Would you like some cheese with that wine?

On Father's Day, Alex and I went to a local winery, St. Croix Winery, for a tour and wine tasting. It is a small winery, but they make some very delicious wines.

While we waited for the tour to begin, we spotted this little green frog hanging out.

The tour ended in the wine cellar. We learned all about the different types of barrels and how the wood can affect the taste of the wine.

Then the wine tasting began. They provided us with a plate of cheese and crackers which really helped bring out the tastes in both the cheese and the wine. We ended up buying the first wine we tasted, of course, it was the cheapest and fruitiest.

It was a fun little getaway for the afternoon.

O-H-I-O

WARNING: The following post may contain what one normal person would consider to be offensive imagery. Please keep in mind, it was part of my brother's graduation gift, and will never happen again.

The weekend of June 10th, Alex and I travelled to Columbus, Ohio (aka C-bus) to witness my brother graduating from The Ohio State University. I was very much looking forward to the visit but dreading what I committed to myself to do . . . wear tOSU paraphernalia.

Several things made it easier to wear scarlet . . . 1. it was for Joe, 2. it would be one time only, 3. our parents would also be wearing tOSU paraphernalia and 4. tOSU and the Sweatervest were and currently are in the middle of serious NCAA sanctions. The best part is that Joe had no idea what we were planning.

We met up with Joe after his ceremony rehearsal on campus where the surprise was unveiled. His reaction was worth it!

After hugs and laughs, Joe began his "Day in the Life of Joe" tour. It began at Ohio Stadium (aka The Shoe). I think the combination of the scarlet tee and being in tOSU territory made me a little nauseous.

I didn't let that get the best of me. We had a lot of fun in the stadium and strategized where we would sit for the big event.

Apparently the place was getting to me because I participated in the traditional "O-H-I-O." I just hope this stuff doesn't come back to haunt me.

Now this is one Buckeye I can stand behind . . . U-S-A!

The next day we toured the State Capitol. I had been there once in high school for my AP Government class, but we never really got a tour. So we enjoyed walking around the building and checking out the rooms, art and architecture. I enjoyed the map of the Ohio counties. The 4 of us quickly found our birthplaces. I think this trip made me realize how much I love being from Ohio.

I am considering doing this lovely landscaping in our yard next year . . . what do you think?

That evening tOSU hosted a Candlelight Ceremony for the graduates. It was a very nice event and quite moving. President E. Gordon Gee and legendary Archie Griffin spoke to the graduates and wished them well. At the end, a single flame was passed through the crowd of graduates and families.

Joe then took us over to see the new student center. This place was amazing. Most of it was shut down for the night but we were able to get sense of the activity during the day.

The BIG DAY finally arrived. We were very anxious to see Joe graduate. We got up early and headed over to campus to make sure we got a good seat in the stadium. It turned out to be a beautiful day. The sun was out with an occasional breeze to cool you off. It was impressive to watch all of the graduates march in and take their places in the stadium. We enjoyed all of the crazy decorated caps. Speaker of the House, John Boehner, was the guest speaker. He gave a very moving, inspirational and humorous speech.

The time came and Joe graduated! Raise the roof!

I am so proud of my baby brother. He has grown up into a decent young man. Me, well, I guess I still need to work on growing up myself.

After the ceremony, President Gee was available for photos with the graduates and families. President Gee is very accessible to the students and seems to be a very nice man.

The weekend events ended with a celebratory drink at Joe's local bar, Inn-R-Out. I think he was nervous about what we would think. I have to be honest, it was definitely several steps up from a few bars I found myself to be in South Bend.

All in all, it was a very successful and enjoyable weekend with the family. Joe recently started a new job with pharmaceutical lab in Columbus. We could not be prouder of him and what he has accomplished.

