OTW – Long post, busy weekend

I gave myself more than 5 minutes on this one because of all I attempted to cover.

Friday night we had a Rody rodeo at the house.  Jake gave Rody a little extra bounce and the boys loved it!

Our 7^th anniversary was yesterday (10/18.)  It’s hard to believe how fast the years have passed.  I recently realized how close Jake and I are to having been together for 10 years – we started dating in 2000 when we were at the U.  I can’t think of anyone else I’d rather be spending this crazy, fantastic life of marriage & kids with than my husband.  For all of the ups and downs that life brings our way, he has been (and continues to be) a source of calm, strength, and consistency for me.

Saturday morning we were planning on bringing the boys to Jake’s parents’ house for the day so we could go on our anniversary date – a day early.  Jason, (Jake’s brother) called and offered us his Ford Mustang for the day, so we altered our plans a bit and exchanged cars and transferred kids at his house instead.  I didn’t know where we were going until we left our house.  All I knew was the attire for our date.  It was great to be surprised!

Short side story.  My mom and I had the most successful 10 minute shopping trip on Friday night.  I didn’t have anything fall-ish to wear on Saturday, so my mom agreed to meet me to do a little shopping.  On my way to Maple Grove, she called and suggested we try Nordstrom Rack.  When we arrived, it was 10 minutes until they closed.  We hustled in, found a couple of dresses to try on, found one, scooted over to the shoes, and successfully found a great pair of red heels.  Love them!  Not too bad for a “let’s just see what they have” stop.

Back to Saturday.  Once we picked up the Mustang, we headed east on 94 and traveled various small highways up through Wisconsin to St. Croix Falls.  We had lunch at a fantastic restaurant called Grecco’s on the St. Croix.  The place is quaint and has an intimate feel.  We sat near the fireplace, which was great because if you know me, I’m always a bit cold.  We ordered an appetizer and each chose the herb crusted walleye for our main dish.  To our surprise, the host came over a short time later with a different appetizer, Ahi Tuna, “compliments of the chef.”  I had never eaten pan seared tuna until Saturday.  It was delicious!  In fact, every part of our dining experience was amazing.  We plan on returning and would highly recommend Grecco’s – it’s worth the drive to St. Croix Falls!

We drove back to Jake’s parents’ place through Minnesota.  It was such a beautiful day and the leaves still had some color.  We stopped in Afton and got an ice cream cone (my 2^nd dessert of the day) and then finally arrived back in Hastings.  We spent the rest of the afternoon watching football (poor Gophers :(), letting the boys and dogs run off energy (and ride) outside, and finally having dinner with Grandma, Grandpa, the boys, Larissa, Jason & his girlfriend B.  It was a nice way to end the fun day Jake and I shared together.

Our actual anniversary was pretty laid back, which was ok with us.  We went to mass in the morning, came home and had donuts – Nolan’s favorite 🙂 and then watched the Vikings game.  Jake also worked on a few things around the outside of the house since the weather was so beautiful!  Later in the evening, my mom came over and watched the boys so we could go to a movie.  Neither of us would recommend seeing Where the Wild Things Are.  Unfortunately, it was a depressing movie with no real plot.  I’m glad I know the book is good because had I not read it before, I don’t think I’d even pick it up.  It seems we’re 0 for 2 lately with picking movies to watch at the theater.  We seem to do better with our picks from RedBox.  Plus, in my opinion, it’s way more comfortable to watch a movie at home.  I’m guessing we won’t be hitting the theater again for a while – unless someone can recommend a really good flick for us to see.

Today was business as usual.  Nolan went to school and Lincoln and I headed to the gym.  I feel so much better when I get a workout in in the morning.  After school, we came home for lunch and then everyone took a much needed nap.  We spent the afternoon outside – took a walk, played with chalk, and took “cheesy” pictures with the bale of hay we received from the local volleyball boosters we supported.