The last leg of our journey

Here we are on Sunday, beginning the wrap-up of our trip. We went to a bbq at my dad's house. The whole Wennerstrom family was there: Dad, Vava, Gregg, Wes, Grandma and Grandpa, Rich and Nancy, Kelly and Matt.

Nancy always brings such nice gifts for the boys - she picks out great stuff and we appreciate it so much!

While we were waiting for the food on the grill, Dylan decided to collect rocks in a bowl. Then he decided to take the serving spoon off the table and stir his rocks! It was pretty funny.

Dylan's favorite thing about Papa Gordy's house is the plethora of binoculars. He loves to look through them and see a different perspective. This time he was also enjoying imitating Woody from Toy Story - he was watching a "Combat Carl" through the lenses.

For dessert, Papa Gordy and Vava made ice cream, and I brought cupcakes. Bet you can't guess what color frosting was on Dylan's cupcake!?

Brody also enjoyed the ice cream and his special gifts from Nancy. He played with his new rattle almost the entire time we were there!

~Minnesota State Fair~

What would a trip to MN in August be without a visit to the MN State Fair? Here is Brian's annual photo with food - this time it was Deep Fried SPAM curds. Ewwww.

Dylan milked a pretend cow in the children's farm.

Kelly has a broken foot, and needed a wheelchair. We were quite a spectacle. The double stroller, the wheelchair, and Kelly and Dylan wearing John Deere hats.

Brody was a wonderful baby the whole day. Dylan on the other hand....well, mid-day he had a meltdown, but he recovered and we had more fun.

Petting a calf

Pretty sunflower display in the horticulture building. This display was by Bachman's. You may recognize the name, as the CEO of that company (with the same last name) was the man who was killed in Beijing during the recent Olympics.

Brody was so tired that he feel asleep holding his toys mid-air on the way home.

Tuesday morning we packed up the family van and headed for home. We had a lot of fun, got to see and do so many things. It was really a nice break from the everyday routine.

The last leg of our journey

Here we are on Sunday, beginning the wrap-up of our trip. We went to a bbq at my dad's house. The whole Wennerstrom family was there: Dad, Vava, Gregg, Wes, Grandma and Grandpa, Rich and Nancy, Kelly and Matt.

Nancy always brings such nice gifts for the boys - she picks out great stuff and we appreciate it so much!

While we were waiting for the food on the grill, Dylan decided to collect rocks in a bowl. Then he decided to take the serving spoon off the table and stir his rocks! It was pretty funny.

Dylan's favorite thing about Papa Gordy's house is the plethora of binoculars. He loves to look through them and see a different perspective. This time he was also enjoying imitating Woody from Toy Story - he was watching a "Combat Carl" through the lenses.

For dessert, Papa Gordy and Vava made ice cream, and I brought cupcakes. Bet you can't guess what color frosting was on Dylan's cupcake!?

Brody also enjoyed the ice cream and his special gifts from Nancy. He played with his new rattle almost the entire time we were there!

~Minnesota State Fair~

What would a trip to MN in August be without a visit to the MN State Fair? Here is Brian's annual photo with food - this time it was Deep Fried SPAM curds. Ewwww.

Dylan milked a pretend cow in the children's farm.

Kelly has a broken foot, and needed a wheelchair. We were quite a spectacle. The double stroller, the wheelchair, and Kelly and Dylan wearing John Deere hats.

Brody was a wonderful baby the whole day. Dylan on the other hand....well, mid-day he had a meltdown, but he recovered and we had more fun.

Petting a calf

Pretty sunflower display in the horticulture building. This display was by Bachman's. You may recognize the name, as the CEO of that company (with the same last name) was the man who was killed in Beijing during the recent Olympics.

Brody was so tired that he feel asleep holding his toys mid-air on the way home.

Tuesday morning we packed up the family van and headed for home. We had a lot of fun, got to see and do so many things. It was really a nice break from the everyday routine.

Michele's Wedding

On Saturday, August 23, Brian and I left (ALONE!) for Duluth. My friend from high school, Michele McGlinchey got married on Saturday night. The wedding and reception were held at the Glensheen Mansion/Estate on Lake Superior. The wedding was so lovely, the setting was beautiful. 