Camptown Races

Alex and I headed down to Canterbury Park yesterday for some good old fashioned horse racing. The place was really nice compared to River Downs in Cincinnati. As usual, we had no idea what we were doing and I went for the usual gut – color or name – instinct. It worked the first race but then my horse came in 4th for the next couple.

So we started to get logistical with our picks. Figuring out how much money the horse has made, how many starts the horse has made, how many times he has won, who the jockey was, etc.

That didn't work for us either. So we went back to our gut. My gut won big! $16!!!

Before the last race we bet on, Alex caught (or should I say ran to catch) a t-shirt they were flinging into the stands. Clearly, we should have stopped while we were ahead, because we lost big.

At the end though, we figured we only lost about $15. Not bad for an afternoon at the races.

N MPLS Tornado

It was only a week ago that North Minneapolis was hit by a tornado. Minnesota is known for its tornados, but they are usually in the suburbs away from the metropolitan areas. We are about 10 minutes from downtown, so I never thought tornados would be an issue, until last Sunday.

I had taken Cider for a walk but was keeping my eye out on the very ominous sky. It seemed a distance away. However, within 10 minutes of our walk it had crept up very quickly. Cider and I hustled back to the house, thinking it was going to be a nasty thunderstorm. I turned on the tv to what I still consider crappy weather reporting and channel surfed, trying to find a station talking about the weather. I finally came across one that said we should expect 60 mph winds and large hail.

Alex had just walked into the kitchen from the garage commenting on the weather. I told him about the wind and hail and suggested he pull the cars into the garage. He agreed. After the door shut behind him the wind kicked up causing the rain to be horizontal, the tornado siren went off and the weather channel reported a tornado had touched down in St. Louis Park, about 15 minutes south of us. I ran to yell out to Alex but he was in the garage making room for the cars. (He had been cutting trim and painting doors for our bedroom.)

I literally threw Cider downstairs and was running around gathering the important things. Once Alex finally got inside, we went downstairs to listen to the weather together. The weatherman was tracking the tornado on the other side of 94 from us, about 15 minutes to the east of us. It wasn't until I received an email from my Aunt and talked to my parents that I understood the severity of the situation. When I checked the news it looked like an area to the southeast of us was hit pretty hard, about 10 minutes away. However, it wasn't until we drove downtown several days after the tornado that we realized the tornado was actually 5 minutes away directly east of us.

My heart sank to see all of the trees down, garages flattened and roofs ripped off of homes. People were milling about the streets and waiting in line at the food truck. The City of Minneapolis enforced a curfew at 9pm due to severe looting. People were driving up with trucks in front of homes and just taking what they wanted. It is very sad to hear how people take advantage of people at a time like this.

Here is a video of the damage done in North Minneapolis.

Fortunately, the only damage that was around us was a branch that fell from our backyard neighbors tree into our other backyard neighbors driveway.

Alex drove down the parkway and took video of the damage. The drive is a favorite of ours. You can now see the lakes which used to be hidden by trees.

There were not many images of the actual tornado posted on the internet. Probably because it came out of nowhere. I did come across this video that was filmed about 20 minutes southeast of us. I am overwhelmed by the size of the tornado and how it did not hit us.

There was no time to prepare for this tornado. No warning at all. Alex and I have both learned, that once you hear the siren, no matter what head for cover.

Karate Cider

Cider meet Grandpa

My parents came to visit Easter weekend. It was the first time they met Cider. Cider for the most part was on her best behavior. She took a liking to my dad quickly and he did the same to her. They were pals the entire weekend.

I think a dog would do my dad's heart good. In fact, medical research does report that dogs lower stress in patients. Although, Cider seems to raise my stress levels at times. So maybe not a Cider, but a well behaved dog (not puppy) would be better.

April Snowshowers bring May Flowers

I was so excited when I first saw my tulips start to come up. I knew Winter was on its way out. That is until it snowed at the end of April. I was a bit concerned that the snow would damage my tulips. Thankfully, it did not. However, I could not believe how we just could not get rid of the snow this year.