Sweet St. Paul

We went to St. Paul to visit Julia and had the nicest time. Her apartment is so cute and she and Benjamin were lovely hosts. We walked and ate lunch along the Mississippi River. We finally got her new bike (belated birthday gift); we visited the Mall of America (with its huge amusement park in the middle) and Stillwater, MN--where we walked across the bridge and into Wisconsin. They also had an arts festival there with a ton of vendors. We saw The Importance of Being Earnest (very funny) at the Guthrie Theater and took in the cityscape from the endless bridge. Yummy food was had at Glam Doll Donuts, Spicy Feta, and from Julia's kitchen (ribeye, pork loin, chicken, roasted pumpkin). Her tiny gas stove (original 1940s???) makes it quite an accomplishment when it turns out. :) She bought me smoked salt...like mother like daughter. It was good for the soul to stay with her. 

Mother's Weekend Celebration

Julia had a busy weekend with friends at a BBQ and exploring Stillwater, the oldest city in Minnesota. 

Laura came down from NYC to celebrate our mother for the weekend. The weather was not great (skipped the Georgetown garden tour), but we still enjoyed quality time indoors together. Lisa made yummy grilled pork chops Friday night. Perhaps the highlight of mom's weekend (??) was her lunch with Doug Emhoff, Sam, and Ella at Le Diplomate on Saturday. After lunch, we got mom a new pickleball paddle so she could up her already impressive game with the ladies (check out the picture!). We also enjoyed a nice brunch on Sunday before Laura headed back.