Wedding archives

It's taken me about five months, but I've finally finished our wedding and honeymoon albums!  More and more bride and grooms aren't printing their pictures, they're happy with a DVD slideshow, but we wanted the prints.  Not all pictures are meant to stay in your computer lol. 

Originally I didn't think this would take a lot of time - print the pictures and put them in a book right? Well every photo album sold these days has room to write near the picture which takes FOREVER!  And of course, I decided to make a scrapbook of the honeymoon which also took some time. 

As for the wedding album, I specifically bought one that does not have any space for notes.  I think they all turned out well!  

Bluff country

Before the chilling temperatures hit Minnesota, Jason and I took a little day trip to Red Wing.  The small town, about an hour south of our house, is known for a barn shaped bluff that sits in the middle of town.

Most of the metro area is pretty flat, no real hills to speak off.  Once you venture out, corn and soybean fields fill the landscape until you get far enough south to see what Minnesotans call, 'bluff country' - which is a nice touristy name for rock covered hills.

We decided to hike up the 400 ft bluff, fortunately it's a pretty easy hike.  We took some great pictures once on top of the city and of the Mississippi River below.Parts of NY have bluffs like this so it was a nice reminder of home.

Back to school

It's official.  I'm going back to school.  For awhile I've talked about getting my master's degree in mass communications with the hope of teaching journalism one day, and now it's really happening.  Last week I was accepted to St. Cloud State University as a graduate student. 

The hope is that a master's degree will give us a few more job options as we consider moving back east in the next few years. 

When I went to the school for an interview, I was a little surprised at how far removed I am from college mentality.  While on a tour of campus, I was reminded of the 'change the world' attitude that seems to ooze from every student.  Somewhere between the students petitioning to save the whales and the journalism students 'exposing' campus politics - I realized I'm older than I think lol.

That said, the graduate level mass communication classes are made up mostly of working professionals who are looking to teach one day, so hopefully I feel more comfortable in class. 

Speaking of classes, they start in January.  Wish me luck!    

Wanted: Potato recipes!

The garden is just about tuckered out, but we still had some potatoes left to dig out.  We pulled out some russet potatoes earlier, they were a good size but the reds seem to do much better. It's a process to dig them all out, so next year we might try using hay instead of dirt.  I've heard others have had success doing that, and it's a lot easier on the back.

 Needless to say, you know what our side dish will be for the next 25 dinners lol.

Remodeling success!

After months of looking at an unfinished kitchen, contractors put the finishing touches on it for us a few weeks ago. We had torn out the railing in our kitchen, it was an old metal thing that had been painted several times.  In eight hours they built the railing and finished all of our molding in the kitchen and in our entryway.  We're really happy with it!  (We still have a few spots in the house with the old painted railing, I put up a picture of both so you can see the difference.)

Old railing                                                                  New railing

Unique setting for a unique wedding

Forget the church, layered cake, and place cards - this wedding bucks the trends.  A coworker of mine got married this weekend in a restaurant and held the reception at a place known for its concerts.  Despite the untraditional setting, it was one of the best weddings we've been to (besides our own of course).  The reception was at the Varsity, an old theater that's now a bar with live music. The Channel 12 crew claimed a corner of couches and lounge chairs and set up shop for the night.  I have to give the husbands credit...we got them on the dance floor for a bit.

From a ten piece band, to the bride and grooms name on the marquee sign out front it was a unique setting for a unique wedding. 

We snagged the bride for a second to snap a picutre of the 'Women of 12 News'

Fall favorite

There are always things you miss from home.  During this time of year I really miss the old school cidermill near our house.  It's been a staple in our area for decades.  When you’re in second grade, my school organizes a field trip here so kids can see how the apples are pressed into cider. After the tour you get a little sample, and from that point on you're hooked. I remember going every fall with my parents and filling glass jugs full of cider.  There was a tap right in their store where you would fill your own jug. These days, you have to buy a prefilled plastic bottle of cider, but it still tastes just as good. Aside from cider, they’ve expanded over the past few years and added crafts and baked goods. They recently started selling cider donuts! They’re a big hit.

Right behind the cidermill is a small waterfall, at least, it’s usually small. This year a big rain storm has turned the waterfall into this…

My mom sent me this picture the other day. We’ve never seen it like this! Typically it’s a little stream falling from the rocks.

It all makes me want a big glass of cider!