Old and New

[i wrote this post about a week ago, and finally getting it up!]

It’s been a while, yes. But yes, I have been brewing (!) in my mind all sorts of different topics to blog about! A lot has happened, so I think I’ll just share with you a list of highs and lows in chronological order:

• One night after work, I got to have coffee at Dunn Bros downtown with an amazing woman from my church (Kallie Wass). Having good conversation with another married woman of my age is priceless.

• We got the wonderful opportunity to take a short road trip with my dear friend Cassie over to Eau Claire, WI, to see our friend Scott play a show with his band, Bro Stephen and Co. It ended up being a very late weeknight, but it was definitely one that I’ll never forget. Cassie is wonderful company, so really I’d enjoy any night with her!


• As everyone knows, there was a huge earthquake in Japan. So sad. They’ve been in my prayers a lot, and it has provoked a lot of thought in my mind about the rapture.


• My older sis had a stroke, of which is her 3^rd I believe. Thankfully I was able to go see her a week later, which I describe later.


• Steffen and I got to go visit a lot of family! What a joy to see everyone again, and it was very gracious of my Aunt and Uncle to host everyone. We looked at old photos (an I mean OLD! I found one from the 1700s!) that my grandma had, and then we took family pics as well. Below is one of my favorites of me and my cousins. After visiting my fam in Sioux Falls, staying the night with my sis, and having dinner with Reed and his girlfriend Marlee, we headed up to Huron to see mom and dad’s house they’re renting. Oh. My. Goodness. It was just wonderful! It’s massively huge- a basement with 3 stories on top. Perhaps the best part of the house was the fireplace- which dad had crackling the entire time we were there. Just spending time with mom, dad, reed, and the animals does so much for my soul. I love them all so much, and I’m so grateful they love me back just the same. All blessings come from God!

• My dear friend Kim has made dinner a few nights with us and we’ve just have a wonderful time. I can definitely say that out of any person in Minneapolis that I know, I laugh the hardest when I’m around her.


• Just about every day of every week Steffen and I have been talking about where God is directing us to spend the next portion of our life. We’re really wanting to hear from the Lord, and we don’t want to make a biased opinion. So far the first step in making decisions is that we aren’t renewing our lease at our current apartment. I’m not really sure where we’ll be living on June 1^st, but I trust the Lord that He’s got it all sorted out.

• I’ve been introduced to a few new coffee shops/quaint areas around the city. Cassie introduced me to Caffetto and Jack's Java. Caffetto has a wonderful atmosphere, and Jack’s has perfect lattes (not to mention their latte art as seen below!!!). Cassie also introduced me to the Lindin Hills area in Minneapolis. I have no idea how I’ve never stumbled on it, but it’s just the quaintest little area, full of coffee shops, cafés, flower shops, and book stores. I went back a week later with Steffen and we had a lot of fun roaming around the area.
  

• I’ve decided to run a 5K! It may be very easy for a lot of people to just run 3 miles, but not me! I’m not really built for running, but I thought entering in a 5K would be a good goal for me to look towards as I exercise. Plus, my dear friend Hope decided to run it with me! This Sunday will mark the 1^st week of training that I’ve completed. Here’s to May 7^th, 2011 at 8am!


• I found a juicer at Chap Value (my favorite thrift store)! I can’t tell you how much this brings joy to me. I’ve had my eye on a $250 juicer, but realized it would be a while before I could purchase it. Six bucks later, I walked out of Chap Value and went home and made some carrot apple juice. Wonderful. I’m excited to have access to eating more raw fruits and veggies. Come over for a glass of fresh juice with me sometime!


• We got the chance to talk on the phone with our wonderful friends Craig and Lindsay Meinheart this Monday. It lifted our spirits, and we’re so blessed to know them.


• It snowed again yesterday. 6 inches. I’m not a fan of MN winters……


• Rebekah Osborn just wrote a new song that brought a huge smile to my face. If you have time, here’s a recording of her

Welp, that’s all for now, folks. Have a wonderful day!

Good Eats

Yesterday was quite the wonderful afternoon! Steffen and I went home together after I was finished with work (which hasn’t happened as much lately). Right away I could just tell that we were going to have a nice, relaxing night. He was extra love-y towards me, and of course, I couldn’t resist soaking it all up! We made a nice dinner together (which also hasn’t happened for a while without guests present)- Roasted turkey, red mashed potatoes, green beans, and turkey gravy! Mmmm! Then we headed downtown for a nice walk and would eventually end up at a coffee shop.

Welp, when we got out at the stone arch bridge to start walking, we about blew away! Quickly we jumped back into the car and just headed over to Espresso Royale downtown. We find ourselves here often because they’re open until 11pm. I got a chai, Steffen got a late, and we shared a scrumptious chocolate oatmeal bar. For the next few hours I read my book and Steffen worked on homework. It was overall a nice relaxing time to just chill all night with him!

Sunday Morning!

Well folks, it’s a new day, but I’ve slacked on blogging about past ones!

Sunday I woke up early with Steffen and went downtown to drop him off for worship practice before church started. Instead of my usual Caribou visit, I decided to head over to the Butter Bakery Café. It’s a small little shop located in uptown, right next to a vintage book store. Perfect.

I purchased a Chai with day-old banana bread to start off my morning. Chai wasn’t so great, but the bread was! This is my second time at the shop, and I just truly love it! I really really like the atmosphere-a smaller shop, a few regulars, and they’re streaming the Current. There was such a diverse group of customers coming in, too- not just a group of hip snobs which unfortunately do take up too many seats of many coffee shops around the cities.

While there it was just really nice to wake up super relaxed and dive into my book that I’m reading. I sat there as happy as can be for the next two hours before I ended up back at church for the service to start.
During the service, man-o-day, did it make me love Minneapolis. Specifically, they played a short film about the beautiful cities here, and of course, it was created locally. I found myself brewing tears as I was reminded of how many memories and friendships I’ve created here. As my journal entry for that states, “my heart is torn.”