Last week we embarked on our first visit back to Minnesota since our move. I was excited, yet tentative to return. I was nervous that I would start feeling homesick. The weather was acting as a smokescreen, seemingly beautiful, but I knew the truth…there had recently been snow, lots of snow.
We arrived on Wednesday the 10th in the late afternoon. We were able to catch up with Loran’s parents and my parents. The next morning, when Ella awoke at 7, I was shooed back to sleep by Loran’s mom, Nana, who was excited to play with Ella. I didn’t have to be asked twice, I’m surprised I didn’t singe the carpet running back upstairs.
Once we were up and going, we planned to spend the day/night in White Bear Lake, revisiting our old stomping grounds. Our first stop, after being diverted due to construction (don’t miss the onslaught of closed roads due to warm weather construction, or the chronically bumpy, potholed roads) was to the girls’ schools! Garden of Hope and Normandy Park. We stopped for photos and playground time. I’m hoping that when we visit in August, we can find some teachers to say hi to. Hard to believe that if we’d stayed, Ella would be starting her last year at GHM as an extended day student. She’s come a long way from the quiet little 2 1/2 year old who entered those doors back in 2010.
Ella’s so excited to play, her feet aren’t even touching the ground!
We made a stop at Kathy and Rob’s house to drop our things. I was back in my happy place, overlooking White Bear Lake. While I love where we live and the scenic views, I miss my daily dose of water. An actual lake (that is up a couple of feet due to the constant spring rain). I miss our evening walks along the lake, the distant sound of an outboard motor, the sparkle and shimmer of a breezy, sunny day, or the moodiness of a gray, drizzly day.
The girls wasted no time running to the living room to find the basket of various foam implements of destruction and were soon pillaging through the house. We had them lay down their arms so we could take them to the neighborhood park. We didn’t last very long because our younger child can’t stand having sand touch her feet, and doesn’t understand why SANDals don’t keep her feet pristine.
We stopped by our old house, and luckily, our old neighbors were out. They just sold their house and were busy packing as their move date was the following Thursday. We were able to see them, catch up a bit, the kids played and one of the new owners of our house was out with their baby. We introduced ourselves and I was able to pass on the “Dynamite House” story onto them. There’s something special in living in the little house that nearly leveled the neighborhood. We are so happy with the family that purchased our house, they’re exactly what we would have wanted for the house. People who love an old house for it’s character and uniqueness and weren’t looking to buy it and raze it so they could build a tiny mansion by the lake. By the end of the weekend, they’d ripped out the front shrubs, which were getting too overgrown for grooming. I’m happy to see them make it theirs.
If anything, visiting didn’t make me homesick, it made me thankful. I love all of our memories of White Bear Lake. I loved our home, neighborhood and neighbors. However, I’m really happy in Austin, and I’m excited for our future. I’m happy to have had such a great place to have grown our little family in.
That evening we had dinner at Don Julios, Mexican food that can hold a candle to the fare we have in Texas. Then we were off to Marketfest! Loran had a conference call so the girls and I took it on solo and without a stroller. Before Loran ducked out for his call, we made our first stop the pony rides. Last year, we’d wanted the girls to experience pony rides at Marketfest and the last week of Marketfest, we showed up with cash in hand and the ponies weren’t there. This year, it was on! The girls started their ride by feeding their respective pony a chunk of carrot. Ella rode on Twitter and Lily had Velvet, both cowgirls enjoyed their leisurely stroll on the pony.
We saw some friends, but sadly didn’t run into all of the friends who I found out were there at the same time as us. We enjoyed some music and taekwondo demonstrations, visited a sheriff’s dog, sampled some food, received temporary tattoos and balloons – only one of two balloons returned home.
The girls shared a bed together for the first time at Kathy and Rob’s house and did great. The excitement of the day paired with staying up late playing, made for a restful night for everyone. The next morning, we walked over the farmer’s market in downtown for a few fresh goods and a traditional stop for cookies at Grandma’s Bakery. Some things never change.
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