Ah, Minnesota!

I got back from Minnesota last Thursday, but it feels like it was much longer ago. It was a lovely visit! Brief run-down:
My parents picked up Scott and I from the Minneapolis airport, and we proceded to the Science Museum for the Bodyworks exhibit, to lunch with my Uncle John, to the Walker Art Center for a Diane Arbus exhibit where Alissa joined us, to the Spoonriver Cafe for a gourmet al fresco dinner, and finally to the Guthrie for an inaugural performance of The Great Gatsby. Each piece was wonderful and made all the better by sharing it with people I love!

On Saturday morning, we drove up to Duluth, repacked, bought groceries and then drove over to the cabin. One of the best things about that place is the fact that you can be away for a year but return and feel settled in within 10 minutes. We spent Saturday, Sunday and Monday there reading, eating, napping, and occasionally exerting ourselves. (Scott kindly helped Dad haul downed trees out of the woods and split them for firewood.)

We got back to Duluth on Monday afternoon. We spent Tuesday wandering around downtown and Canal Park. We stopped by the ballet, which was fun because I haven't been there in ages. In the afternoon, we swam and sunned at my favorite beach. We had gorgeous weather. Fred got home from Bemidji, where he had been fighting fires, and debriefed on what the work is like. Pretty interesting stuff, except the parts where you're sitting around waiting for something to start.

On Wednesday, we went up the north shore of Lake Superior to Gooseberry Falls and spent a few hours hiking around. We had lunch at Betty's Pies on the way back, and stopped at Marshall to show off my high school and say hi to my teachers. We got cleaned up so that my parents could take us to a wine-tasting and dinner. Delicious!

Fred drove us back down to Minneapolis on Thursday morning, and we were back at Delafield by 3 pm. I was homesick and felt like I had left MN too soon. I think part of me was mourning the end of summer too. But a good BRDM practice and then a nice communal dinner made me feel better.