It's Tradition -- Seventh Anniversary Celebration

One warm summer night a few days before our wedding anniversary, Andi and I packed up the kids and drove them over to Noerenberg Gardens on Lake Minnetonka to stand in the very same spot we said "I do" seven years ago. Andi's mom, Janie, happened to be over at our condo that afternoon so we invited her along with us, too.

Tory, in particular, was very excited to see the place Mom and Dad got married. "I've never been here before," she exclaimed more than once. We kindly reminded her that she's been coming to this spot with us every July since she was a baby. "It's tradition!" I told her. "Um, what's tradition?" she sweetly responded.

Strolling through the beautiful Noerenberg Gardens is one our family's favorite traditions. Wedding anniversaries are a time to celebrate one another, and there's no better place than in the spot where it all began. All these years later, it still sends goosebumps up my arms.

Andi and I have shared a fabulous seven years together, and I can't wait to see what the next seven will bring!

After we'd spent time in the gardens, the five of us (Janie, too) hopped over to downtown Wayzata for frozen yogurt. Marshmallows, cherries, whipped cream and sprinkles; Tory and Aden's favorite treat this summer.

I'm so very thankful for this little family of mine, and especially for my husband who made it all possible.

An Anniversary Tradition

Andi and I have a long-standing tradition of visiting Noerenberg Memorial Gardens in Wayzata, MN every year on or around our anniversary. It's the place we were married, and it serves as a nice reminder of our wedding day and the vows we committed to one another. Every year we visit, I get butterflies in my stomach as I walk up the same brick pathway that leads to the circular pillars where we said "I do."

It was just us who visited Noerenberg on our first anniversary; the second year, I was hugely pregnant with Tory. Almost one-year-old Tory came along with us during Year Three, and the fourth year Baby Aden was in my belly. Last year, our family of four visited Noerenberg together and shared a picnic dinner overlooking Lake Minnetonka.

Comparison of years 1-6:

This year - Year Six - Andi arranged for his mom to babysit the kids so we could spend the evening together. I was a bit hesitant because I wanted Tory and Aden represented in our annual photo, but it truly was a nice change (and more romantic!) to celebrate the evening together without the kids. We haven't had a date night all summer. We nixed the picnic idea once the kids out of the picture because - hello! - the invitation for a date night on the town. Yes, please.

Andi recently bought a new GoPro camera and selfie stick so we were "those people" snapping photos of ourselves in the gardens yesterday evening. Sparks still flew between us as we stood in the same spot we were married six years ago. After all these years, I still love that man with everything I've got.

Afterwards we hopped over to 6Smith for dinner, the restaurant where we held our wedding reception. It wasn't 6Smith back then, it was North Coast, but still the same lovely spot on the water. Andi and I ordered drinks and shared small places for dinner. Then, we walked around downtown Wayzata as the sun set and had such a fun evening together.

For the millionth time, Andi - happy anniversary! Who knew I was making the best decision of my life by marrying you? I'm the luckiest.

Weekend Recap: Our Sixth Anniversary Celebration

The best weekends are the ones you can't stop thinking about when they're over. The ones you know are memorable while they're happening, and you're sad from head to toe when they're done.

Last weekend, Andi and I celebrated our sixth anniversary and it was definitely one of those weekends. It's been a rough summer of travel for Andi so when he announced his plans to take vacation days on Thursday and Friday, the kids and I were over the moon. Four full days at the lake cabin with just our little family = heaven!

To kick things off, Andi, Tory, Aden and I ventured to the Country Lane Farmer's Market near Barron, Wisconsin on Thursday afternoon. We'd visited this market once before a few years ago, and it was a really neat place to stop. The market is packed full of vendors selling local fruits & vegetables, meat, and other homemade goods. There's also a big bulk foods store on property and tons of other food vendors. Rarely are we at the cabin on a Thursday afternoon, so we took advantage of the opportunity.

