Fall Activities with Friends

I like a good catch all post every once and while.  There are plenty of weekend and fun activities that I miss throughout the seasons since I would spend every minute blogging and wouldn't be able to keep up (not that I'm particularly good at keeping up now!).

Fall adventures for eatable treats. 

This Fall Anna, Katie and I got up the urge to go Apple and Pumpkin picking for a weekend festivity.  Anna was nice and pregnant, so we had to keep our activities at the level of clean family fun! We went out to Soergel Orchards in Wexford.  The place was so popular that we were stuck on the highway exit ramp as cars were piling in to Soergel's!  We took the tractor hay wagon down to the action and "picked" our apples out of crates instead of off the trees.  The pumpkins in the patch were looking a little rough - and we had bought so many heavy apples and sweets that there wasn't much room to carry a pumpkin back to the car.  It was a nice adventure out into the burbs - and ended in some amazing Apple Cider and kettle corn. 

Off to the crates of apples!

Anna examining the tractor and apple trees!

After Paul left for Italy, I had a lot of different opportunities to join people for dinner.  One such dinner celebration was for Lori's new job appointment at Jefferson!  She is starting an OB position there and it seems like it's going to be a winner!  We went out to Double Wide Grill and I ordered a plate of Nachos that were twice the size of my face.  Worth it.  It was a nice little celebration!  

Double Wide Nachos... probably for a table and not one person.

Dale and I on Fall walks in Frick Park!

Other adventures included shopping at Ikea with Josiah to buy a bed for the expanding nursery!  It was a Monday which means all you can eat with your receipt.  I included a picture of our trays for your entertainment.  I love Naked Juice, so I loaded up on my favorite flavor: The Green Machine.

Ikea Lunch: Swedish Fish, Cake, Mac'n'Cheese and 12 Naked Juices.

Here's to Fall, and all of the fun that goes with the perfect season!  

Now onto the blustery winter...

Anderson's One Year Anniversary!

I cannot believe how fast a year flew past.  It feels like yesterday we were all sitting around and stuffing envelopes for the wedding invitations. In Paul and Alyce fashion, on our actually anniversary  Paul was on call or post call, and I had to go into lab all day to do some experiments. Classic.

OneYear of Marriage - Cheers!

We celebrated a few weeks later with some Steelers Tickets that Paul scored off of Craigslist.  Little did we know that the Steelers were going to tank this season so the prices had fallen since Paul bought them - oh well, you win some you loose some!

It was a fun Monday night game and it was Breast Cancer awareness month, so the terrible towels they handed out where bright pink.  We cheered on the Steelers and JJ Watt from the Texans and I tried to stay awake while watching Paul's fantasy football team win by 2-3 points. 

Heinz Field! 

I cannot believe it's been a year - and I guess that's a good sign. We're excited as the next year ahead will surely bring more exciting adventures!  

Beth, Jon and Shnick in Pittsburgh!

Couch snuggle for the Badgers game: Jon, Beth, Snick (Dale) and Paul

I guess the moral of the story is - when the Brewers come to Pittsburgh, the locals flood the town!  Not only were we fortunate to have Mark and Lisa join us in Pittsburgh, but Beth and Jon Gosa, and Shnick also made the trip out to watch a few Brewers games! It was also their Birthday weekend, so it was a perfect excuse for a road trip. They stayed downtown right on the point which means it was extra convenient for the games, but a little crazy when it comes to traffic!  

Happy Birthday with a Kosher Blueberry Pudding Cake!

The Pittsburgh Incline!

Saturday morning, it was time to put on a feast at our house, so I whipped up some breakfast including cinnamon french toast, breakfast sausage from Maplewood Meats and a bunch of other tasty goodies.  After we watched the Wisconsin game, I thought it was only appropriate to run them around town for a bit and show them the sights.  We first went to Mount Washington.  I felt like the staff there was going to start to recognize me since I had been there so many times recently.  Then we went to the Church Brew for a bite to eat.  I always forget that the Church Brew is a fine Pittsburgh Tourist attraction.  Shnick and Gosa loved it, and bought a little baby keg for a souvenir.  They even went up to the alter in a sort of ceremonial fashion for their new pride and joys. 

The Church Brew Works

Taking their new family additions up to the altar! 

Outside the Church Brew!

Later that night we met up with them at Fat Heads to show them another Pittsburgh staple. I think they enjoyed the massive selection of burgers and the pretty nice selection of drinks as well.  Sunday was a travel day back to Wisconsin for everyone that weekend, so they took an Uber back to their hotel and camped out for the evening. 

We were so fortunate to have so many visitors that weekend, and it is always a treat to display some of the city's finest attractions.  Hopefully the string of visitors will continue!

You cannot go wrong with Fat Heads!

Mark and Lisa in Pittsburgh!

The University of Pittsburgh Cathedral of Learning!

We were so excited to welcome Mark and Lisa as our guests in Pittsburgh!  This was going to be one of the first times visiting the Burgh for both Mark and Lisa!  Better yet, they were recently engaged and Lisa got to show me the new bling in person - nice work Mark!!

Lisa and Mark and Hofbrauhaus with their German portions!

After work, I stole the car from Paul and ran out to the airport to pick them up.  Of course, in proper Pittsburgh fashion I hit a significant amount of traffic both on my way to and my way back from the airport.  They were able to avoid the ride on the 28X, so it was almost an even exchange.

From there, we freshened up at the house and they unpacked their clothes for the weekend before heading down to South Side.  It didn't take me a long time to bring them to some of Pittsburgh's finest attractions - and our first stop was Hofbrauhaus!  We got a table and shortly after we sat down, Matt, Lori and Claudia caught up with us for a quick drink and some appetizers.  We hadn't eaten yet, so Mark and Lisa ordered up some classic German food, and they brought Lisa the biggest fish sandwich I had ever seen!  After the dinner we went up to the Incline to see the city lights at night - I love Pittsburgh at night - breathtaking!!

