Rush, rush, rush, then drive
On to the rest of the weekend!
SATURDAY!
Mom, Dad, and I hung out at bit after the race, but not for too long – we had to get ready for my cousin Danielle’s wedding! Luckily we had a late (1:00 pm) checkout, had plenty of time to get ready, hit up Taco Bell (the post race hunger kicked in!), and drive to the wedding in Amery, Wisconsin.
Mom rode with me for the hour and twenty minute drive to the wedding, which gave us a chance to catch up. We spent a bit of time driving near the Minnesota/Wisconsin border, and the views were stunning – more gorgeous trees, and some rock formations.
We drove by the Wisconsin Interstate State Park and saw people hiking along the road and it just KILLED me not to stop and explore it! UGH! So many nature-y things to do! So little time! The weekend felt packed!
The wedding was at 3:00 pm in a park in Amery. I love outdoor weddings. It was chilly (in the 30s?) but they had blankets out for the guests to use! What a great idea! I enjoyed the ceremony. They actually got married in a courthouse last December and made lots of jokes about this being their second wedding. It was cute, and humorous.
My brother and his wife drove my Grandma’s car up for the wedding
After the wedding, I beelined to the car to eat some leftover stale donuts. Ha! I just wanted to let you guys know that those donuts got some redemption and tasted better on Saturday, only because I still had the post race hungries.
Alyssa (my sister-in-law) and me. I took that hat off for the wedding, ha.
The reception was about thirty minutes away at a Ski Lodge in Taylors Falls, Minnesota. My grandma (Dad’s mom) rode with me, and it was nice for us to have a chance to chat, just the two of us!
Twinning it up with our jean jackets!
At the reception, I immediately got drinks (Angry Orchards!) for myself, my older brother, and his wife. It was time to PAR-TAY! (i.e. time for Kim to act MORE obnoxious than usual)
They had the MOST AMAZING wedding food – a taco bar! Yes, puh-lease! We may or may not have asked our aunt to re-open the room to the food so we could get more tacos. Ha. No shame. (But we did feel those tacos out on the dance floor later, oops.)
So yeah, just your regular wedding – drinking, eating, dancing, being a bit inappropriate…
Aunt Tracy, me, and Alyssa
CW from top left: Mom, me, Danielle, Cousin Taylor, Second Cousin Jill, Aunt Sue, Alyssa, Grandma
Mom, me, Danielle, Andrew, Alyssa
It was a fun way to end a fun day. I enjoyed seeing and meeting a few of my cousin’s friends. One table was laughing SO loud and having the greatest time and my aunt told me those were her work friends. How fantastic! I love that my cousin gets to work with people like that!
My cousin made most of the decorations and they turned out fantastic! I was impressed.
And I loved seeing my family that was there. It’s not that often we get together, being so spread out, and so busy with our own lives.
We left the wedding around 9:00 and headed to our hotel in North Branch. My mom, brother, sister-in-law, and I spent some time in the hot tub then called it a night.
SUNDAY!
I really wanted to sleep longer on Sunday (meaning, more than 6.5 hours), but I had suggested to my dad that he bring his bike to ride with me while I ran, and he did, so I wanted to make sure we got out!
There ended up being a trail right by our hotel, schweet! We went out to it, and spent eight fun miles catching up. I say this every time I get to run with my dad, but I love that one-on-one time. I love hearing what he’s up to now, stories about the past, things he’s loving, his vents, and what’s new with other family members. What a treat!
I ate a little hotel breakfast with Mom and Dad, packed up, and we said goodbye! (Sad face) I hit the road at 10:00 am and it was snowing. What. Da. Fuq.
At first it was a light snow, melting when it hit the road, but then it started sticking a little bit. Sigh. It ended up snowing for the first two hours of my drive, and raining for the next hour. I was very tired. I stopped several times to help myself stay awake.
Snow accumulation on my car!
At my final rest stop, I wasn’t able to lock my car. It buzzed when I tried to, telling me the key was inside the car. I thought that was odd – it stays on a hook in my purse – how could it have fallen out? And when? I locked the car when I got out of it at previous stops!
