Impromptu Anniversary Weekend Getaway

Hubs and I got the opportunity to celebrate our anniversary weekend a little differently than we have the past couple of years since having Liam. Let me preface this by saying we have an AMAZING support system and very involved grandparents that practically froth at the mouth for the opportunity for an overnight stay and Grandma and Grandpas, but for the longest time 'one night' has been all this mama could emotionally take while he was still young. Now that he is almost two and a half years old, it as time to test the waters and see how he(I would, let's be real) would do for a weekend stay, and why not take a kid free weekend opportunity and jet off towards the lake? 

Grandma and Grandpa picked Liam up from baby school while Hubs and I packed our own bags after we got off work. We dropped off Liam's bag at the house and grabbed a few things that needed to be taken up to the lake, and then we were officially lake bound with a last minute addition to our party of two(we decided last minute to take our dog, Rey, so she wouldn't be home alone for the weekend). 

Honestly, the trip up was very relaxed because we figured we were in no rush to get there. We ended up stopping to get gas at a Flying J gas station and while I pumped gas, Hubs went inside to get our travel staples: BBQ Pringles, Air Heads, Sweet Tarts and a couple bottles of water. We're ALWAYS munching on Pringles whenever we go on road trips, what is your road trip/travel staple snack? 

By the time we entered Minnesota, we stopped at Albert Lea, so I could have a potty break. We had planned on getting McDonald's there, but the line was outrageously long to the point where I really didn't want to wait in line, and we really weren't hungry after gorging ourselves on Pringles and candy, so we decided to just hit the road again and this time it was my turn to drive. We ended up getting to the lake house around 9 o'clock at night after making a quick stop at a local store to get some 'mommy and daddy' drinks for the weekend. After we were all settled inside the house, we changed into some comfy clothes and made sure to turn on all the air conditioners to cool the house down. We ended up having a crazy late dinner of Kraft Macaroni and cheese(since there was nothing open by the time we got in) and sat in the living room watching Napoleon Dynamite on DVD. We ended up tucking in for the night at midnight, me personally barely to keep my eyes open since a little boy had woken me up at 5:30 AM that morning. 

Needless to say, mama was ready to get some much-needed rest and rest she did! 

I always joke that sleeping in for me now is about 8:30 AM. With a toddler, it's practically engrained in them to be early risers(at least in my experience). We managed to crawl out of bed around 9 AM, and I set to make my motor oil(my hubs endearingly calls it) to fuel me through the day.  

We really didn't have a lot planned that day, just take off in the general direction that we always did and see what Minnesota and Wisconsin had to offer. OF COURSE I insisted we had to go to Stockholm since we weren't able to really do so our lat trip up. So after showering, getting ready and making sure Rey was good to go we took out for our little date. 

Seriously, Minnesota and Wisconsin has this natural beauty that I have never seen before. They have these bluffs and meadows that almost feel like they should come out of storybooks instead of real life. I learned that they call these lands "The Driftless" because during the ice age, this area was left unscathed by the glacial drift, which is why you see those lush forests and bluffs in the Southwestern parts of Wisconsin and Minnesota. Who would have thought I would have gotten a geography lesson on vacation!

Hubs really came through, and we found a parking spot in Stockholm to wander around and check out the shops we hadn't been to(or seen) before. The little town with a population of 79(though the sign says 66!) was packed with tourist(us included). We wandered around in the boutiques, mostly window shopping to kill some time before we decided to grab some lunch in town, but first we wanted to check out this new shop(or at least new to us!) called Palette.  

Ugh! How do I even begin to describe how cute this place was!? It's literally a cheese monger's dream! The moment you walk in, it has a very chic atmosphere offering various varieties of wines, preserves and accouterments to take your charcuterie board up to the next level. They even have an open kitchen that literally should be in Better Homes and Gardens that they even host cooking classes for. They even offer outdoor seating that you can take your glass of wine(which they offer for purchase) and serve charcuterie boards. We ended up leaving Palette with two bottles of wine(Decoy: A Cabernet Sauvingnon and Bertrand Cote Des Roses....I'm a sucker for a pretty bottle). 