There was a bonfire on the beach after dinner, and I brought a change of clothes. It was so nice to get out of my heels and into comfy shoes!

Michele and Sean are both nature lovers, and their wedding reflected that. It was very "them", and made me think of things I would have done differently. Alas, whether your wedding was perfect or not, time marches on and you get to enjoy other people's weddings, and appreciate that they made some great choices.

We had a really great time, getting to see acquaintances from the past, and enjoying a beautiful setting, couple and day.

Michele's Wedding

On Saturday, August 23, Brian and I left (ALONE!) for Duluth. My friend from high school, Michele McGlinchey got married on Saturday night. The wedding and reception were held at the Glensheen Mansion/Estate on Lake Superior. The wedding was so lovely, the setting was beautiful.

There was a bonfire on the beach after dinner, and I brought a change of clothes. It was so nice to get out of my heels and into comfy shoes!

Michele and Sean are both nature lovers, and their wedding reflected that. It was very "them", and made me think of things I would have done differently. Alas, whether your wedding was perfect or not, time marches on and you get to enjoy other people's weddings, and appreciate that they made some great choices.

We had a really great time, getting to see acquaintances from the past, and enjoying a beautiful setting, couple and day.

Orr Trip, Part 2

After the Bear Sanctuary, we headed back to our hotel that had a "Water Park." It was a big slide that went really fast, and this little froggie slide for the tots. The big slide was a lot of fun, and even Dylan enjoyed riding down on an adult's lap.

Here he is, enjoying the Frog Slide

Thursday morning we got up and headed south, back to the Twin Cities. But first, we had to stop and see the Giant Blue Gill in Orr.

This part of MN is known as the Iron Range for it's rich history of Iron Mining. Just south of Virginia, MN we stopped at Mine View in the Sky. It is an old Iron Ore mine that has been filled with water. You can overlook the old mine, and also see the giant trucks that are used in Iron Ore mining.

Here is one such truck. Can you see Dylan near the back tire?

A picture of the mine and town of Virginia in the background.

Our next stop was in Eveleth, MN at the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame. Oma took the boys to a playground while Brian and I went through the museum. It was a neat place, with lots to see. It was fun to read about some people we know, from UW-Madison and other places.

Brian got to test the speed of his slap shot.

Here is a very old Wisconsin jersey. There was also an Eagan High School jersey in the Hall of Fame, which was kind of fun. The younger sister of one of my classmates holds a record or two, and plays on the U.S. Women's Hockey Team.

Our last stop of the day was at Jay Cook State Park. We ate our lunch then went hiking for a bit. We walked across the swinging bridge, over the river, and up big rocks. Dylan is quite a little climber. Brody rode in the front pack. We forgot our borrowed back pack, but he did just fine in this one.

We had a really fun time. It was a lot of driving in two days, but well worth it for all the neat things we got to see and experience.

More to come on our MN trip.

Orr Trip, Part 1

We started off for Orr, MN on Wednesday morning. Our goal was to reach the Bear Sanctuary outside of Orr for the evening. They are open from 5-8 p.m., because that is when the bears are fed and most active.

On our way, we stopped in Eveleth, MN to see the World's Largest Hockey Stick and Puck! The U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame is also in Eveleth, and we decided to stop there on our way home the next day.

It was a long day of driving, but we reached our hotel in Orr around 3:30 p.m. We stayed at a hotel right on Pelican Lake. The views were beautiful, and the smell...it smelled like Up North. Pine needles, lake water, fresh air.

Don't let go!

The boys, already climbing trees.

We drove 14 miles outside of Orr to the Vince Shute Bear Sanctuary. You park about a mile from the actual feeding area, and ride a school bus to the observation deck. They put food out, and 30-40 bears come each night to eat. They are very active now, as they are bulking up for winter hibernation.

They also had workers there, educating us about the bears. The average black bear is just 10 ounces when it is born! She then told Dylan to give back the little bear, and that he could buy one in the gift shop. :)

We were up on a deck, and the bears just started coming out of the woods to be fed.

A Momma and her Cubs

Dylan managed to lose his shoe over the edge. The bears are very used to humans however, and one of the employees just walked down the steps, unlatched the gate and retrieved his shoe.

More to come on our visit to Orr!