Random Road Trip

It was another beautiful fall weekend here in Minnesota and I decided to take a little road trip to enjoy the changing colors in the southern part of the state where the colors haven't peaked yet. I forgot to grab my map before I left so I drove a bit aimlessly and ended up on the Great River Road on the Wisconsin side of the Mississippi. The drive was gorgeous and I eventually I ended up in Pepin, Wisconsin. A sign for the Laura Ingalls Wilder birthplace caught my eye and I decided to take a little detour. They had a re-creation of the home she was built in and a small display about her life. Made me want to re-read the books. Below are a few pictures from the trip.

Birthplace of Laura Ingalls Wilder.

Historic marker.

Photo of Carrie, Mary, and Laura Ingalls.

Pretty country church in Wisconsin.

An old schoolhouse that had been converted into a home.

Don't you love the fall?!

Today was a gorgeous fall day and I decided to take a walk around Lake Harriet. I think half of Minneapolis had the same idea, but it was still a very pleasant way to spend a sunday afternoon.

My guest room is lonely . . .

You need to come visit!

Camping on Madeline Island

I thought I would share a few pictures from my camping trip with Mom this weekend. We drove up to Bayfield, Wisconsin and took a ferry to Madeline Island. It was a beautiful drive (once we got out of the traffic on I-35) and the ferry ride was fun.

Although we had a few snags along the way (dead air pump, wet wood) we still had a great time :o) Nothing beats sitting outside on a beautiful night and gazing at the stars!

My first star trails picture. I was very happy with how it turned out. I will definitely be trying more of these in the future.

Mom and me on the ferry to Madeline Island.

Big Bay beach on Madeline Island.

Sunlight on the water.

Mom and me on the beach.

Pretty orange flowers.

Pretty yellow flowers (descriptive, I know).

A lovely tattoo I got from carrying a bag of bagels under my arm.

China

Here are a few videos (and pictures) from my trip to China . . .

This one is of me and mom floating down the Yulong river in Yangshuo, China on a bamboo raft.

They had stations set up in the middle of the river to take pictures of the tourists which they printed and laminated for you right there. I couldn't resist buying this one . . . Mom's expression is priceless! She insists she wasn't worried at all :o)

Don't you feel bad for the poor guy who had to push us down the river?! Talk about hard work.

This one is a video of an amazing performance we saw in Yangshuo. It was directed by the same person who did the opening ceremonies for the Beijing olympics. The performance was all on a lake surrounded on three sides by the stunning karst mountains.

This is a picture of what it looked like when they lit up the mountains during the show.

Where do you think I should go on my next big trip?

P.S. You can see more pictures of the trip here.

This one's for you AL

Ever since I moved back to Minnesota I have wanted to go to the annual Lands End warehouse clearance event in Wisconsin. This year, I finally decided to bite the bullet and make the almost 5 hour drive. The drive was beautiful . . . I had no idea Wisconsin was so gorgeous!

The deals were not as spectacular as I had hoped, but I did find a pretty good deal on this new furniture for my front porch. I have even managed to keep the flowers alive for almost a whole month, which I think is a new record for me :o)

Something Different

Notice anything different?

(Besides the fact that I look like a ghost.

I have been having fun with Photoshop.)