SURPRISE!!!

I received an awesome surprise last weekend. My mom and dad came to Minneapolis for a visit. I had no idea they were coming. Apparently my parents found a great deal on tickets and arranged the surprise with Alex. Very sneaky!!! I should have known something was up when Alex all of a sudden got this need to clean during the week. :o) Anyway, Alex and I had planned a date on Friday night. He took me to dinner at the Oceannaire. (I recommend the crab cakes and hashbrowns.) As we were walking back to our table there were two familiar faces behind menus. SURPRISE! I could not believe my parents were in Minneapolis. I was speechless and so HAPPY to see them.

We had a great visit even though it was short. Unfortunately, I do not have many pictures. Dad took most of them. Perhaps once I get them I can update and share. We toured General Mills, Lake Minnetonka, shopped in Excelsior, drove around Lake Harriet, Lake Calhoun, and Lake of the Isles. We drove up the parkway and toured Robbinsdale (our neighborhood). We also took them to an apple orchard called Apple Jack's. Unfortunately, we are at the end of the season so the apples were literally picked over. 

We did go through the corn maze. It seemed like fun. They had clues for us to answer but I think people moved signs and created new paths.

We tried to have fun but it was unusually warm. We overdressed thinking it would be a bit chilly. As soon as we were in the maze we were ready to get out.

Once we got out of the maze, we headed to the barn to get some apple goodies . . . cinnamon donuts, apple pull aparts, apple fritters . . . YUM! We even got to pick apples inside since there were not many left on the trees. We now know to go earlier next year!

Week of Hockey

About a month ago, Alex had the opportunity to play open hockey at the Xcel Energy Center where the Minnesota Wild (NHL team) plays. He was very excited to skate on professional ice. (Alex is standing between the "E" and "N" of "Energy.)

Alex is sitting in the Visitor's box waiting to get back on the ice. He started listing off all of the famous NHL players that have been in that box. #1 on the list Wayne Gretzky (his idol).

All smiles after skating a great game. 2 goals and an assist . . . Suit him up Wild!

So if that wasn't enough we had the opportunity to go to the Wild's preseason games the next 2 nights against the Chicago Blackhawks and Buffalo Sabres. At the Buffalo Sabres game we were 3 rows from the glass.

I was hoping to see a fight since were so close but no such luck. 

The Wild and Sabres tied the game and played in overtime. The Wild won! It was a great first NHL experience for myself. 

Catching Up!

Can you tell I have a job now? I haven't had a chance to update my fabulous blog that probably everyone has already lost interest in. Well if you are still checking it I will be adding lots of new posts with events from the past month. I can't believe I accepted my position with Aveda a month ago. So far the job is going well. I am starting to get my feet wet and trying to understand all of the product offerings and what my group can do to elevate the brand. I believe I will make a big impact and hope that will present new opportunities.

Working Girl

I have been offered and I accepted a Package Designer position with Aveda. 

I start this coming Monday. I am very excited about the opportunity and hope that it will open new doors for me. I will be responsible for designing Aveda products' packaging but will also get to utilize my Marketing degree I am still spending a lot of money on. 

Things are starting to fall into place . . .

"Up North!" – Duluth

After our adventures along the coast, we drove back towards Minneapolis and stayed in Duluth. It is a cute little town located right on Lake Superior. 

Our hotel was located on Canal Park which is a peninsula surrounded by the Lake. There were lots of great restaurants and cute shops as well as the famous lift bridge. If I am correct, this is the largest (?) working lift bridge in the US or at least on the lakes. Unfortunately, the bridge did not lift while we were there but it was neat nonetheless.

Alex tried to skip rocks on the beach but was a bit unsuccessful. The beach was very rocky and I wondered if this would be a good summer beach but I'm thinking that is not the case.

My vacation from my "vacation" came to an end. It was a lot of fun. We are looking forward to going back and traveling even further north. Supposedly we can see all sorts of wildlife. For example, caribou will walk out into roads without a care in the world. That would be fun to see.

"Up North!" – Odds & Ends

Along our drive we came across a few odds and ends that made us laugh.

Here is a Paul Bunyan statue in a random parking lot. I don't remember him looking like this. Didn't he wear flannel? 

We came across Emily's Restaurant. Unfortunately, it was under renovation. But that didn't stop me from taking my picture in front.

There still remains an Indian influence up here. Alex felt the need to pay tribute to the Indians.

Betty's World Famous Pies is a destination. This place was a recommendation and it was well deserved. They have delicious pie! Everyone else thought so too. The parking lot was packed. 

"Up North!" - Split Rock Lighthouse

This past weekend Alex and I decided to take a little road trip "Up North" to Duluth and Split Rock Harbor. Everyone kept telling us this is the best time to go as the trees are turning color. 

We drove about 3.5 hours up the Minnesota Scenic Byway to Split Rock Harbor on Lake Superior where we found the iconic Split Rock Lighthouse. I have never seen a real working lighthouse so I was very excited. 

The scenery around us was beautiful. Lake Superior is like an ocean in itself. Alex read that Lake Superior could fit the other 4 Great Lakes in addition to 2 more Lake Eries. Also, the amount of water in Lake Superior could cover the entire United States in 3 feet of water. Incredible!

There are these cliffs that are along Lake Superior. The weather was a bit gloomy and I was hoping we'd see more waves crashing up against them which would have been very picturesque. Another Lake Superior fact: Waves can get up to 11 feet tall. I felt like I was in another world at this point. 

The Split Rock Lighthouse came out of nowhere. We were just walking along and there it was.

 

We were able to go inside the Lighthouse. Every two hours the watchmen would have to go back into the lighthouse and wind up the light so that it would continue to turn for another two hours. They would do this every night. 

Here is what I think is a pretty cool picture that I took. I like that I caught the sunlight as the light turned. Maybe there is a photographer in me after all.

After walking down a series of very steep, wet, wooden steps we were able to get to lake level and see the lighthouse sitting on the edge of the cliff. It is quite breathtaking. My camera does not do it justice.