And so I will begin.
This year I had three days off from driving bus smack dab in the middle of October.
In Minnesota it's called MEA and all public schools take off two days. Blooming Prairie connects it with parent/teacher conferences and teacher in-service so we also get Wednesday off.
Ellis and I decided we would have an anniversary outing - celebrating forty-five years of marriage. Our anniversary is September 6th and we had gone out to eat closer to that day.
This was going to be different. Ellis took vacation days off, we discussed where to go, then ran up against a snag. For awhile all we discovered was where we were not going.
Decidedly not to MT where Ellis grew up because that would be time spent with siblings.
Not an anniversary outing.
Before you could say abracadabra - poof! Ellis and Ivan would be in a vehicle and Karla and I would see the dust swirling behind them. We would all have a great time ...
.... but you get the picture.
That's a trip for another time.
Then we talked about flying somewhere, but that couldn't work either because there was a wedding on Saturday.
We basically stayed in our own back yard ...
Northfield Minnesota
I found a Scrabble game here. Ellis played one game of anagrams with me and two games of Dig. Using the Scrabble buttons each person takes 15 tiles, turns them over and makes a crossword puzzle with only those tiles. He said he would lose and it's no use to even start. But ... I got two vowels and all the rest consonants so he won the first game.
We stopped to watch this small plane for a short time.
Ellis had one spot he wanted to visit. That was Little Hill Berry Farm near Northfield. This is open to the public Tuesday and Thursday afternoons.
Look up www.littlehillberryfarm.com and you'll find beautiful pictures. It is the middle of October and blue berries are still being picked!
We found our Airbnb in Faribault MN
Why didn't we stay in our comfortable motel room in Northfield? We had a reasonable rate Wednesday evening, but the weekend rates begin Thursday night and the price is doubled.
Nerstrand Big Woods State Park was near by. We drove past to see all the fall colors. Our walks ended up being on the sidewalks of Northfield and Faribault as we went window shopping. Once, Ellis showed me a set of Harold Bell Wright books. "But we have all of those books at home in our bookshelves, " I protested.
"Are you sure? Are they as nice as these?"
"Nicer!" I said with confidence.
"Okay, if you're sure."
In my exclamations and examining of the books and finding out the price I laid my phone down on a table ....
and forgot it.
We went to the front and I paid for the items in my hand. Old fashioned handkerchiefs. I intend to make little dolls and mouses* by folding them in certain ways to entertain my grandchildren in church. Just in the same way I was entertained when I was little and completely bored in church - long ago.
We walked down the street. So many different shops, some buildings are empty, some have thriving businesses with people going in and out. Two blocks later we sat on a bench to rest and catch up on the next plan of action. I reached for my phone. I dug through my purse. "I can't find my phone!"
Ellis called my number and a stranger answered. Sigh of relief! I walked back to the store and Ellis walked down the sidewalk on the other side of the street. We would meet at the used book store across from the antique shop. When I arrived a kind gentleman had my phone. He said someone brought it up to the checkout counter. Then he went across to the bookstore and asked if there was anyone there that had left their phone behind. (but we weren't there yet to claim it)
We need to package up some of our books and take them to this book store. Someone cleans the books that arrive, they sort through them and put them in their designated shelves. If they can't use them they take them to Salvation Army or Goodwill, moving them on down the line. Not automatically throwing them in a dumpster. That's nice to know.
Well, that almost sums up our travels for this time. In attempting to buy a wedding present for the young couple getting married on Saturday I failed to find them on Amazon where they are registered. In my old fashioned methods, I bought the bride something I would like, something I have used thousands of times in my kitchen in the past forty-five years.
Place mats, dish cloths, dish towels, and a two quart measuring bowl/mixing bowl with a handle. Made out of glass. My original one may have broken - I'm not sure. If it did I went straight back to a store that sells them and got another one.
Happy Days!
* mice, I meant mice, not mouses 😀
