Vaca 2011 Itinerary:



1 Wake up: Duluth, MN Sleep: Osceola, IA
2 Osceola, IA CJ haircut, Mama's 39th St. Diner Sayre, OK
3 Sayre, OK Petrified Forest Nat'l Park, Wigwams Show Low, AZ
4 Show Low, AZ Lunch w Wyn & Kari, Grand Canyon Williams, AZ
5 Williams, AZ Hoover Dam, Vegas Experience Las Vegas
6 Las Vegas Vegas Las Vegas
7 Las Vegas Ghost Town, Hollywood sign, Star walk, Long Beach, CA
8 Long Beach, CA Huntington Beach, Wedding Party BBQ Long Beach, CA
9 Long Beach, CA Beach, Wedding Long Beach, CA
10 Long Beach, CA GG Bridge (Marin Headlands), Muir Woods, Piedmont, CA, Congdon Street San Fransisco, CA
San Fransisco, CA BART, Trolly, Otters, Alkatraz, Seafood, Fisherman's Warf, SF Giants v D-Backs San Fransisco, CA
11 San Fransisco, CA Salt Flats State Park, Salt Lake City Wendover, UT
12 Wendover, UT Rock Springs, Casper Buffalo, WY
13 Buffalo, WY Mt Rushmore Rapid City, SD
15 Rapid City, SD Corn Palace, Wall, Home

Vaca 2010

We had a great trip! We started out late because Katie had an emergency visit to the Dr. She was cleared to travel and away we went. We had hoped to stay in Lincoln, NE the first night, but we only made it to Ankeny, IA. We stayed in a humid, sticky, uncomfortable Americinn. We won't go back to that place.

The second night, after driving ALL day, we stayed in the Garden of the Gods Campground in Colorado Springs. We walked and drove through the Garden of the Gods and we tasted the naturally carbonated water in the springs in Manitou Springs.



We had a chuckwagon dinner and enjoyed a show at the Flying W Ranch in Colorado Springs. The food was great and the show was fun! Katie and Andrew danced and we all laughed at the performers.

10. Flush a toilet at the cabin

Steve did it! He finished the bathroom at the cabin! I can flush there now and take that off my list. Here's a movie about it.

Visit Wyn and Kari

Steve and I went to Phoenix for our Anniversary Trip 2009. Steve didn't know - it was a surprise. We got to the airport and I told the ticket attendant that we were going to Phoenix. He said, "We should have called my cousin!" I replied, "Doesn't he live in Colorado," knowing full well where Dan lives! In fact, he was at the airport waiting to pick us up!

We went to a place called Oregano's in Scottsdale for dinner. We sat outside and were in perfect temperature. It didn't even feel like we were outside! It was 45 degrees different from Duluth! We stayed the night at Dan and Kathy's in their beautiful home in Scottsdale.

Day 2
The next morning, We sent out to a restaurant called Over Easy that we had seen on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. Steve and I both ordered the country fried steak that was featured on the show. It was excellent! We saw the owner and his wife who were featured on the show, as well.

We went back to Dan's and rustled up a map to an old ghost town and took off in Dan's truck to do some site-seeing. We went to Canyon Lake, Apache Junction, and Tortilla Flats. At Tortilla Flats, there's a store and restaurant with dollar bills pinned up on all the walls. Click on the link above to see why. We posted our dollar bill, too. The mountains in the area are beautiful. We took lots of pictures.

We ate dinner at another Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives stop called Thee Pitts Again in Glendale. This restaurant is known for it's ribs and macaroni and cheese. It was another great meal! I want Guy Fieri's job!

Day 3
It's all about food! On Saturday we went to another joint for breakfast. It's called Matt's Big Breakfast in downtown Phoenix. This place is no bigger than the first level of my house. They have a pad of paper outside and you write your name on it. They call each party in order on the list. We waited about 20 minutes to get in and had a cramped little table. The food was excellent!

At 11:00, Wyn picked us up at Dan's house. It was surreal. Wyn's wife, Kari is so positive and up beat. She's got a great outlook on the world around her. Wyn was quiet most of the trip. We drove to Sedona, AZ. Sedona is surrounded by the Red Rock mountains. It's one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. We stayed at a nice hotel with great views. Steve and I nabbed the car and did a little site-seeing and some shopping. We ate dinner with Wyn and Kari at a great steakhouse where they had been married several years ago. After two glasses of wine and a huge dinner, I slept well!

Day 4
We woke up ready for the new day. Wyn and Kari and Steve and I went to a restaurant called The Coffee Pot 101 named after one of the monoliths outside our hotel. They boast to have 101 omelets on the sign out front. Their menu is full of omelets and lots of other food! Strange: Wyn and I ordered the same omelet - - without talking about it first.

We headed back to Phoenix. We stopped at Wyn and Kari's condo before going to the airport for the flight home. It was a great visit with them!

So..... cross it off the list. I visited Wyn and Kari and I enjoyed a weekend away with Steve for our anniversary! Look at pictures on Flickr. Now, we're back to reality!

Cross off two!

In October, I'm going to cross off two things on my list. I can't talk about them now, because one is a surprise. I'm working my way through the list!

Uncle Alden

My uncle from Long Beach came to visit. He arrived in MN on Thursday before Labor Day. By Thursday afternoon, he and my mom were in Duluth site seeing. Steve and I met them for dinner at Little Angies in Canal Park and met them at Mars Lakeview Arena for CJ's last summer hockey game of the year. They stayed at Steve's parents' house.

Friday morning, they went to At Sara's Table for breakfast with Steve's dad, Bill. We met in the early afternoon for a tour of Hawk Ridge, Seven Bridges Road and Brighton Beach. We had dinner with the whole family, including my mom, Uncle Alden, and Steve's parents at Blackwoods before Nick's football game in Proctor.

On Saturday morning, my mom and Alden went to the Boundary Waters with some of my mom and Jay's friends and had a quiet memorial for Jay. In the evening they came to our cabin for dinner, campfire, card games, and a good night's sleep in the northwoods of Minnesota.

Sunday was filled with food, boating, tubing, more card games, and a long good-bye to Uncle Alden.



My favorite picture is this one with Alden and Katie. More pictures can be found here on Flickr.

Here's Uncle Alden's view of his time with us at the cabin (interviewed by Andrew).

Girls' Weekend 2009

Kari had a great idea, but I'm sad she couldn't join us! It was raining and about 50 degrees when we kayaked in August this year. We stayed in a slough except for when we had lunch which was on the very windy (read 'colder') lake. Dreamweaver is a pot-smoker.

The best part was staying at the Reiten Boatyards. We had a great time talking and listening and eating and drinking. We learned about 36-day underwear from Jill. We helped Laura with her chemistry experiment - making the best Mojitos. We laughed. We snored. We had a great time.

Pictures: Flicker

Read about last summer's trip here.