We dropped off our purchases in the SUV before going into the true reason why we love coming to Stockholm, WI. 

Drum Roll Please.....

That's right! Stockholm Pie and General Store! 

Seriously, this place is *chefs kiss* perfect. It has a very vintage atmosphere and even offers a variety of old-fashioned candies(salt water taffies, peppermint sticks, etc) on the general store side. Hubs and I decided to split a chicken pot pie and salad for our lunch, which we didn't get the chance to take a picture of before we completely demolished it. We also grabbed a couple of old-fashioned sodas and a pie for later(Hub's favorite, blackberry-raspberry). 

Tummies full, we decided to take off back towards the direction we came from to visit Ellsworth Creamery. The place itself was PACKED, so I didn't get the opportunity to take any photos, but we grabbed the much coveted Spotted Cow(if you're from the Midwest, you know), cheese curds and some cheeses/salami for something special I had planned for later that night. After Ellsworth, we headed home to go check on our dog, who had been such a good girl guarding the lake house while we were away. 

The weather was remarkable that weekend, we honestly couldn't have asked for a better weekend(especially since the weather was so hot and humid back home). I ended up grabbing one of my Barefoot Seltzers and took the book I was reading outside to read in one of the comfy lounge chairs we had out there; however, it was getting to the point where we needed to figure out what we were going to be having for dinner. 

We ended up heading over to the local grocery store, Fiesta Foods, to grab a steak and some asparagus for dinner. What better way to spend our anniversary weekend than with a steak dinner? Josh got the grill ready and I prepared our asparagus in the oven. The weather was so beautiful outside, we ended up eating on the patio and enjoying it. After dinner was cleared away, Hubs went out to start a fire for us to enjoy. We ended up popping open one of those bottles of wine to share and just talked by the fire about ideas for our house back home and ideas that would be neat for the lake house. All and all a lovely evening if I do say so myself. 

Remember that surprise that I eluded a little ways up? 

So it was kind of silly, and totally didn't play out how I wanted it to completely in my head, but we decided to have a sort of romantic picnic in the living room while we watched another movie. We laid down blankets and pillows and I brought out my simple cheese board for us to munch on while we watched our movie(Highlander....it did NOT age well).  

After our movie(that we honestly only made it halfway through) we cleaned up the living room and decided to head to bed if we wanted to head out at a decent time.  Which ultimately, we ended up sleeping in really late, oops! 

The next morning, after we finally were able to crawl out of bed, I made more motor oil, and we cut into that yummy pie from Stockholm for breakfast. 

Showered, packed up and ready to go, it was time to head home(of course not without swinging back to the house ONE LAST TIME because we forgot something that we needed back in Iowa). It took the first leg of the trip, stopping at the Trails rest stop(our half point that really isn't a half point) for a potty break for all three of us and some lunch. McDonald's was crazy busy(again) so we opted for a sandwich that honestly wasn't too shabby). 

All and all it was an amazing weekend where Hubs and I just got to enjoy each other's company, but needless to say I was ready to be back home and give my little boy lots of hugs and kisses(he was too judging by how his face lit up when we went to go pick him up).  It was a great way to spend seven years of marriage. 

-xoxo

Midwest Mommie

Lake City 2021

 Hello Everyone! 

I know I know it's been a HOT minute since I last wrote(honestly it was another vacation post if I do remember correctly). Like everyone, the beginning of 2021 spent me on a tailspin. Between learning the ropes of mothering a toddler(I'm still sobbing knowing my baby is growing up) to everything that was going on in the world pandemic wise, my blog kind of got tossed on the back burner for a hot minute. 

For those of you that are new to the blog, my father-in-law and mother-in-law(Hub's dad/stepmom) bought a fixer upper in Lake City, MN almost two-ish years ago. The house was in rough condition, but with a little TLC and lots of time it's starting to be a great little family getaway place for the family to have weekend getaways to spending a week at the lake. The real estate alone was worth the investment. You can see the lake from the upstairs of the house, and it's about a couple block walk away from the lake. 

