Friends' Rockin Rib Fest

Trying to catch up on some pictures I had taken in the past month.  We got invited to a fun group event called Friends' Rockin' Rib Fest - Cheniu and Jolene thought it up, and it was a raving success. It was a fun pot luck with a competition spin for those who have kickin' BBQ rib recipes.  Lots of variety to taste and judge whose ribs were prize worthy.  Next year we'll have to compete - this year was just fun to bring a couple of things to share and participate in the voting and the fun association.  A few pics of the contestants, the judges and the winner!

the competitors...

our winner!!



our gracious king of ribs



20th Anniversary!!

Wow - 20 year wedding anniversary...how did that happen?  In some ways, yes it seems almost a lifetime ago since the 2 kids walked down the aisle and pledged their lives to each other. In other ways, it seems like that just happened a short time ago and poof here we are 20 years later with a son and a dog and a cat and a house and a van and jobs, and congregation things to do, and busy lives etc etc etc. Time flies!

First a little time warp back to 1991...

We had decided a while ago that we were going to get away SOMEWHERE for at least a couple of days together this special week, so we both took the full week off work for flexibility. Originally he was scheeming and I was scheeming  - both for separate places. Compared notes, and things changed and morphed and pared down as practicality and bills (did I mention that our 12 year old cat almost died and we are now owners of a very expensive medically tested kitty that is greatly improving and now better live until a ripe old age while I pay on the vet bills ;-()  ).  We also decided to keep it simpler and put the money towards something more long term - we are going to redo our bedroom and get new furniture, bedding, paint etc.  So we ended up going up to Duluth for 2 nights and 3 days to our fav resort in Canal Park in the hub of what is going on in town.  The rest of the week we decided on a "staycation". 

Here are some shots of our weekend "up north" where we had also spent time on our honeymoon 20 years ago.

note that there are two straws in this huge thing. ;-) 

Little Angies Cantina across the street from our hotel.

Love the view of Lake Superior from this hotel. I am such a water view person -it sooths my soul.  Addicted to lake shots, so sorry for repetition...but my little version of paradise I guess.

This was the very first trip for us (and there have been many trips up there) where the weather was nice the whole time we were up there. Not a drop of rain, and nice sunny (though sometimes a bit windy ) days.

Brent surprised me with a special dinner location on Sunday night. We went for a drive headed north. The farther we got the more suspicious I got that I knew where we were landing. Bingo - we arrived at Blue Fin Bay resort in Tofte where we had dinner on our honeymoon. :)  Love it! 

And of course a nice table by the window with my great lake view. And being my fathers daughter I have to have pictures of everything, so I get distracted by my camera- Brent suggested I go out to the deck to take lake pics instead of through the window.  Good idea! 

So back I come all bubbly with my pics that I am looking at and totally oblivious that my table spot had something in it that was not a plate. Wow - am I distracted.  FINALLY I catch on that I need to look down - a velvet little package containing a beautiful Blue Topaz necklace from he and Noah.  Blue Topaz is sort of my signature stone since I was a teen...so it did mean a lot, and was very sparkly!! A girl likes bling! 

My brain was racing though because we had both agreed no gifts - we were pooling our gift money for the bedroom thing. Hm...how am I going to figure something out on the trip now???  Well as we are chatting over our scrummy dinner, the story came out that Noah told him that he and I were ordering something for Brent on the net (yes our son does NOT know how to keep anything secret). So he and Noah ran on Saturday in search for a gift for me (they do have good taste together I have to admit). The problem was though that Noah didn't know I didn't order what he and I looked at since it was on back order and then Brent and I made the new "no gift" pact. WHOOPS.  So I guess I got a bonus. I'll take it gracefully. :)

self portrait

There was another anniversary couple there that were

our unofficial photographers -fun. :)

Brent was in camera mode too

we found the local KH along Hwy 61 lakeside...

Monday we were snooping in canal park one last time and driving around town seeing the sites and out at Miller Hill Mall (Five Guys burgers rock by the way - had never been to one before) - we were on a mission for new bedding etc to set the tone for our new room. Wow is that work.  So many options and price ranges, and colors and fabrics etc.  Tiring all the stores you have to go to in order to compare options and budget. But that would set the tone, for the rest of the room so shopaholics we became up in Duluth and also back in the cities.

Our hotel from over across on the pier

Lief Erickson Park

Finally after much searching when we returned to the cities we found something we both could agree on that had colors we wanted and actully fit nicer into our budget than we thought we would find. yay! 

