A Swed Adventure

After the trip to the Arboretum, we thought we'd sneak in one more museum day adventure. With about an hour left before close, we made it to the American Swedish Institute. A mix of historic and modern, you'll find yourself in the heart of Minneapolis at Turnblad Mansion. The museum is housed in a former Mansion that belongs to the Turnblad family, who generously donated the building to preserve Swedish heritage in Minnesota. The Museum also has an addition built recently in a modern Scandavian style. The whole museum is amazing. I enjoyed wandering around a cool mansion and imaging what it might have been to live in such a place. We decided it could be the focal point for the American version of Downton Abbey, appropriately called Turnblad Mansion. PBS, if your reading, call me if your interested. Other things I learned, my future house will require a solarium, a miniature ballroom, and a grand staircase. I highly recommend spending an afternoon at the ASI. Afterwords, I'd recommend getting a flavor of another culture by heading to Midtown Global Market for some food and shopping.

^Ugh, my future home NEEDS a | solarium! 

  

 ^ I am dying over this kitchen floor. I want so bad!

^Sassy Gnomes protecting the fireplace

^Also, a little bit of Norway too!

Hello Fall!

Today was the most beautiful day. The weather was like a perfect summer day, but nature was trying to tell us it is Fall with all the amazing orange and reds starting to peak out. Today also happened to be Museum Day, which is sponsored by the Smithsonian for museums nationwide to provide complementary passes to anyone. With our passes in hand, we drove out to Chaska to visit the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. 

It was the perfect day. We got lost among the gardens, woods, and prairies. We stumbled pass weddings and we even ran into an outdoor walking play. Enjoying the beautiful day, we walked a bit more than we meant and we left tired yet fulfilled from taking in this gorgeous Indian Summer day. Before we all start to bundle up again, it was nice to remember how beautiful Minnesota an really be. 

Duluth? That's in North Dakota.

Duluth this weekend actually felt a bit like I would imagine Seattle to be like. (The title of this post comes from the classic movie Sleepless in Seattle. For those who are a bit shaky on their geography, Duluth is in Minnesota, right on Lake Superior) The fog and the rain, I actually found it to be quiet peaceful. There is an energy that comes from beautiful weather but sometimes you need to relax and I appreciate the rain's reminder to do so.

A Foggy Day (in Duluth Town)

I hear Duluth is beautiful in the summer. I wouldn't know because I picked one of the rainiest weekends to visit.... Alas, I guess I'll just have to go again.

Not letting the rain stop ruin my trip, I still had a amazingly fun time visiting with friends.

Walk/Run

I've never been a runner. I'm a walker. I could walk for hours and hours. But running, that's hard.

But for some reason, every May I'm hit with the desire to run. And so I try. I really get into it,  for about three weeks. And then it gets hot or it rains one day or I just don't feel like it and suddenly, I'm done. Back to walking.

Running has never come easy to me. I didn't like it as a kid and honestly, I still don't really like it. Why even bother? Because if I can run, even just a short 30 minutes, then I'd accomplish something I've never done before. That would feel good.

Well, it's May again and the bug has hit again. The weather is beautiful and I live by some of the best running areas in the city. Who knows? Maybe this time it will stick. If not, walking will always be there for me.

Barbette

When you're looking for something quaint and a little bit Parisian, head over to Barbette. It's cute, it's lively, it's delicious. We managed to catch the last few minutes of happy hour to get drinks before we dived into the bit more spendy dinner menu. The food was top notch and absolutely incredible. He had the lobster risotto and I had the seared wild acre chicken with the most incredible cornbread cake.   I cannot wait to go back to try their brunch menu! Until then, enjoy the photos:

Food Happenings

Here's an update on great food/beverage choices I've been making lately.

Sociable Cider Werks: For Cider Lovers! They also have a few beers on tap. Fun, crowded atmosphere. There are lots of games to play (if you can get a table). I say, go earlier to be the night time crowd. We tried the Freewheeler - a basic cider that is really sweet. It was a bit to sweet for me, but I enjoyed sipping it throughout the night.