Checking out Snow Sculptures

Last night on the news, I caught something about snow sculptures in Menasha today. I googled it and discovered it was part of the Smith Park Winter Gala. The Gala was only from 12-3 today and featured snow sculptures, a petting zoo, winter golf, Story telling, and the park was groomed for skiing. Everything was free. It sounded fun and I mentioned it to Danielle in case she was interested in taking Gavin.

Since I wasn't too sore from snowshoeing this morning, I decided to go check it out. Danielle was busy so it was just me. After confirming with the hubby how to get to Smith Park, I headed out.

Honestly I was slightly disappointed...mainly by the set up. Everything was cramped together in front of the Memorial Building instead of utilizing the park across the street. I understand that they probably wanted to avoid having to cross the street to get to the building and utilize the sidewalk for people to walk on but it would have been nice to be a little more spread out.

If you didn't want the hassle finding a place to park and walking around, you could just drive by slowing and see most of the snow sculptures. Most of the snow sculptures were very well done. I had a hard time figuring out what some of them were supposed to be but that could be that they weren't done or I am just not up on pop culture like most people are. A friend from high school was there supporting her girlfriend so I chatted with her for a few minutes. And not to be biased or anything but I really loved the stork, which came in 3rd.

The petting zoo was tiny but adorable. There were llamas or alpacas and pygmy goats plus rabbits in cages. I was expecting a few goats but these were way cooler. I didn't pet anything (the hubby is a germaphob)  but I did look. I wanted to take one home.

If I had someone to play with, I would have totally done the winter golf. It is kind of like miniature golf but with tennis balls and hoops. You had to get the closest to the pin in the hoop. There was a competition that started at noon.

I am thinking as long as the weather cooperates this may become a yearly thing, just to see the snow sculptures. If the weather doesn't cooperate, it would still be fun to drive by after everyone is done to see the snow sculptures. Now if the weather would cooperate for walking around during the ice sculpting in Appleton....

#514. Go Snowshoeing

I've wanted to go snowshoeing for several years now especially once I found out that the nature preserves around here rent snowshoes. Last year, it was either too cold or there wasn't enough snow. Luckily right after Christmas, we got a foot of snow that really hasn't gone away. However finding the time to go was more of an issue. Janis and I were supposed to meet on a Saturday and she was sick and it was too cold for me. Then she had a meeting the day we were going to meet after work. I was beginning to wonder if I was ever going to get snowshoeing this year.

Janis' Snowshoes

My friend Holly said I really should sign up for the Winter Warrior 5k. It's a snowshoe run. I asked Janis to borrow her snowshoes since she had 2 pairs. I met her at the Town of Menasha Community Center to pick up the snowshoes. It was a nice enough day out I figure I could practice around the lake of the complex or something. I get to the Community Center and realize there's a park right there. Good enough as any to try out the snowshoes.

After Janis fitted me for the snowshoes which I just assumed I strapped them on and went, I trudged around the park for about 15 minutes. I was done for it. I was huffing and puffing, my hips were killing me, and I wasn't too sure how I would manage 3 miles. Janis told me to keep practice and I'd build up stamina and my hip muscles would get used to snowshoeing.

Getting the snowshoes fitted

Well between life and the cold snap, the snowshoes sat in the garage for about 2 weeks. I figured I better practice at least once more before the race. Luckily, we had about 6 inches on snow on Monday night into Tuesday and I had to work late Tuesday so I had a few hours in the morning free. The new snow was perfect to walk around the lake. I was still out of breath and sore after 30 minutes but it was fun. I still had my doubts about the race though.

I met Holly up at Mid Vallee Golf Course in De Pere this morning for the Winter Warrior 5K. We both decided to snowshoe. You could run, walk, or snowshoe. The course wasn't clear of snow so snowshoeing was the best option. We started at the back of the pack and never really gained any ground. It wasn't a timed race nor did we get bibs. I had issues starting out. I face planted once because I had issues with my tips digging into the snow. Then I kept walking out of my snowshoe. After the third time, I tightened the straps and didn't have to worry about that any more. The first mile was a killer... I don't know how I was going to make it. My ankle hurt and I was exhausted. By time we hit the water station around 1.8 miles, I was doing a little better. The last mile or so wasn't as bad as the first one. We finished in just over an hour (1 hour 4 minutes 44 seconds) but we didn't come inn last.

Ready for my first snowshoe 5K

And we're off 

(Photo Courtesy of Correy Photography Facebook Album)

Am I ready to do another snowshoe 5K? Probably not. I am ready to go snowshoeing again. I may even ended up eventually buying my own pair. I am just worried that they will end up collecting dust in the garage like my skis do.