 

The plethora of choices from the food vendors looked amazing for dinner, but Andi and I had already planned to have a fancy meal at the cabin after the kids went to bed. We did just that when we returned from the market, and it was the perfect conclusion to the evening. Steak filets, local green beans and a side salad -- delicious!

Friday was the date of our actual anniversary, and we planned to take the kids for a long Ranger ride in the morning. Typically we ride within 20 miles of the lake cabin, but on this day we decided to take the Cattail State Trail from the lake cabin, through Turtle Lake, WI and end in Amery, WI. Andi packed a picnic for the four of us to eat once we arrived there, so we had a nice little lunch together in the park. 

How cute is this drinking fountain in downtown Amery? The kids thought it was really cool to take a drink inside the lion's mouth.

We drove on the dusty trail for 57 miles round-trip, so the four of us were disgustingly dirty by the end of it. Aden had a paste of mud on his face after wiping his slobber-covered chin with his hand. The rest of us had raccoon eyes in the shape of our sunglasses.

A picnic in the park and some fun on the playground equipment, then Andi, Tory, Aden and I hopped back in the Ranger and drove to the cabin. Immediately upon arrival, the four of us pulled on our swimming suits and jumped into the lake to wash off. We were filthy, but nothing a few hours swimming in the water couldn't cure!

Why we won't be taking Aden canoeing anytime soon ... stay in the boat, kid!

Aden ended up taking a later-than-usual nap that afternoon which meant he was awake later than usual that evening. I told Andi we should capitalize on the chance to take some photos of our family at sunset, so that's just what we did.

We spent most of Saturday on the water, going for multiple pontoon boat rides around the lake and swimming in our bay. Andi grilled ribs for dinner, then the two of us enjoyed a fun evening at the neighbor's cabin sitting by their bonfire. (Our baby monitor reached into their yard just a few feet away.) Perhaps we had a little too much fun on Saturday night as both Andi and I nursed a pair of hangovers the next morning. Oy. Good thing the dawn of Sunday brought overcast skies, so the four of us lounged around in bed together and watched episodes of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on repeat.

When the skies lightened up Sunday afternoon, so did Andi and I, and the four of us made one last trip around the lake to conclude a fantastic weekend together.

Sad to see such a fun weekend go, but looking forward to our return to the lake as always.

Sixth Anniversary

On Friday, Andi and I celebrated six years of marriage. Six years! Quite an achievement, I think. No longer do we have the anticipation of building a life together, but the comfort of thousands of shared memories and the dream of many more to come. Sometimes I'll be driving in the car or sitting on the sidelines of the pool at the kids' swimming lessons, and it'll hit me just how lucky I am to be married to the man I love.

It's the little things that make our relationship feel special, and I never want to forget that:

• Andi is the ying to my yang. I'm amazed by his ability to run a successful company, and he tells me repeatedly he couldn't do what I do with the kids everyday. Without each other's contribution, our life together wouldn't flow as smoothly as it does.
• We get lost in our dreams of traveling the world. During long car rides, laying in bed at night and over dinner, we often talk about what it'd be like to pack up the kids and just go. Someday, I swear we'll do it.  
• In the same vein, it's not uncommon for us to spend our evenings together shopping for last-minute flight deals ... even if we don't take the trip. 
• Our family's best days happen when we set out on mini adventures. Visits to community festivals, road trips to a new-to-us town. We don't like to sit idle for long.   
• When I'm with Andi, I never worry. The man's always got a plan.
• But, when he tells me to book it - I move fast! That's when I know we're really in a pickle.  
• Every year - November to March - we say to each other about a million times, "Why do we live here?!" Minnesota is so cold; we're definitely warm-weather people.
• It's literally impossible to find a good movie to watch together.
• So, as soon as the kids are in bed for the night we crawl into bed and binge on episodes of House Hunters International. 
• The lake cabin is the glue that holds our family together. We'd make a lot of scarifies before we let that place slip through our fingertips.
• Fishing has become a shared hobby of ours (which is something I never thought I'd say).  
• We rarely have beef with one another, so if one of us says "we need to talk ..., " the other person snaps to and listens intently.
• We're both "early to bed, early to rise" people.   
• He likes to push me outside my comfort zone to try new things, and I like to keep our special rituals and routines in place year after year. 
• Andi has a fresh pot of coffee ready for us every weekend morning. 
• I always keep ice cream treats or chocolate stocked in the house to fuel his late-night sweet tooth. 

