Memorial Day Weekend // the unofficial tradition

For the past several years, we have spent Memorial Day Weekend with Mike and Katie. It's almost become an unspoken/unofficial tradition. Tim and I weren't even dating when we first started this tradition. Through the years, we've spent the weekend on sections of the Superior Hiking Trail; last year we hung out in St. Cloud; and more often than not, we end up at their cabin. This year was a cabin year, and this year we added our kids into the mix. That still seems so crazy - we have kids! We ate good, spent 90% of the time outside, sat on the dock (with monitors in hand) after putting the kids to bed, and went for a hike with the babes, which I'm pretty sure Mike and Tim have been dreaming about for years. As always, it was a blast and refreshing to be around good friends.

lately...

the snow has been piling up - we got about 10 inches through the course of last week

when it's not warm enough to snow, it's been cold cold cold, as in highs that are below zero

mom and dad came for a visit

Tim and I went on our first date

I finally joined the world of Instagram

bought post-baby jeans at the Gap factory store in town for $12

made sweet and sour pork chops recipe twice from The Family Flavor cookbook

can't get enough of Jack's many smiles and coos 

Jack has been taking 2 hour naps during the day and sleeping 5-6 hours straight at night

listening to the hymns station on Pandora

dreaming about and planning a 2015 road trip to the Southwest (AZ and NM, not MN)

dreaming about warm days and stroller walks around our neighborhood

public service announcement for Netflix owners

Yep, still pregnant. But that's not really what this post is about... 

So maybe this is old news, and probably is since I'm usually waaaayyy behind pop culture (example: I'm just now seeing a movie that came out a year ago), but newsflash: Skyfall is on Netflix! Maybe this is only exciting to Tim and I because a). I've never seen a single Bond movie and b). we've seriously been talking about renting this movie for the past week. It took us about 2 seconds to add it to our list and about 5 minutes to warm up some leftovers, settle onto the couch, and hit play. And it did not disappoint. I loved it for all the classy, suit-wearing action scenes, and Tim loved it for all the throw backs to old Bond movies.

Anything else great on Netflix that we should know about?

a weekend in the city a.k.a. a babymoon

Happy October! As Tim and I were sitting at the table this morning, he declared that October is probably his favorite month, followed closely by January/February. The boy loves his snow. I'll stick with October, thank you very much, and all it's bright leaves, sweaters, bonfires, apple pies, and (this year) baby prepping.

We spent this past weekend in the city. I guess you could call it our "babymoon", although it was really just like any other weekend, just with a few added extras...

• seeing The Milk Carton Kids and Over the Rhine at the Cedar Cultural Center. holy cow, so good! if you would like proof, take a listen.
• staying in a hotel = swimming! I've been wanting to go swimming for awhile now, thinking that it would just feel soooo good for this pregnant body. And it was every bit as awesome as I imagined it would be.
• walking around the Mall of America early on a Saturday morning to avoid the crowds. Tim said it was his best MOA experience to date.
• eating at an Asian bistro in Stillwater.
• exploring the antique shops and boutiques of Stillwater.
• eating a salted caramel pecan cupcake at Mara Mi, one of my most favorite shops EVER. seriously, I think I could live in there.

We were back at our cozy home by Saturday evening, which made for a quick trip, but also meant that we spent Sunday at church/baking apple crisp/mowing the lawn/generally enjoying each other's company and the beautiful fall day. Perf.

happy labor day

Labor Day Weekend, the unofficial last hoorah of summer. In the past, there's been camping trips, fishing trips, and cabin trips. But this year is pretty low-key. While Tim is enjoying the wilderness of the BWCA, mom and dad came up and we:

+ shopped the maternity store at the Albertville Outlet mall
+ painted the nursery (love it!)
+ went to church
+ started filling and organizing the nursery closet
+ watched The Andy Griffith Show on Netflix
+ shut the air off and opened the house up thanks to cooler temps and no humidity
+ made 3 pints of fresh salsa

Today will be spent in leggings and a cardigan, letting the fresh air blow through the house, while working on some design projects and anxiously awaiting Tim's return.

my favorite kind of weekend

This past weekend was spent doing some of my most favorite things. It was one of those rare weekends where we had absolutely nothing planned and we were free to make spur-of-the-moment plans.
+ Saturday started with running errands and picking up some patio furniture, and ended with a spontaneous visit by my favorite 16-month-old niece and her dad. I swear that girl just gets better every time I see her.
+ Sunday started with church, followed by an afternoon trip to Buffalo to explore it's many antique/occasional shops. (Mom, I have GOT to take you there!) The weather was beautiful and Tim and I just meandered the streets looking for treasures and deals. The day ended with naps in the sunroom, church, a trip to the grocery store, and Miller home videos from 1987.

girls weekend

Tara, me, Mom, and Grandma D. at Munsinger Gardens

This past weekend was what I would call a quintessential girls weekend. We shopped, enjoyed the new deck, stayed up late, got up early to go to garage sales, and of course ate some really good food. Tim was around to level out the amount of estrogen flowing around by doing things like digging a new fire pit, making coffee, and mowing the lawn.

The girls didn't come empty handed, either.

