Singin' in the Spring

Happy Spring! What a relief it is to have the snow gone, the sun out and the temperatures above 40 degrees. The winter sure seemed to drag on forever and, although the past few days have been pretty nice here, we've had a rather cool spring.

Michael & Leila

Emma & Bill helping Mom in the kitchen

This past weekend was Mark's annual Tomahawk fishing trip. He, his dad and his brother always go north with some friends and few family members to a rented cabin and fish and drink beer--although I think a little scotch is involved as well. Mark and I drove up very late Friday night after he was done with work. We brought our dogs with us and let me tell you what: There is NO going to bed if you arrive in Rhinelander in the middle of the night. Those rambunctious dogs just get too excited and WILL NOT settle down.

This was not a very sleepy dog

Lisa & Leila

That being said, however, Mark was up bright and early, ready to go catch fish in Tomahawk as I stayed in Rhinelander and visited the family.

It was a great family weekend as Bill, Lisa and the kids, and Bob showed up. John and Jim were going to come too but had to back out. Too bad because we were going to do a little celebratin' for John as he was turning 35 on Monday! Poor Jojo missed out on a delicious Saturday dinner prepared by Mom (think Thanksgiving feast with turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, etc). He also missed out on an amazing batch of chocolate chip cookies that Lisa made as a gift for him. We all decided to "honor" John and his birthday by eating his cookies ourselves! Heeheehee.

Bill ripping open John's present

Michael and Emma helped Dad crush a whole bunch of aluminum cans.

Michael operating the can crusher

Notice the kids working and the adults standing around.

We all spent time together doing what we do best: Hanging out in the living room conversing, admiring the change of seasons by staring out the windows, eating, and going for countless walks on the trails and Timber Lane.

Yikes!

We spotted this rabbit while walking down Timber Lane

When Bobby arrived on Sunday we also got to play his Playstation 2 "Sing Star" game. Unfortunately Bill had already left by then and Mark and Greg came to pick me up to head back south, so I didn't get a chance to hone by singing skills...but it definitely was a blast and I think I have tons of potential to go commercial. SingStar! Mom chuckles at her kids singing

And Life Goes On...

Easter Sunday

Since the closing of Morels, Mark and I continue to adjust to a strange, new life. Mark accepted a job with a Middleton seafood restaurant called Captain Bill's and has been working as General Manager for almost 3 weeks now. I think it's still very weird for him to be at another place, but he's enjoying the change too. Even though the place is closed, Mark still has a lot of work left with Morels, from meetings and showings with the realtor, to inventories, to preparing items for sale, to paperwork and more meetings.

Leila with new birthday hat

I have added another student on my tutoring case-load and have increased time with almost all of my other kids, so my weekdays are a little long, but I am NOT working on the weekends. Housework and tutoring prep for the week is usually done on Saturday and Sundays are meant to be "a day off" for Mark and I, but we end up doing errands or something like that. Ah, well...summer is quickly approaching.

Jon and Leila relaxing after the baptism

This was the morning of the baptism and Emma "helped" Lisa

What else have we been doing? The first month without Friday night obligations was actually a really fun time. Along with my mother- and father-in law, we explored the local Friday night fish fry scene. As propreitors of our own place (and Van and Judy's loyalty to Morels where they went EVERY Friday), we definitely didn't get an opportunity to go to other spots, so it was really neat to get out and try different things.

At the church

Another change has been the relocation of dead things. Mark has removed the caribou from our second floor wall and has replaced it with the mountain lion that had been above the fireplace at the restaurant. We foolishly thought that, perhaps, by displaying it in the house it would put great fear and respect in the little hearts and minds of our often naughty, rambunctious kitties. Alas, they were not fooled by our ruse. Indeed, Fanny seems emboldened by the majority presence of felines in the house.

Fanny sits on the ladder and chills with her comrade

Several weeks ago was my spring break and I was able to relax a bit and work on a baby quilt for a good friend of mine, Liz. Liz is married to Marko (our bar manager/bartender) and they just welcomed a little baby girl on April 4. They named her Tanna Elizabeth. Although I did get quite a bit done (remember I'm still a novice), poor little Tanna will have to wait until her 3 or 4 month b-day before she gets her quilt.

Please note the small squares I'm using

Can you see? I'm making a trout baby quilt!

Mom and Dad also came for a visit during this time. Thankfully, they have found a local kennel which seems to take good care of Oscar while they are away on trips (plus it is very reasonably priced), which makes Mom and Dad more willing to take a "weekend getaway". The visit was really fun, with a visit to JoAnn Fabrics, visiting Bob at his office, going to the Hoard Museum in Fort Atkinson, and eating a delicious steak dinner that Mark prepared with John, Jim and Bob coming over as additional guests!

Mark helps "hold" Baby Tanna, with Dan and Billy

As I already mentioned, Tanna was born a couple weeks ago and a large group of us went to Meriter Hospital to visit the new family. Marko and Liz are thrilled, of course.

Tanna, 1 Day old

Marko and Liz with Tanna

Tanna and me

The other big event was Leila Hurlburt's baptism last weekend. Mark and I have the honor of being Leila's godparents and we attended the ceremony at a very small Lutheran church in Cornell, WI. The service was very nice and little Leila was a complete charmer; she was smiling and happy during the whole thing. She did have a moment of doubt when the pastor placed the water on her head, but she began to smile and chitter about again when she realized that it was not a big deal. Very cute.

