of the past… see photos below. 🙂
  • Mother’s Day was relaxing and busy – more basketball, girl time with Marissa, cookie making, toes polished up and a meal or two out.  Can’t believe it came and went.  Time does fly!
  • This weekend brings more singing in Rushford at the Expo Culinaria!  Looking forward to that event with my peeps!

Well, it’s been busy and wonderful – and I hope that your May is the same!  Enjoy the few Cinco de Mayo pics from the past below!

Off to read!

 

The fixings for a good Margarita…
Cinco de Mayo meets Kentucky Derby day! Juleps before Margaritas!