So thoughout the week we've been picking away at cleaning out every corner of our room for a fresh start - closets and all. The thrift store got a hefty donation this week and it felt good to "cleanse".  In the midst of our week of house stuff, Noah got his Expander on Tuesday and his adjustment period hasn't been exactly fun for it, so Wednesday's anniversary plans took a slight detour.  He was home from school for the day, but we were still going to try for a special dinner with the 2 moms joining our little family celebration. They had some suprises up their sleeves and so did we. Unfortunately around 4 p.m. Noah was sinking fast so we had to shift gears and take the party to our house instead of Outback Steak House - we ended up ordering pizza in, and having our fancy little cake that Noah helped design (made by Byerly's), and had kind of a family present day with us and the Grammies.  All were pretty practical (well except Noah's).  Noah gave me the other half of my joint gift in the morning (before Daddy was in the room to see it -whoops) - he gave me a little ring box with a ring to match my necklace from the weekend - how cool!  Noah got a pretty cool present from us too, and the grammies were included in some of the fun too.

My mom found a copy of our wedding invite and gave it to us. wow -memories!

Anyway, the night ended well despite detours - flexibility is key at this point in life I'm finding.  It was good. The rest of the week has flown by, and it has been great having the week off to just "be".  Some service, some play time, some shopping, some eating, some cleaning, some working ...nice balances.

Back to reality now I guess...we'll see what the next 5 years brings to our next milestone anniversary! :)

More adventures to come!

Jennifer

Work in progress...under construction

No, we're not building an addition to the house. Noah's mouth is the "construction zone"...he is in Phase 1 Orthodontics.  They start earlier now than they did when we were young. I guess they figured out prevention is a lot better than trying to fix what came in wrong when kids are older.

Noah started with a consult at the recommendation from his dentist. He has a narrow top jaw and a cross-bite, so was a good candidate for ortho to try to fix things before they become bigger issues down the road. I'm hoping it can help his chewing/texture issues if his teeth actually line up properly to chew.  He also doesn't have much room for the remaining permanent teeth that need to come down so trying to make the space rather than having to pull permanent teeth later. It will be about a year process. He was actually really excited to get braces since his friends Bryce and Sophia have already gotten them. So, score one for positive peer pressure. In fact we are at the same Ortho office as Sophia, so that is fun to see her progress knowing he is close behind (she started about 3 months earlier than he did).

Getting the xrays and molds etc was the next step, and Noah being my son, wanted things documented with photos (3rd generation photo bug on the lose).  Here are a few shots of the process.

Then came the brackets - he was excited except for the banding of the molars - certainly that is the worst part of it. ugh.  He got to pick the colors of the rubber bands that go around the brackets to keep the wire in place. Since Sam has semi-succeeded in converting him to the Packers side (only partially though I will note) he picked green and yellow alternating. Hey -whatever makes this process more bearable...pick most any color combo you want!

("before" smile)

 getting ready to cement the brackets on

showing off his new colors

The day he got the braces on was actually a big day -was proud of him for hanging in there - he had a full day of school after the apointment and then we had meeting that night and I had a talk and also we had a nice announcement that Oakdale Congregation has a new unbaptized publisher - Noah Nelson. :)  We are all proud to see our little man maturing so nicely.  

Then after getting used to the brackets for a couple of weeks we had to go back in to have his Expander put in. They had built it just for his mouth based on his molds, but installation was NOT FUN. Hard as a mom to see your kiddo suffer..."mama bear" wanted to come out, but I do know it is for the greater good and things will even out soon. but ouch.  I had to learn how to turn the screw with a special key daily for the next 2 weeks so it consistantly expands out his upper jaw - his upper palate will actually grow in to accommodate the expansion, which is cool how the body adapts at a young age. I know the pain will be worth it when his teeth match up better and he has new space for those new teeth to come down straight. Just to get through the next 3 months of this process.   Always a new adventure!!

This is what the custom appliance looks like before it went in. The round bands fit around his molars to anchor it in place.

Stay tuned for more construction updates.

Jen

Spring Pictures for 3rd Grade

School photos showed up Friday.  Just sharing. Noah picked his clothes this time - he wanted a dressier look. too cute!  Our little man is getting so tall!  Pretty soon the school year will be winding down already and we'll be on to summer break (that is if summer ever comes to MN).

Prepping for "Phase 1"

It has been a hugely busy month, but I wanted to document that Noah is starting Phase 1 Orthodontics.  A new phase of life for a while. Last week he went in and got pictures, and impressions and xrays and also spacers between some of his molars.  This coming Tuesday we go back in for brackets and getting fitted for his expander.  Here are a few shots to document our visit.  And away we go!...