10 Year Anniversary

One item on our Summer Fun list was staying in a yurt. They are a relatively new way of camping in the state parks, and can be tough to snag a reservation due to their popularity. We got one at Cuyuna in central Minnesota. It's a park known for being an abandoned mining area, with deep lakes formed from the mining. It's a popular park for mountain bikers, and we could see why. The park was very spread out through a chain of lakes with lots of hills and beautiful scenery around the lakes.

We did our usual lake fun of rock skipping, wading in the water, watching nature, and fishing too. Back at camp we made our first campfire meals of pizzas for dinner, smores for dessert (of course), and blueberry/cream cheese stuffed French toast for breakfast. Since it WAS our anniversary, we toasted with sparkling grape juice. The kids loved that!

Other entertainment included sending the kids on a nature hunt, getting water from the pump, and playing cards at night. The weather was perfect, just cool enough to sleep comfortably while listening to a little rainfall at night.

Henry woke at about 4:30, needing to use the bathroom. I just happened to hear a houl right before he asked me to take him. I carried him in a brisk walk to the vault toilet, while keeping the flashlight moving along the tree-line. When we got back he went back to sleep, but I was kept up for two hours listening to an animal burrow under the yurt, nesting and gnawing on the wood.

On our way to Anoka we stopped by Mille Lacs Kathio State Park. All of us braved the climb up a 600 foot observation tower! The view was beautiful and I was so proud of the kids. The structure itself was very old and not the safest looking. I wish I took a picture of it from the ground. We had a bit of a snack there, the kids played on the playground, we walked a bit to see the dam, and waded in a pond there. My favorite was spotting several tadpoles that we had a blast catching. I love exposing the kids to nature, animals, and learning in that fun way.

 

The time with our kids on our actually anniversary was wonderful, but we were certainly looking forward to the next few days too, when we'd be kid-free! (Which I was realizing hasn't happened for two consecutive nights since our trip to Washington D.C. almost 4 years ago!)

 

We had a room booked at the Foshay tower, which has been remodeled in recent years and now holds the W Hotel. Very fancy! I felt a little out of my element, but it felt fun pretending I was high-class for 24 hours. I thought more of the hotel would have the old charm of the building, but really only the elevators did. Everything else looked new and modern.

 

We started with drinks in the Prohibition bar. Yum! I love a good martini and hardly ever treat myself to one. Then we had a late night reservation at the Melting Pot. I've been there for the full course meal before, but Pat hadn't, so it was fun showing him.

It was such fun thinking about the whole day ahead with no parenting obligations! Our morning led us to Manny's for an amazing brunch we enjoyed while brainstorming a list of vacation destinations we want to visit with the kids. Then we headed up to the top floor of the Foshay Tower for a look on their observation deck. What an amazing view! Then we were off to Minnehaha Falls for a walk and reading in the park. We were also able to squeeze into a tour of the James J. Hill House. It took 300 workers 3 years to complete that house! I couldn't believe the money that was spent on that space!

 

We wrapped up the day with a long walk around the city, to Harriet Island. We noticed festivities going on, and upon asking someone, learned it was an Italian Festival. Pat said he wanted to "Celebrate his Italian heritage." To which I laughed because he isn't one tiny percent Italian. We went anyway, mostly in search of dessert. Grand Ole Creamery was there, so we enjoyed a serving of ice cream. (Which promptly started to melt due to the heat!)

 

This night we stayed at the St. Paul Hotel. It was nice trying a different high-class hotel in a different city. This one still had the old charm from when it was first built.

 

What a blissful four days. It was the perfect mix of family and couple time, activity and relaxation. Most of all, time with this wonderful man who I've been fortunate enough to have by my side these last 10 years! Happy Anniversary, my love!