I searched the car for about twenty minutes and didn’t find the key and was getting pissy.
Then I remembered – I had the key in my jacket pocket last night at the wedding. Did I ever take it out? Did I really lock the car earlier?
And that’s where it was. No, I never locked the car earlier when I stopped. Oops.
Gah, I’m so glad my car is smarter than me and doesn’t let me lock myself out. I’m also glad that little exercise woke me up. I was obviously very out of it to not remember where my key was!
I chose to re-route so I would not have to drive through Milwaukee to get home (otherwise it was all major highways from Minneapolis to Madison to Milwaukee). I knew the horrible construction and congestion in Milwaukee would make me nuts. I listened to podcasts the last three hours, and drove the last hour home on country roads.
Well, almost home. I stopped for groceries. I just wanted to be home with my babies, but knew I would regret not having produce later.
I picked up these cuties at Aldi
It was minutes before Apollo and Starbuck went after the birds
What a long (but fun!) weekend.
I was home for a bit putting things away and starting laundry when Steven arrived home from his trip (he was in Kansas City to celebrate his brother’s birthday). And after a small dinner, conversation, and taking the trash out, I was in bed by 10:00 for a much needed 8.5 hours of sleep!
I’ve been on the go since then – working all day Monday and teaching, then in the city yesterday for training. I’m ready for a quiet day!
Themocracy
That was a weekend crammed full of activities! The wedding and reception sound like it was so fun – love that people were having such a great time and love that you guys raided the taco bar again. The bride’s dress is really pretty – I like that lace overlay.
My car has a smart key and one time it’s prevented me from locking myself out…and I was just as irritated as you, LOL. That is, until I found the key in my jacket pocket – there’s a theme happening, ha.
It was! Worth it but zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz (after), ha! She looked so stunning in the dress! I loved that lace overlay and the sleeve style!
Ha! So now we BOTH know the first place to look!!!!
Tacos are a great idea for wedding food. I’d totally go back in for more. The fall colors there are gorgeous but snow WTH!
Aren’t they though? And gah, the shells were so soft, and the pico was so delish.
That snow totally ruined the look of those fall colors! Ha!
OH. MY. GOSH. I NEED THOSE BIRDS. They’re so adorable I can’t handle it!!!! I wonder if they have them at all Aldi stores??? I don’t really have anything on my schedule for Saturday, and I am legitimately considering going to every Aldi in the city to see if they have them (or however many Aldis it takes to find them, haha).
Oh man, all those fall colors…! *heart-eyed emoji* What a beautiful backdrop for a wedding! I have an outdoor wedding (in Chicago) next week, and I’ll admit that I’m a bit nervous about it from a temperature standpoint. Maybe they’ll have blankets, too! That would be super great. Congrats to your cousin!
I bet they have them at at least ONE of the stores. They rang up as “Fabric Figures” (for $4.99 ea) and I found them in a box with some tall fabric Halloween decorations. Let me know if you want me to go back to this store. I don’t think they had any more of the pumpkin or ghost but I think they had the guy with the hat. (which is obvs the cutest anyway)
I bet their formal pics are going to be so nice with the trees! I hope your wedding is warm next week! I actually was fine without the blanket, but DID appreciate it! 🙂
I miss Aldi! (I was just complaining about this to Harrison yesterday.)
Seeing the fall colors and hearing about cold weather and snow feels so weird because it’s still pretty sunny and warm here. I hope it stays that way for your visit; it’s right at the start of the rainy season. Fingers crossed! The outdoor wedding sounded so pleasant. I really miss brisk fall temperatures here some times.
I wish you had one!!!! We rely on it so much!
Will you get to experience any fall weather on any of your travels? I think I would miss it too! And we will be prepared for whatever weather! I should remember to pack my umbrella though 😉
I love those penguins. They are all sorts of coolness. We don’t have Aldi here in Utah. I went to one in Southern Calif and it was a pretty cool grocery store.
Every state should have them!!!