Lake City itself is a charming little town, equipped with lots of family friendly restaurants and cute little boutiques to pick up souvenirs. They even have a grocery store in town for the weekend supplies for those who don't want to eat out every night and has loads of listings on the VRBO website to rent your own little lake house for your stay. 

Since we had a long weekend, hubs and I packed up our bags once we got off work and loaded up Liam and ourselves for the long car ride up to Minnesota. For us, it takes about four hours to drive, of course that is with us stopping to stretch our legs at our 'Halfway Point'(totally probably not half way) to stretch our legs and grab some McDonald's for a quick dinner. Liam recommends the 4 piece Chicken Nugget meal with fries and apple slices. We arrived to Lake City around 10 PM and took little man straight to bed to rest up for a fun day full of adventures. 

On Saturday, hubs and I wanted to do something a little different from our usual route when we go up to the lake. So when we woke up and were fully caffeinated(as if there is such a thing), we got Liam ready for the day, got him some breakfast and then took him to Lark Toys, which was about a 20-minute drive from Lake City. 

With a two and a half year old, we really didn't get to look a lot at the displays, but OF COURSE we had to snap a quick picture of Liam with the dinosaur. Then we wandered through the toy shop to check out all the wares that Lark Toys had to offer. This place is literally a child's wildest dream! Toys line the walls of Lark Toys, from market items(puppets, stuffed animals, etc.) to the ones that they make themselves. They even have a little section filled with books for those who would rather their little ones have a book instead of another toy to trip over(totally get it). We probably ended up spending WAY too much there, but Liam was totally enamored by this little pull plane toy and a little wooden tractor toy that was made right there in the toy shop. We even got him a kite to fly if the wind and weather were permitting and a cute book for my little dinosaur lover "MAMASARUS".

Once our treasures were paid for and packaged up, we went towards the attraction that brought us to Lark Toy Store, the carousel. The carousel at lark runs every 30 minutes, and you have to purchase little tokens(tickets) to ride. Ages 3 and under are free with a riding adult, otherwise tickets cost $2.00 per person to ride. We had about a twenty minute or so wait until it was our turn to ride the carousel, so what better way to bide our time than to share a scoop of Zanzibar Chocolate Ice Cream from The Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream. For starters, WOW. Like, there are almost no words to describe how yummy this ice cream was. It was rich, thick and not like store bought ice creams(sorry Blue Bunny, you're coming in last place here) that you can get at your local grocery store. Needless to say, I think hubs had more of the chocolate ice cream than Liam and myself, but it was tasty nonetheless. 

FINALLY, twenty minutes were up and Liam was almost plowing through kids to get to the carousel. After much deliberation, we decided to ride the dragon for our ride. I think it's safe to say....he had a BLAST! 

After the carousel ride was over, it was time to head back to the lake house so that we could get ready to ride Great Grandpa's boat. We packed up an uncrushable, some fruit bars and of course plenty of water(and adult beverages) before making our way down to the marina. Let me take a moment to really reiterate how important it is to have a properly fitting United States' Coast Guard approved life preserver for your little ones. Accidents can happen within a blink of an eye, and it is required for all children to be wearing their life vest at all times. Before even stepping on the dock, we made sure that Liam's life best was properly secured to his body because accidents can happen on the dock too and with boats coming in and out of the marina, it's always important to practice proper safety procedures to make sure that everyone is safe. 

With the boat loaded up, we made our way out of the marina and onto Lake Pepin for a nice little boat ride towards one of Wisconsin's finest restaurants along the lake, The Pickle Factory. Cheese curds were a MUST! Being on the Wisconsin side of the lake, cheese curds are practically a staple on every restaurant menu, whether they be fresh or fried. I personally love to dip my fried cheese curds in ketchup(yeah I know I'm weird) and ranch is a go to for hubs. Liam prefers them plain, but maybe I can get him on the ketchup side. ;) 

What do you love to dip your cheese curds in? 