Cheers to six years and many more to come!

Anniversary Weekend

Welcome back to reality ...

I'm settling into our regular routine this week after spending 48 glorious hours with Andi, free of all responsibility including parenting, and the transition back to real life has been a tough one. Not rocky-bad, per se, but more like "do my lovely children really scream this much? GAH!" And, "is it time for wine yet? Oh, it's only 10:30am? Oof." 

Sometimes, I think it's easier to keep right on truckin' through life because once I step out of the chaos, it makes me a little bug-eyed to eventually plunge back into reality. Not to sound ungrateful as we are very thankful for Janie, my wonderful mother-in-law, who offered to watch Tory and Aden so Andi and I could have time away to celebrate five years of marriage together. And, thanks to my father-in-law Jim and sister-in-law Lindsay who also helped Janie manage the kids. Andi and I really do appreciate it. 

As for our getaway together, Andi and I had a fabulous time at our lake cabin. I'm not sure we've ever been there alone before or if we have, it wasn't for long. Andi and I contemplated traveling somewhere for our anniversary but with only a 48-hour pass, we wanted to make the most of our time. As is usually the case, Andi arranged for some fun activities to celebrate. 

We left Tory and Aden with Janie on Thursday around Noon and headed to the cabin. Along the way, Andi suggested stopping by Dancing Dragonfly Winery for a tasting. We drive by this winery every weekend on the way to the cabin but have never been without the kids, so this seemed like the perfect time to check it out. I have to admit I had very low expectations. I pictured a pole barn with a small counter for tasting wine so I was pleasantly surprised when we pulled into the parking lot of a beautiful stone fortress overlooking the vineyard. Tastings were $10/each with about 15 red, white and dessert wines to choose from. After each trying five wines and purchasing another glass of our favorite, Andi and I were just tipsy enough to start our anniversary weekend on the right foot. Can't wait to come back to this winery when we're without kids again ... which will probably be in about another five years!

Andi and I settled into cabin life with a canoe ride around the lake - sans kids! No one asked for snacks, or needed shushed and entertained. Basically, it was amazing. So relaxing and peaceful. A few minutes later, we were out the door to celebrate our anniversary with dinner at The Tower House. I was craving the delicious fettuccine alfredo dish I'd had a few weeks earlier and we wanted to try out the restaurant's newly opened patio. Unfortunately, the place was slammed and our meals weren't as tasty as they had been the first time we visited the restaurant. It was still nice to spend dinner together though. No complains on the company I kept. 

I won't lie when I say one of the things I was most looking forward to during our 48 hours away from the kids was sleeping. Shamefully, Andi and I were asleep by 9:00pm on our anniversary night and dead to the world until about 8:00am the following morning. Eleven hours of uninterrupted sleep = HEAVEN. 

Friday, Andi planned a fun day for the two of us in Danbury, Wisconsin. We trailered our Polaris Ranger about 45 minutes to some ATV trails near there and spent the morning riding together. I'm as shocked as anyone to admit this, but I enjoy ATVing. It's so beautiful riding in nature, exploring new territory and most of all, spending time together with Andi. We talked. We rode. We sat quietly and listening to music. It was really fun. 

It was also really, really dirty. Andi and I stopped for lunch at the Fish Bowl Bar and Grill in Danbury. When I went to wash my hands in the bathroom, I noticed the exact shape of my sunglasses on my face. Good thing our next activity was tubing down the St. Croix River.

After lunch, we cruised over to Pardun's Canoe Rental to grab intertubes and hop in a shuttle to the drop-off on the river. Andi and I spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing in the sunshine.

