memorial day weekend :: superior hiking trail

We spent our Memorial Day weekend way up north backpacking a section of the Superior Hiking Trail, and this was one of the verses we read around the camp fire. Despite a mood-dampering forecast (they were saying 90% of rain on Saturday), it turned out to be an awesome trip. Cold? Yes. Mud up to your shins? Yes. Crazy beautiful vistas and falling asleep every night to rain on your tent? Yes. Before the craziness that is life in the summer starts, it was a much needed trip to sort of calm my soul and enjoy God's creativity first hand. 

born and raised

About 10 minutes ago I remembered that John Mayer had a new album coming out in May. About 5 minutes ago I found it on iTunes and immediately hit download. About 1 minute ago, I entered musical heaven. Seriously. I love him, well maybe not him, but you get the picture. I'm daydreaming about our backpacking trip this weekend and how this might just be the perfect soundtrack for the early Saturday morning drive to the trailhead...

the count down begins

It still seems surreal/unreal that we bought a house because nothing has changed. The only indication that we are future homeowners are the few cards we have hanging up on our refrigerator, congratulating us on our big life change. Yes, it's been nice to have so much time and not to feel rushed and all, but we are SO ready. We've started saving boxes for the move and the Uhaul has been reserved. It's taking everything in me not to get out the packing tape and permanent marker. But between hiking trips, birthdays, family vacations, and busy work weeks coming up, I know it will be here before we know it.

sunshine hiking

Holy gorgeous weekend! It was seriously Minnesota spring at its finest. We spent most of it outside, hiking, fishing, and relaxing. On Saturday, we toured the small town of Little Falls and discovered several antique and thrift stores that I want to go back to after we move. After grabbing a greasy burger and fries from a local diner, we set out to explore Charles A. Lindbergh State Park - a small, but beautiful park with good trails and a creek running through it. As we walked along the creek, frogs upon frogs kept leaping into the water. You could see small winged insects swarming in the rays of sunlight. It was one of those days that when the yellow sunshine hit the green leaves of the trees it gave off a warm glow. I'm so thankful I have a Tim and a Callie to enjoy these sort of weekends with me. 

happy mother's day

To my mom, the best mom a girl could ask for. Thank you for teaching me to not eat dandelions. Thank you for letting me get good and dirty outside. Thank you for being the tooth fairy and always making me breakfast in bed on my birthday. Thank you for making bows to wear in my hair. Thank you for showing and teaching me the love of Christ and how important it is. Thank you for rocking me and humming a lullaby when I was sick or couldn't sleep. Thank you for letting me be independent and adventurous. Thank you for making roast and potatoes and carrots every Sunday. Thank you for praying for me. Thank you for everything. I love you!

weekend plans

From the gopher that lives underneath our patio (and snacks on the cheese we put out for him) happy friday!

On the docket for our weekend:

• Eating up the leftovers in our fridge = pasta, chicken, potatoes, carrots, and pizza.
• Exploring a Minnesota state park
• Enjoying small town Minnesota
• Sleeping in past 5:30am
• Taking Callie for some extended walks
• Going to church
• Soaking in the May sunshine
• Catching up on picture-ordering from last year
• Making a menu for next week's meals

Take me out to the ball game

A few days ago Tim came home from work and told me not to plan a meal for Tuesday night because he had dinner plans for us. I thought maybe sushi or Thai at one of our favorite local restaurants, or dinner in Minneapolis with a Groupon he scored. Wrong and wrong. When I got home yesterday from work there were 4 Twins tickets laying on the counter for the game last night and a note that said, "How about a dome dog for dinner tonight? We are meeting Matt and Marji at 6:00. Dress accordingly." At that point I was so excited that I started dancing with Callie. At one point we thought it might get rained out, but just before the game the clouds departed and the sun came out. What a great way to spend a Tuesday night!

Graduation weekend

We had another great weekend spent with family - ate great food, celebrated Mandy's graduation from nursing school, road-tripped around SD/MN/IA. Here are some photos from the weekend.

 

Springtime

Happy May! Feels weird saying that already but I am not complaining. Between all the rain we've had and the few days of sunshine, it seems that every tree is now in full bloom, sporting new leaves or flowers. I never used to like spring, probably because spring in the Midwest usually meant slushy and sloppy piles of leftover snow that had been coated with a thick layer of dirt and always left a muddy mess of debris and grocery bags behind. Not a pretty sight. But this year spring came a little early, due to the mild mostly-snowless winter. And I like it.


Along with spring comes wedding season. Jenna, one of my good friends from college, is getting married this fall (woot! woot!) and I've been working with her on designing wedding save-the-dates and invitations. Her wedding is going to be nothing short of gorgeous. Think classy with a vintage twist. Mmm...lovely. And today when I opened my little mailbox, there was the save-the-date postcard waiting for me! I really love how they turned out.

In other news...

• Tim and I are packing up tonight to head to South Dakota for the weekend to watch my little sis graduate from nursing school. So proud! Watch out world, you're about to inherit one fantastic nurse.
• I went for a run today after work. Yikes. First run since...who knows when. Let's just say, even Beyonce wasn't enough of a distraction to make it seem fun.
• Grandma M. has been wanting me to paint something for her for over a year now. And for the past year, the two blank canvases have been staring at me. Until today. I just finished two bright and cheery paintings that include the verse Psalm 3:3.
• I've decided I'm not going to read "The Hunger Games."
• Tomorrow's Friday. Booyah.