(Photo Courtesy of Correy Photography Facebook Album)

2047. Eat at Mickey’s Dining Car in St. Paul

When the hubby said he wanted a greasy spoon for breakfast, I knew where I wanted to go -- Mickey's Dining Car. The Mighty Ducks was one of my favorite movies growing up and Mickey's Dining Car was featured in it. When I learned that it actually existed, I wanted to go.

Mickey's was actually on our way home even though it was in downtown St. Paul. The hubby was not happy that it was smack dab downtown or we had to navigate an accident to get there. However, since there was free parking available right next to it, the hubby was okay coming back.

Mickey's isn't that big...probably a dozen or so stools at the counter and 4 booths. It is an actual train dining car which is why it's so small. There is no public restrooms. If you are dining alone, you better sit at the counter or deal with the wrath of Mary as the booths are reserved for 2 or more diners spending at least $3.00 each. It's not a place where you hang out and do your homework but it's perfect to grab a quick breakfast or lunch. It is open 24 hours and serves breakfast all day.

I had a bacon omelet and the hubby had french toast. The one thing was food is served as it is done whether or not you were there first or not.  The hubby got his french toast before I got my omelet. Both were light and fluffy. The bacon was not chopped but actual strips of bacon folded into 3 eggs. Different but not bad.

Mary may be cranky but she makes the place. She knows the regulars. She was impressed by how much NCAA basketball officials make and announced it to the whole restaurant.

My friend asked if Charlie's mom was working. I told her no and I kept waiting for Coach Bombay to come in.

Despite being downtown St. Paul, I'm sure we'll be back.

A Quick Jaunt to Bloomington

Since the hubby had a meeting in St. Paul, we decided to make it a mini winter getaway. Because of his schedule it was a really mini getaway... there and back in 31 hours. Even though he wasn't feeling well, we managed to do want we needed to and had time to relax.

I went shopping while he went to his meeting. After his meeting, I picked up Starbucks on my way to the car and we headed to IKEA. We were looking for a new bedspread to replace the one we got last year. The directions say DO NOT TUMBLE DRY. Um..hello.. we live in Wisconsin... in an apartment. We really don't have any other choice...so it shrunk. We also found a new grill pan. I love going to IKEA. There's always something we end up buying we didn't expect to but NEEDED... aka the grill pan.

Then we checked into our hotel. We really wanted to stay at Country Inn and Suites again but they refused to price match to other area hotels. So we got a better deal at Radisson. In hindsight, we're glad that Country Inn and Suites were being jerks. The Radisson was amazing. We had this huge room with 2 queen beds plus a couch. The best part was the double sinks...one in the bathroom and one outside the bathroom. It makes getting ready a lot easier. The hubby even discovered a safe not that we needed that for 1 night. As long as we can get a good deal on the room again, we found our new favorite hotel. And the best part we can still earn our Carlson Rewards.

Once we figured out where we were staying, we had to decide where we wanted to eat. The one requirement was it had to be some place we couldn't get at home. The hubby wanted pizza. However, we couldn't find a pizza place that tripped our trigger. He told me to search for Italian restaurants instead. That's when we found Ciao Bella. The menu looked good and reasonably priced. It wasn't too far from the hotel. I made our reservation using Open Table. Only then did we discover that we needed to wear business casual. Okay.. we can dress up for one night.

Again, we hit a home run. Ciao Bella was amazing. The hubby says he is going to be hard pressed to convince him to go anywhere else. I had the spaghetti and meatballs. He had lasagna as usual. The small spaghetti and meatballs was the perfect size for me. I cleaned my plate which meant we could have dessert. The hubby had this to die for chocolate cake. I had gelatto. I should have got the tiramsu...next year.

Amazing food, quick service, and hot fresh bread. I had to smile when the assistant waiter/bus boy cleared our plates and then brushed the crumbs off the table. I was used to that from the cruise but it was way out of the hubby's league.

Because the hotel didn't have breakfast, we headed in St. Paul to Mickey's Dining Car. Despite being downtown St. Paul and having to navigate an accident scene getting off the freeway, the hubby agreed we could come back. Plus it was kind of on the way home.

Shop Til I Drop

The hubby had his annual softball meeting in St. Paul yesterday. We decided again to drop me off at the Mall of America while he was at meeting, then spend the night and drive back home today. This is going to end up being an annual trip. I don't mind. I get to spend a couple of hours shopping at the Mall of America.

We left at 7 and the hubby dropped me off at the Mall around 11:15. Since I've done the roller coaster thing last year, I had no desire to do that this year. I could spend the entire afternoon shopping. And shopping I did. I had some money earned from working overtime and taking surveys on Swagbucks, along with gift cards from Swagbucks, Bing Rewards, and Best Buy Rewards. I had a budget of $120 which doesn't seem like a lot but I had those gift cards and tend to look for a good deal. I actually came home with $27 and that's because I ran out of time to spend it.