No cell phones. No noise. No distractions. Just the two of us floating down the river in nature. It was a beautiful, relaxing ride. Andi even fell asleep on his tube for a few minutes. I kept watch and steered us clear of random low-hanging trees. That's love, right there!

Our cabin friends Joe and Lisa sent a text message afterwards with an invitation to go water skiing back at the lake, so we cruised over to their place upon our return. Andi wakeboarded, Joe slalom skied and we watched the sun set over the horizon. It was a perfect day.

We had Saturday morning alone, so Andi and I met the cabin neighbors to ride ATVs on some trails by the cabin. Janie and Lindsay brought Tory and Aden to the cabin around Noon and we all spent the rest of the day playing by the lake. The weather was gorgeous all weekend -- sunny, in the mid-80's. Perfect cabin weather. Saturday was Aden's first time in the lake (the water's about 80 degrees now) and Tory's first time tubing behind the boat! Our little girl has no fear whatsoever. As she and I climbed onto the tube tied to the back of the pontoon boat, she started to whine because she thought Andi was going for a boat ride without her. After we got going and she realized what was going on, she cheered "wahoo!" the entire ride. 

We ended our anniversary weekend with dinner out at The County Line with our four, plus Janie and Lindsay. Not at all as relaxing as our dinners without the kids, but much more familiar. All in all, a great weekend at the lake. 

Janie and Lindsay left the cabin Sunday morning and we headed out shortly afterwards as the sky clouded up and began to rain. Year Five of marriage is off to a great start. Here's to many more wonderful memories ahead!

Five Years

Five years ago today on a windy and hot summer evening, Andi and I said "I do." Reflecting on our wedding anniversary this past week, I couldn't help but think about how much we've achieved together.

Two amazing kids.
Five jobs.
One successful business.
Three houses and a lake cabin.
Nine cars. Five boats. Four ATVs. Two snowmobiles.
Countless once-in-a-lifetime trips and experiences.

Andi's wedding vows to me started by saying, " Three houses, four cars and five cell phones in the past 4 years ... I have a history of having an itch for something new."

Boy, was he right. Life with Andi is an adventure. Resting on our laurels is never an option. We go. We do. We see. And, you know what? I wouldn't have it any other way. I love our life together. We're given one opportunity to experience all there is in this world and how lucky am I to get to do it alongside my very best friend?

Answer: The luckiest.

---

Earlier this week, Andi and I took Tory and Aden to visit Noerenberg Gardens, the place we were married five years ago. What started as an evening reciting our vows to one another has become a tradition to reminisce our wedding day and reflect on our lives together.

Year One
Year Two
Year Three
Year Four

On this evening to celebrate Year Five, our little family of four shared a picnic together overlooking Lake Minnetonka. As Andi and I sat amongst the chaos that is our family right now -- Tory throwing grapes and dancing in the grass; Aden grasping for any plates and food within his immediate reach -- I felt so happy and content in my life. How am I so blessed to share my life with these people?

After dinner, we took our photograph between the white pillars where Andi and I were married. First there were two; then three; and, now four.

Happy anniversary, Andi. I love you always!

Fourth Anniversary Gifts

Each year, Andi and I attempt to follow the traditional gift guide to celebrate our wedding anniversary. It's definitely more challenging to come up with gift ideas for one another that correspond with the old-school list, but it's also fun to think outside the box and exchange gifts with a theme.

Last year was leather and I was left scrambling for ideas up until the end. Andi gave me a Kindle Fire which I use everyday, but sadly the flask I gave him is still sitting in his nightstand drawer unused. I kept up with the leather-bound daily journal I promised to write in for a few months, and off and on after that, but it was really a flop gift overall. Bummer. I vowed this year - Year Four - would be different, so I've been brainstorming gift ideas to give him for months. When I asked Andi if he had any anniversary gift ideas for me, he said, "What's the theme? Um, yep, got one."

For real? It's that easy, huh?