Jane with Michael

Bud with 2 of his grandchildren

Jon Hurlburt's mom, Jane, invited us all over to a wonderful Easter brunch she had prepared. It was really nice seeing her and Jon's dad, Bud, again. I'm afraid I haven't seen them in 7-8 years! They both are such kind people, who always make everyone feel so welcome. After eating, we gathered around Leila as she opened some birthday (she just turned 1) and baptismal gifts. I think she liked being in the middle of things. I must mention too that Michael and Emma are turning out to be great older siblings; they both really enjoy being with the baby and are helpful to Lisa when she needs an extra set of hands. And look how handsome and pretty they looked....

Michael

Emma

Saying Goodbye to Morels

In the kitchen

A bunch of rowdies...

As everybody knows by now, Mark and I made the very difficult decision to close Morels. Our last day was Saturday, February 28th. We publicly announced the closing after the New Year. We would like to thank everyone for giving us so much love and support during this trying time. It was truly amazing how our family and friends rallied behind us. I would also like to say thanks to those people who have been very patient in regards to us "falling off the radar". I'm afraid I haven't been very good about keeping in touch recently.

Some servers, past and present

The Trifecta of Aarons

I still don't really have the heart to talk much about it right now. That being said, I will say that Mark and I are fine and that we believe everything happens for a reason. The pictures are from our final game feed and our last night; this is only a handful of great photos taken...

Mark with Donna and Susie

Marko and Jill

Skotty, Kurt and Mark

Cooking a slew of ribeyesMe with Billy and SydMichael, Renee, Alejo and Cassidy The Valaskeys

Charleston Trip, Part III

Slow and steady wins the race, right? I just needed an extra month to finish this...

Our last full day in Charleston began with a quick drive to the Atlantic Ocean. It was a cooler, more overcast day, but we still enjoyed taking a few minutes to stroll along the beach of this mighty ocean.

Judy & Renee

We had also decided to skip making a day trip to Savannah, Georgia. Although we all were disappointed about not going there, we agreed that there was still a lot we wanted to see and do (and eat!) in Charleston and we just didn't want to spend 5-6 hours traveling in the car to get to and from the two cities. Perhaps some other day.

The back of the Aiken-Rhett House

An old carriage in one of the stables

Aftere the beach, we went to the historic Aiken-Rhett Home. Built in 1818, this townhouse showcases urban life in antebellum Charleston. Wealthy William Aiken Jr., was a successful businessman, rice planter and governor of South Carolina in the 1830s and 1850s. He ahd nis wife, Harriet, traveled Europe and furnished their home with many objects which have remained or been returned to the house since. The Aiken-Rhett House actually ramined in family ownership until 1975! Today, the omnipotent Historic Charleston Foundation (which Charlestonians seem to either love or hate due to their current rigidity in building regulations) has adopted a conservation approach to this townhouse and its outbuildings, which include slave quarters and stables.

Slave quarters

Harriet Aiken? Note the chair next to the portrait for scale.

Historic Charleston Foundation is conserving this landmark, not necessarily restoring it to look like it once was.

This tour was outstanding. It was self-guided, but we all had our own headset to control as we listened to information about the place. We were fascinated by the elaborate decor and grandness of each room in the house, but were also definitely humbled while walking through the tight corridors and rooms of the slave quarters.

They jazzed this room up for the holidays

We spent quite a bit of time merely walking the Charleston streets, looking at homes and piazzas, gates and gardens, commercial architecture and the ever-present horse drawn carriages pulling groups of people about.

Horsey!


A couple of these little "homes" were actually built as large playhouses for wealthy Charlestonian youth

Pretty flowers in the Nathaniel Russell gardens

Another historic home we toured was the Nathaniel Russell House. Located near the High Battery area, and an example of American neoclassical architecture, the Nathaniel Russel House has lots of embellished plasterwork ornamentation and a truly magnificent free-flying staircase.

I just loved this iron detailing found on a bench outside the Nathaniel Russell House

Charlestonians decorate during the holidays with LOTS of evergreen garlands and wreaths

This tour was guided by an old French woman who, although difficult to understand, really conveyed the dedication Charlestonians have for their many landmarks. That being said, because this woman had not been born in Charleston, she will never be considered a true Charlestonian, even if she loved the city so much she left her homeland to live there and to spend her senior years giving tours to a bunch of tourists like us. Nope, you have to be born there to be "legit".

Renee and Greg touring the town

We also spent time at the very popular market area. Judy was interested in purchasing one of the handmade sweetgrass baskets that the area is known for with its Gullah heritage connection. Although the baskets were beautiful and we were told that one should really barter with the vendors, we were a little taken aback at the original prices and cowered at the thought of haggling. Our midwestern shyness won out...

Judy inspecting one of the lovely baskets at market

Gorgeous detailing!

We ended our sightseeing that day by visiting the Old Slave Mart. This building was small and had just recently been converted into a museum. This was the place where slaves were brought after their arduous journey across the ocean. This was the place where families were torn apart and destroyed. Although small, this stop on our trip was quite moving.

Our final meal had to be seafood, of course, the last type of cuisine we thought we should experience while in Charleston. We were lucky to get a spot at Hank's Seafood Restaurant. Mark had an unbelievable boullibaise and Judy ordered a cheesy grits and shrimp meal that was out-of-this-world--and I don't care for grits!

Thanks for bearing with me as I struggle to get caught up on the blog and my life! I hope all are well.