Because the Mall of America is HUGE, I came up with a game plan of the stores I wanted to hit and a shopping list. I was looking for a long sleeve white button down shirt.

Even though I had the game plan, I really didn't refer to it once I got there. I knew where I wanted to go and knew what floor they were on. I hit most of the stores on my list... window shopping at the very least to determine if I REALLY wanted to go in as I knew I had at most 3-4 hours.

The hubby called around 2:15 saying he was done and coming back for. I was actually checking out at my last MUST hit. It was good timing.

My best deal of the Day:

$35 clogs from American Eagle on Clearance for $25. Then I got 60% off clearance which knocked those beauties down $10 and after my $5 gift card... I paid $5 for them. I couldn't be happier.

I didn't get a chance to go back and get some scarves at the scarf kiosk but the good news there is one at the Fox River Mall... and there's always next year.

I like this yearly jaunt. Knowing that this will be a yearly trip, will let me save up some shopping money. I am not a big shopper or fashionista but the Mall of America is always fun to shop at...and it has H&M. I guess I have to start saving my pennies for next year.

#6113 See Grinnell Play Basketball

When the hubby found out that Grinnell College Men’s Basketball Team didn’t play defense and racks up 100+ a game, he wanted to see a game. We are lucky that Grinnell is in the same conference as Lawrence, Ripon, and St. Norbert. All three schools are within an hour or so away with Lawrence being about 10 minutes from home. Last fall, I checked Grinnell’s schedule and saw that they were at Lawrence on 1/2/16 and Ripon a week or so later. The hubby didn’t have a game and put it on the calendar so he won’t take any games.

The game started at 1 and I was getting a little nervous that we still weren’t ready to leave at 12:30. I figured there would be a crowd and I really didn’t want to stand for 2 hours. What I didn’t think of was the lack of parking at Lawrence especially near the sports facilities. We parked about 2 blocks away on the street and headed towards Alexander Gymnasium (yes, a college with a Gymnasium and not field house). As we were walking in, we heard someone call the hubby’s name. It turns out his basketball partner’s son had the women’s game after and he wanted to see the circus too.

As we got inside, I was expecting to pay. Apparently there is no admission for sporting events at Lawrence except for football and hockey. Hmmm…maybe I will go watch a fencing match sometime. I was shocked at the inside of this place. Alexander Gymnasium is your typical old school gym with bleachers on one baseline and one end line. There is only 1 court. I’ve seen high school facilities bigger and better than Alexander Gym. Heck, Carroll’s Van Male Field House is way better and Ganfield at least has a balcony. I wasn’t impressed by it to saw the least. I suppose athletic isn’t big at Lawrence so no need for a new Field House. Maybe just get better bleachers…

Honestly I was disappointed by the game. Grinnell did play defense and did not leave 4 guys at their end of the court the entire game. Yes, there were a lot of points scored 109-89 was the final. Grinnell did put 5 fresh guys in almost every time the clock stopped which was another one of their trademarks. Lawrence played well for most of the game. They just didn’t have the depth on their bench to keep up with Grinnell.
The hubby enjoyed the game and was glad he saw them play. He found it interesting that Grinnell forced Lawrence to play their game. Grinnell has a fast pace offense and tries to force turn overs on defense. If he was the opposing team’s coach, he would slow the game down and force Grinnell to play his game. I think Grinnell would still play tough ball and try to steal the ball every chance they get. That would eliminate the opportunity to slow the game down. I get the feeling the hubby didn’t care for Grinnell’s style of play.

Seeing Grinnell play was interesting. It was my kind of basketball game – fast paced, lots of scoring. I have seen better high school games. If given the opportunity, we probably would see them again. The afternoon wasn’t wasted and it actually was a nice way to spend a Saturday afternoon with the hubby.

Top 5 in 2016

Every year I try to get 5-10 bucket list items done. Last year, I managed 18! Looking ahead to what lies in store for 2016, 5 may difficult now that many of the items on the list require extensive traveling. I really should start saving my pennies and plan on knocking off some of those more bigger trips. NYC anyone?

This year, I want to

1. Go to the Mayville Schoolhouse Museum -- this is the one thing that didn't get done last year and I really hope to get there this year.

2. See the Octagon House Museum in Watertown. This one has always intrigued me and if I plan the day trip right, I can get a lot of other things done

3. Go to Zoo Ala Cart -- my brother mentioned he wanted to go to this last year and if I'm in town this year, I'd love to go

4. Go to Renaissance Faire in Bristol -- I've tried to get here for a couple of years now. Maybe this will be the year.

5. Go Snowshoeing. I have plans on going snowshoeing this weekend. I might end up going myself if Janis bails on me. I've wanted to do this for years and usually it's been either too cold or not enough snow.

If none of these work out, maybe I should just find someone with a trampoline and spend the day with Nubby while he drives truck.