A gift of fruit or flowers - the traditional recommendation for the fourth anniversary - for a guy is HARD. I could think of a million different things I'd want as a gift that fell into those two categories (heck, I'd have been happy with a bouquet of flowers or even something like this flower necklace), but I couldn't very well give Andi roses and call it a day. After mulling over a million different options, I decided to give him a new Keurig machine which fits the theme because coffee beans are technically the pit of a coffee cherry fruit. Alright, I know this gift isn't very thrilling (it's about as exciting as receiving a vacuum for a present) but Andi does love coffee and our Keurig has been broken for months, so practical wins. 

Other gift ideas I thought about were:

• An Apple product -- but it turns out my husband already owns every single piece of Apple technology in existence today. 
• Dinner cooked by a private chef with fruit incorporated into the meal -- but at $350, I couldn't justify the cost.
• An espresso machine like the Nespresso U-- but Andi already has an espresso machine at his office and let's face it, we've got a newborn baby due soon and this mama's gonna need some coffee to stay alive.
• A bottle of booze -- whiskey is made of grain, for example, but I can't cop out and give Andi alcohol for every single holiday ... or can I?
• A Bonzai tree for his office desk -- boring and strange, can you tell I'm struggling here?
• Baking a fruit pie -- but we weren't even together on our actual anniversary date.

So - a coffee maker. I admit it, I stink at gift giving. Sorry, Andi.

For Year Four, Andi gifted me this cool framed piece of artwork he created. It's a Google Earth view of four special places in our relationship:

• We Met: The 16th Street Mall in Denver
• We Married: Noerenberg Gardens in Wayzata, Minnesota
• We Live: Our Twin Cities neighborhood
• We Play: Our Pipe Lake Cabin

What does the framed map art have to do with fruit or flowers? Nothing. Ha. I guess we both struggled with the theme this year. I do love my new frame and I know we'll both get a ton of use out of our new Keurig ... so, win/win in the end.

Weekend Recap

Great little weekend around these parts ....

Friday, Andi and I spent the evening celebrating our belated fourth wedding anniversary. We'd originally planned to keep things low-key with a nice dinner somewhere in town, but then Andi's mom offered to babysit Tory overnight and we'd have been silly to pass up that chance! Tory was practically giddy about Grandma and Grandpa coming over to play and Andi and I were equally excited to have an overnight to ourselves. We had a nice, quiet dinner at Cosmos, then partied it up big time (ha, just kidding, we're way too old and boring for that crazy-talk) walked around downtown Minneapolis for a bit before retiring to our hotel room at Graves 601. The alone time to reconnect was just what Andi and I needed. A perfect way to celebrate four years together.

For an extra-special date that doesn't break the bank, I highly recommend renting a hotel for the night close to home. Even though we live a quick ten minutes from downtown, very rarely do Andi and I take the opportunity to be tourists in our own 'hood. It was really fun to have a fancy dinner at a new-to-us restaurant, then see downtown buzzing with a nightlife we're not usually apart of.   

Downtown view from our 20th floor hotel room

Hotel room for two

Andi and I had big plans to sleep in all morning and order breakfast in bed, but sadly we were both up by 6:30am. So, we grabbed Starbucks in the hotel lobby and hit up the Minneapolis Farmer's Market instead which is one of our favorite things to do when we're in town over a weekend. The farmer's market was packed with people. Andi and I leisurely strolled by all the vendors and picked out fresh fruits and veggies.

We spent the rest of our weekend at the cabin with family and friends. The weather was absolutely perfect for boat rides and bonfires - plenty of sun during the day with just enough chill in the air at night. Sad as it is to acknowledge, I could feel summer slipping through my fingers while we were at the lake this weekend. One of the cabin neighbors said an old wives' tale states there's 30 days left of summer once you spot seagulls on the lake. And - DUN DUN DUN - we saw seagulls for the first time on Sunday. We're officially buying the cabin this October (have I mentioned that before?) so luckily, our cabin time won't be ending; it's just the change in seasons and a wrap to one of my favorite times of the year.