I began 2011 sitting on my boyfriends couch watching TV after a very long bus ride to Minneapolis in a snowstorm. I was unemployed, but freelancing for some Realtors, and taking photos of houses. I took my 2nd set of Maternity photos of a friend from Middle school. Right after coming back from Minneapolis, my first boyfriend and I took the New Year by the horns and went to learn to snowboard. It was quite a SORE adventure! I went back to work for the realtor I had been working for in 2010 for a few weeks and did some running. January ended with a painful trip to Chicago to spend with my sister, we had a lovely weekend planned; it didn’t go like we had planned. Not even 24 hours after I had arrived at her apartment, we were at the ER for 11 hours. I ended January recovering from my gallbladder removal instead of having fondue with my best friend for her birthday.
February began with more recovery and the Packers Winning the Super Bowl! February also began the time where I began my job search again and experienced one of the most amazing parts of the year. As much as it’s a horrible thing, the protests in Madison were the most amazing. I’ve never felt so much a part of something. I might not have been a union member, but I very much support what we were protesting. The sense of community and support of people from all across the state was amazing. February ended with some Hockey in Minnesota and some freelance photography.
March began with a winter thaw, and tons of protesting. The middle of the month brought the annual tradition of a Wisconsin Dells weekend with my Boyfriend. That consisted of March Madness (GO BADGERS), Roasting marshmallows over the campfire, and water parks. The month of March ended with a trip to my grandparents in California. A wonderful but not long enough adventure. The best part was going to see San Francisco. I wish we had more time there! The best part of it was the Clam Chowder in a Sourdough Bread bowl at Boudin Bakery! AMAZING! I also very much enjoyed seeing the Sea Lions although they were very smelly!
April began with a sinus infection and the beginning of a temp job in HR. This was quite a learning experience. This also began the beginning of our inside plant growing for our garden we would soon build. More protests, and the blooming of spring flowers. April ended with a trip to Minneapolis for my Boyfriend’s Grad school graduation and one of my college girlfriend’s bridal Shower. It also included a tour of my Boyfriend’s awesome new place of employment!
April Showers bring May Flowers and me. May began with a Hamburgers and a birthday cake for my 27th birthday. May was a very busy month for me! I drove ALOT. Went to my only MLB game of the year with my friend shorty in Milwaukee. It was a last minute decision, but we had a great time and great conversations! A few days later I was on the road to Minneapolis for some job interviews and time with my best friend. Then my Boyfriend and I were on the road again, this time in pouring rain driving down to Cedar Rapids for my friend’s Baby’s birthday. Headed back to Madison, went on my first spring hike, and headed back to Minneapolis for a job offer! Ended May with a neighborhood party in the sunshine on our back deck.
June was busy as ever! Playing a very little bit of Softball, quitting my teams and lots more driving. The first weekend was spend in Chicago for my Cousins Bat Mitzvah, My Grandma’s Birthday and a celebration of 2 of my cousins gradation from High school. The next day my mom and I hit the road to Minneapolis to find an apartment. I moved in to my apartment on June 10th, and began my job on June 13th. The rest of the month was spent with my best friend, and running errands when not working and trying to stay cool as the temperatures soared!
July was also pretty busy. My parents and sister came up for the Fourth of July. We went furniture shopping and tried to stay out of the heat, as this summer was hotter than ever! Mid-July my beautiful dining room table arrived just in time as I had a house warming party planned for that night! The month ended as my college girlfriend got married, reuniting all of my girls for the first time in a few years. It was a beautiful wedding and a fun night!
August was not a very memorable month for some reason. I successfully
installed my bike rack in my garage and a toilet paper holder in mybathroom. I went to visit my boyfriend in Faribault while he was at drill and went on a little adventure to some waterfalls near by and then to Red Wing, where I spent way too long at the Fiesta ware warehouse. Then the Best Friend and I drove home for the weekend where our dogs FINALLY got a chance to meet each other! I
also experienced the Minnesota State Fair for the first time with my Boyfriend and my Best friend. It was quite an experience. We didn’t eat ourway though it as I was told you do, but it was great people watching and lots of interesting things! We had fried Cheese curds, Deep Fried Oreos, amazing roasted corn and the Famous Sweet Martha’s Cookies. Thankfully it had begun to cool down by August but not half as much as it should have!
At the beginning of September, my parents
and the dog came up to see me. We walked around Lake Calhoun and Riley (the dog) decided to check out the lake! All on his own! We were so proud, we tried to take him into Devil’s Lake last year and he didn’t like it! September also marked the first Big Best Friend Adventure of the year. Our Final Destination was Duluth and the Lighthouse north of there.
October began with an adventure to the apple orchard and corn maze with the Best friend. The subsequently the making of applesauce and the search for the perfect pumpkin. The pumpkins didn’t happen until the end of the month when my chiropractor gave me one for free! It was a beautiful pumpkin. Mid October added another pain in my neck, literally, I was rear ended on the highway on my way to the Chiropractor. It was quite a rough month for me. But I ended up doing quite a bit of running in October, which was good! I made a rum Cake (some of which I still somehow have!) Spent Halloween on the couch, with a Super Sinus infection.
November began with an additional job; I started teaching Sunday school again! It was quite stressful starting in the middle of the year, but it ended up all right! My dad stopped by for a night to see me, which was nice. I went on some super cool runs around Minnetonka and Went to a great UW Badger Football game with friends! We had our first bit snow around the 20th, and that was about it for the month! Spent Thanksgiving with my Family in Madison. It was a nice quiet game filled weekend. We went to a Solidarity sing on the day after Thanksgiving. It felt really good to continue the anti-Walker cause. Ending that day with a UW Women’s Hockey game!
As the Year came to an end, I went to my first photography meet up at the Holidazzle parade in downtown Minneapolis. It was very cold and windy. Then my best friend and I began our restaurant adventures of the Twin Cities by going to Calhoun Square’s Uptown Cafeteria and support group. It was pretty cool. The next day my boyfriend got a Christmas tree. We had a blast decorating it! Later in the Month while my Boyfriend was at Drill, my Best friend and I went on a breakfast adventure, heading northwest to a cute little café. We were the only non-small townies there. I spend the rest of the month making candy
and treats. Christmas was spent at home in Madison, after an adventurous drive home in some crazy snow that disappeared very quickly. The last week of 2011 was spent working and wishing for snow, which has just started at 8:30 New Year’s eve.
Hope next year is better, healthier and more prosperous than this year!