For our main courses, Hubs got a mushroom Swiss burger with their homemade potato chips and I got a pulled pork sandwich that I shared with Liam. Tummies happy and full we made our way back to the boat with a grumpy toddler who had too much fun for that day.  Luckily his Papa was able to rock him on the boat a little bit to get a little cat nap in; however, it was short-lived once we got back to the lake house. After a bit of relaxing(and a failed attempt at a nap, we all decided to spend a little time outdoors on Papa's new patio. 

Since we had eaten a bit of a late lunch, we decided to just order a pizza to munch on while we all sat around the fire pit and watched Liam run around in the yard a bit. Luckily, since he had skipped a nap, he was able to lay down really easily for an early bedtime so that husband and I could have a little alone time before the two of us tucked in for the evening. 

Now for the not so much fun part of vacation that we encountered. At 2 AM we woke up to a crying kid and his pack N play covered in vomit. We're not really sure what had happened that night, whether it be too much dairy(he honestly had more than he normally does), a strange place, a tummy bug...who knows! All I know is mom-mode fully kicked in and dad-mode did as well. Hubs took care of cleaning up the pack N play and I took care of getting Liam out of his dirty PJ's and washing him up as much as we could. Unfortunately, he did puke again, but after tummy was settled and another new set of PJ's we cuddled in the bed Hubs and I were watching and spent the next couple of hours watching Disney Plus shows until Liam and I finally fell asleep. 

The next morning? Perfectly fine! Just like a fairy godmother had settled Liam's tummy, my two-year-old was acting as right as rain; however, mama wasn't convinced and put him on the BRAT diet for the rest of the day(at least until the morning). After a rough night, and a little bit of rest, Hubs and I decided to jet off for a couple of hours for a 'day date'. We typically start off in Red Wing, MN to wander around and explore the local shops, but this time we needed to run to Target to grab a few basics before we could go back to the lake house....plus a double shot espresso was kind of a must after a night like we had. Supplies replenished, coffee's in hand and a full tank of gas Hubs and I decided to just pick a general direction with no real plan and just wander around Wisconsin/Minnesota. We had sort of planned on stopping in Stockholm for lunch, but after having a BIG breakfast(and the restaurant being busy) we decided to just keep driving(oh well, next time!). 

We managed to get ourselves lost in the beautiful hills of Wisconsin, happy to have a full tank of gas and happy just to talk and relax together. Hubs and I absolutely love the Wisconsin countryside and have a pipe dream of moving up there ourselves in a little cabin surrounded by farmland. Who knows, maybe we'll retire up there some day! 

When we finally made it back to Lake City, a lot of the shops were closed due to them coming back from the pandemic, but my favorite shop(Treats & Treasures) to visit there was still open even at four in the afternoon. They have goodies for literally everyone! From t-shirts to local honeys, it's a one-stop shop that everyone will enjoy. I snagged myself a cute little boutique hoodie, a Lake City crew neck, and a new Pepie Monster(Lake City's version of Nessie) t-shirt for Liam. Soon it was time to wander back to the lake house, Hubs needed to help his dad with the grill and I had a load of puke laundry to do at the local laundromat(fun). 

We decided to head back the next day about mid-morning after grabbing some breakfast at Perkins in Red Wing. The gathering up things and shoving them in suitcases before heading home is always my least favorite part. I'm always worried about leaving something or losing something important. Luckily, Hubs has an eagle eye for that sort of thing and ensured that I had packed up everything that needed to come home with us. 

We were able to grab just a little more outdoor sunshine before being crammed in the car for the next four-ish hours. We both decided to not have to stop unless we had to(we ended up stopping for potty breaks twice) and pack up snacks and a PBJ Uncrustable for Liam to eat on the drive back home. Car loaded up, another cup of coffee and snacks all packed away we said our goodbyes to the lake house and are already planning for another trip up in June during our anniversary weekend(just Hubs and I) and then again during Labor Day Weekend with the family. 

How did you spend your Memorial Day Weekend? Did you go on any trips or did you just spend it at home with friends/family? 

-xoxo Midwest Mommie.