They brought
+ crocheted goods and a baby blanket Grandma said she made awhile ago that she's been saving for her first grandbaby
+ a bag full of girl clothes and a bag full of boy clothes. wonder which bag we'll be reaching for in 5 months...?
+ embroidered day-of-the-week tea towels
+ a beautiful pot of flowers for the new deck
+ food! there was fresh radishes, asparagus, lettuce, homemade bread, and cinnamon rolls

I love these women not for just their love languages of gift giving and food making, but for their wisdom and zest for life. I admire them and am blessed to have them as a part of my life.

weekend recap // building, blts, and bibs

Have you ever had that glorious phenomenon where you always think it's way later in the day than it actually is? That's how this whole past weekend was; it was so awesome. Every time I would glance at the clock, I was expecting it to be 5:00 or 6:00pm, but it was usually something like 1:45 or 2:37. So great. 

+ BLTs - a total summer staple for us, alongside a bunch of pickled/canned goods

+ bib overalls I found on a garage sale. I couldn't help myself!

+ my little herb and flower garden flourishing away thanks to all the rain we've gotten lately

+ work on the deck continues. I am thoroughly impressed at how Tim is able to do this project and do it well. If everything continues to go as planned, we should have a full deck by next weekend. Yes!

memorial day & a baby bump

look what showed up this week!

 For the past few years, our Memorial Day Weekend tradition has been to hit the Superior Hiking Trail for a backpacking trip. But this year we had a sort of stay-cation spent with good friends. We kicked off  the weekend with getting a heck of a deal on a like-new Pack 'n' Play at a garage sale. I love a good deal! The rest of the weekend was spent going for walks, talking about all things baby, eating things like BBQ chicken+baked beans+BLTs, looking through baby name books, and starting the construction of our deck. It was the perfect balance of relaxation and productivity.

the frame work in place for our new deck. way to go, honey!

afternoon snack of toasted homemade bread (thanks Katie!) and ice cold raw milk. so delicious!

weekend // pancakes, Swedish furniture, and Garrison Keillor

It may be March, but the snow is flying outside my window. I was of course hoping that would translate into a snow(boarding) day, but no such luck. Oh well. Coming home after a long day of work and relaxing by the fire as I watch Tim shovel is too shabby either.

This past weekend was another weekend to remember. For the past couple of years, I've become a fairly avid MPR/NPR listener, and with that came a love of A Prairie Home Companion. So much so that I added it to my life goal list. And last weekend that goal was lived out. Bob and Mary gave us all tickets to the show as a Christmas gift, and were planning a little family weekend in the Cities. But the Lord had different plans, as Bob was diagnosed with prostate cancer and was scheduled for surgery the Thursday before the show. So while the show was every bit as great as I imagined, it was a little bitter sweet not having Bob and Mary there.

Just like the "olden days"though, they listened to the show on the radio and we would text them pictures throughout the show. My cheeks seriously hurt after the show from pure joy. It was that good. But how can a show be bad when it includes Garrison Keillor, steel guitar, Heather Massey, and Emmylou Harris?

Other weekend highlights include:
+ babysitting little Miss Chatty Cathy aka Evelyn Ray
+ an early morning breakfast of blueberry pancakes and cheesy hashbrowns at perhaps the worlds smallest diner, Al's Breakfast in Dinkytown
+ hunting for deals at Midwest Mountaineering and REI
+ shopping the showrooms and aisles of IKEA
+ sushi at Osaka's
+ hearing Garrison say, "And that's the news from Lake Wobegon. Where all the women are strong, all the men are good looking, and all the children are above average."

the weather outside is frightful

But the fire is so delightful! What we've had today is good old fashioned Minnesota snow that's about to turn into a sub-zero blizzard once the winds pick up. And if you ask me, blizzards and snow storms are the perfect ingredients for cozy Sunday afternoon. We've been watching the snow fly all day, and have accumulated almost a foot of snow since the middle of the night. As I'm writing this, Tim is in his element - outside, shoveling our driveway for the 3rd time today.

Days like today always make me feel good and hearty, like I'm experiencing (and enjoying!) something few people could handle or appreciate. And I love knowing that my family and friends are tucked away in various warm houses, piled under quilts, and enjoying things like baking and new babies. It's so comforting.

Today, the Miller house has looked like this:

the snow continues to pile up high

wrapping up gifts

naps by the fire

shoveling snow sans snow blower

a hot-off-the-stove lunch

We will attempt to venture outside one more time for Bible study tonight, and then be tucked in later thankful for the blessings that surround us and keep us warm on a day like today.

firsts

It has certainly been a week of "firsts" around here. For starters, we had our first house party in our first home. One of the first things I thought when we bought our house was how much I was looking forward to (finally) hosting my own party. For years I've dreamt of buying pretty napkins, setting up an appetizer table just so, and having a hand-picked playlist crankin' out tunes in the background. I'm sure it's a girl thing...or maybe just me? There were a few times throughout the night that I just wanted to press pause and capture the moment. It was good - the friends, the food, the laughs, the lawn games.

Second first: I listened to my first record on my own record player! I've been wanting a record player for years and thanks to my awesome brother-in-law and Tim's aunt, I now have a fully functional, fully awesome record playing spinning John Denver vinyl at this very minute in my living room. I can only imagine what Christmas is going to be like with a record player...it seriously gives me goosebumps!

Third first: as I type this, Tim is at his first class for grad school and thus begins night classes for the next 3 years. I had to buy his school supplies this week, which were very specific (surprise surprise) - Bic mechanical pencils with .5 lead and a Mead five-subject notebook. That's all. He's so efficient.

And now, since I'm still going through a big of withdrawal from my 365 project, here are a few photos from the weekend: