We left Geil and Linda in charge of the farm and took off for International Falls, MN, last Thursday morning. It was a chilly day and when we arrived that evening, the area had gotten over 3-1/2” rain that day. We met Eric for a burger and a quick tour of the area – paper mills are the big industry. The next morning met him at the wedding venue downtown. Eric and his friends were assembling the wedding arch and setting up tables and chairs. Eric’s mom, Deb, arrived with the fixings for taco in a bag for the rehearsal dinner. She and I worked in the kitchen getting everything ready and after a very short rehearsal, served the members of the wedding party. The decorating began in earnest so Rick, Deb and I left.

 

The day of the wedding was cool and we got things together at the hall and left to change for the wedding. The crowd that arrived for the wedding was very casual compared to weddings around here. The ceremony was short and simple – unlike the wedding party of 8 bridesmaids, a junior bridesmaid and a flower girl – ditto for the men. I couldn’t even get them all into one picture! The bridesmaids’ dresses were the cutest I’ve ever seen – here is Nikki’s sister, Brandi.

 

Rick and I brought kettle corn along for the guests to munch on while the wedding party went driving around town. Dinner was served as well as cake and the dancing began. By 10:30 Rick and I folded. The wedding party danced and stayed in the hall drinking beer until the wee hours of the morning.

We left in heavy rain on Sunday morning. Found a few thrift stores to stop at along the way and got out for a short hike at Taylors Falls on the St. Croix River. It was beautiful. Then we stopped at Rick’s nephew’s home in Lindstrom where we met their very friendly dog, Herbie.

 

We drove on to Stillwater and stayed the night, getting up to shop at the antique stores on Monday. Rick read a book in the car and we ate at the Freight House before leaving. I had the cold shrimp with red sauce and butter sauce – it was actually an appetizer – 1-1/4 lbs. of shrimp! The best lunch I’ve ever had – shrimp and cold beer.

We drove on to Laneboro where we intended to spend the night and then look around the area the following day but the forecast was for severe thunderstorms in our area so we headed home, getting caught in the worst of the storm in Austin, MN. Wind, hail, rain and tornado sirens all were happening while we sat behind a building in our van. Scary! Everything was fine at home – just lots of twigs and branches down in the yard and several trees down in the grove.

Today I spent the afternoon and part of the evening on the lawn mower. With all this nice rain, the grass is growing very fast and it’s very green – such a nice change from last year.

I’m ready to stay home for months on end after this trip. Connie and Mary Baker are in Chicago at International Quilt Festival. I hope you’ll stop by the booth and greet them if you’re attending the show.

Many of my plants got soaked over the weekend so I’ve spent a lot of time repotting so they don’t rot. I bought more plants at the store yesterday and today – what am I thinking? I just can’t resist when they’re on sale, too.

We’ll be getting ready for the Big Event July 10-12. Join us on Thursday evening the 10^th at 5 pm for a glass of wine and snacks. We will close the store on Thursday at 3:30 to get ready for you. The 20% off sale will continue Friday, 9-5, and Saturday 9-3. Hope to see you here at the farm!

Mary

Just for a laugh…

 

A teacher said to her class, “From the outset, I want you all to know there are two words that are absolutely unacceptable in this classroom. You cannot use them as you recite or on any of your papers, tests or homework. Using the words even once will earn you a failing grade for the quarter. The first one is ‘gross’ and the other one is ‘cool.’ Are there any questions?”

 

A student says, “So, what are they?”