The view from the Incline at night - spectacular!

Friday Paul was sleeping from a call shift and after I got back from work, we saddled up again and went downtown to the Pirates game.  It was the perfect weekend for Mark and Lisa to catch a game because the Pirates were playing our Wisconsin Brewers.  Unfortunately, the Brewers were terrible, as always and they lost, but the walk downtown was sure beautiful!

Paul and I cheering on the Brew Crew in the Pirates Stadium, as they lost.

Downtown Pittsburgh and the iconic yellow bridges!

Saturday consists of College football for the Anderson boys and Mark and Lisa got the chance to do some shopping in Squirrel Hill and enjoy the little community I love to walk around in.  Its a great walk and has plenty of coffee and food to go around.  From there, we had the opportunity to meet up with some more Wisconsinites that happened to be in town for the Brewers game.  Oddly enough, my car stopped working, so we tried our hand with an Uber cab - and it worked perfectly much to our surprise.  It was the perfect night for a trip to Fat Heads, even if we had to get creative with transportation. Burgers, Burgers and more burgers! I ordered the triple bypass this time and Mark and Lisa got cheeseburgers that were bound to be delicious!

Yeah - that's an egg on my cardiac burger...

Sunday it was an early morning Super Shuttle to the airport and they had to head home - a weekend that went by much too quickly!  We hope you can come and visit again!!  I'm sure the Brewers will be back in town next year - and hopefully this time they'll win!

Annalee and Pat Leach Wedding in MN

Bobby Dale and two generations of Morans.

Archers stand strong and wait for the bride to arrive!

I was so excited when the invitation turned up for Annalee and Pat’s wedding!  I love an excuse to get together with family, and that is what the Archers are to us – Family!  Because I am planning to take some time off around the holidays, it had to be a quick trip back.  Thursday night I was in lab all evening processing a western blot and when I finally got home, it was 11PM.  I packed and set my alarm for 4AM – a quick night of sleep to say the least.

The exchange of vows between two beauties!

Husband and Wife!

Not too long ago, I was blogging about their wedding! Baby ArchMiller in the making!

Another happy couple in front of the wedding arch!

Paul was kind enough to drop me off at the airport on Friday morning at 5:15 so I could catch the first flight out to Chicago.  We arrived late to Chicago, so I was the “sprinter” and ran from one side of the airport to the other to catch my flight to Appleton. I made it and shortly after was greeted by my parents in Appleton.

The glowing bride and her glowing parents!

The newlyweds!

I just love this family photo of Annalee and Pat!

We drove to Seymour, because no trip back to home is complete without a pit stop at Don’s Quality Market for some food and cheese curds.  From there I had the chance to see all of the progress that Dad made on our basement with finishing that off – it was sure looking nice!  Next we stopped at Maplewood Meats – hands down the best meat market I have ever been into.  The smells are phenomenal. Their business is absolutely booming and we helped out by buying 20lbs of hot sticks and summer sausage, my all time favorite items from Maplewood.  I needed to bring them back to Wisconsin for my first thesis committee meeting – an absolute necessity.

Prepare for a beautiful fall evening feast!

Gorgeous centerpieces!

More DIY and Hugh wood working!

Such and adorable wedding book!

Hand crafted bar for the occasion!

Ohh the details and DIY!

Cheers Jackie!

It doesn't get cuter than little ones in flannel! Brian and his addition!

The Archer and Marsh Clans unite!

We hit the road and shortly after were in Bemidji where the festivities began!  We stopped over at Morgan’s place to hang with the wedding crew as they prepared for the big day and socialized for one last hurrah!  It was so nice to catch up with everyone and grab a bite to eat.  The last time I had the chance to see their faces was at our own wedding last year, too long of course!  We then went back to our room at Ruttger’s Birchmont Lodge – the view of the lake from our room was beautiful, but the chilly temperatures made it difficult to spend much time by the water! 

Sure, I'll try about 12 flavors of pie!

Father and Daughter dance!

Smile, it's a photo booth!

Not too bad for a wedding reception fire!

Saturday was the big day, and before we could do anything else, we all had to make a quick trip to Target to stock up on some warm clothes and wedding gear to prepare for the outdoor ceremony and reception on this chilly Minnesota weekend.  We founds some clothes for everyone of us and after a summer sausage snack with Laurie, Doug, and family, we were on our way to the ceremony in the Krause back yard.  The set up was gorgeous and the amount of time and effort that went into making all of the arrangements, furniture, bar, etc was impressive!  Having just planned a wedding myself – I’m surprised they slept at all!  Matt lead the ceremony and we walked over to the church after they said I-Do for the reception, meal and dancing.  The evening was chilly and wonderful.  We caught up with all of the Moran kids and grandkids, and were able to officially meet Dennis’ girls and their families. The night sure warmed up after dinner when they started a large campfire – a little too large for marshmellow roasting.  By the early evening, the fresh air, dinner and dancing had us exhausted and it didn’t take much for us all to decide to go back to the lodge for a good night sleep.

The Bride and Groom! Congratulations!

Joanne and Mother dearest - all smiles and laughs!

Hugh: The party host and dance machine!

After what felt like only a few hours of sleep, my alarm went off and we were on the road again for the twin cities. We had lunch together as a family at Applebee’s and I was back in the air on a plane to Pittsburgh.  It was a short weekend that was well worth the travel.  I feel so grateful to have another family to connect with – and hopefully the Archer – Marsh tradition will continue for many more generations!

Not a bad view from our hotel!

Another reason I love Bemidji, MN

Marsh Clan in Minnesota!