It's Back

It's time to adjust our thinking, and probably our habits as well. That basically means dress warm and drive safely. Woke up this morning to a winter wonderland. This is our driveway looking out towards the county road.

Now this is what Minneapolis looked like around 11:30 am today. We took off this morning from home and traveled Northwest towards the Twin Cities to visit our daughter. I had thoughts of staying home, but we decided to venture out towards Cities. Yikes, we experienced snow, rain and lots of slush. I counted at least 10 cars that slid off Interstate 94.

Once we reached Minneapolis, none of the side streets were plowed. Bike man immediately started to shovel the sidewalk and steps after arriving at the girls house, and figured he shoveled 4-5 inches of wet heavy snow. Fallen tree branches everywhere you looked.

Of course, Becca can't forget her momma's bakery passion! Thanks Becca the delicious bakery didn't last long, especially with a nice warm cup of coffee.

Happy Birthday Becca! Sorry we couldn't spend more time with you today. Maybe next time we'll be totally snowed in so we can stay overnight! Hey, 24 years ago I went to the hospital in the middle of the night, with labor pains, in sub zero weather.....minus 4 to be exact. Then Becca was born!

The Weather is Finally Changing

The weather is finally changing and acting more like November. That pink and blue on the radar is wet snow and sleet, as the temperatures hovers around 32-35 degrees. We haven't seen the snow yet, but that will change over night.

I finally gave in tonight after work and headed over the the fitness center for a workout. Very disappointed to find the virtual bikes were totally gone.....no where in sight. I loved those bikes since you could ride a variety of trail routes, all while watching the monitor. The virtual bikes felt real and kept my mind occupied. Where the heck did they go? I opted to use the elliptical machine instead. Being inside the fitness center gave me that familiar closed-in feeling.

Our road bikes are now hooked up to the trainer, so I'll have to get into a routine of spinning indoors. Did I tell you I decided not to teach spinning class this winter season? After two years of teaching, my heart just wasn't in it. Probably a good thing since I'll be heading south from time-to-time to help my dad with his cancer issues.

Can't Pass Up Bargains

We always look for a good bargain wherever we shop. That was our mission today and we stuck to that. We only bought what was on sale. It pays to be a thrifty consumer. First there was a gift card for Gander Mountain, a $100 gift card (Bike man won) @ Fleet Farm, a free meal for the veteran of the family (Bike man), another gift card for the local food co-op.

Thanks Applebee's for the free meal. Honoring veteran's and active military is a kind thing to do.

It's back to work tomorrow. Sounds like a snowy & rainy day in store.

Today/Tomorrow

I'm getting so frustrated. The doctors keep changing procedures for how to handle my dad's cancer. I really wanted to be there with my parents today when they met with the Urologist, but of course I had to go back to my job. Now they were given totally different information. Looks like I will be traveling back to my folks house on Tuesday night Nov. 16, so we can drive them to Madison for the second surgery. The third surgery will be Dec. 1st.

I'm relieved that I have tomorrow off from work due to the observance of Veteran's Day.

On a brighter note, here I am watching WCCO news tonight out of Minneapolis and they showed people running along Lake Nokomis since it was another warm day. So who do I see running along the trail? Our daugter Becca and her friend Artena. How cool is that? After screaming, "that's Becca, that's Arenta," I called my daughter to tell her she was a TV celebrity. I needed that little burst of energy!!!!!!!

Another Friend

I just seem to make animal friends wherever I go! I met this pretty boy four days ago. As I took photos of him, he became more excitable. At one point he jumped over on my shoulders and walked around as like trying to get to know me better! Look at those claws......yikes!

I probably mentioned this last week, but it seems that I did loose all my photos that I took over the last two + years. All because my hard drive crashed and I didn't back up my photos. Boy oh boy did I learn a good lesson.

Missed a great day to be outside. I envy anyone that could be out riding their bicycle today. Today was one of those last perfect days before winter sets in. High of 68 degrees......normally we'd be dealing with 30-40 degrees at this time of the year. Will this last? I hope so.

Who Said Life Was Easy

Life is never easy. You take the good with the bad. Today my dad was strong, well, as strong as he could be. It's not easy to hear that your comforts of life will change dramatically. All of a sudden you discover that if you want to live longer, you'll have to accept some changes.....physical changes or changes with your body. Today, dad made the decision to have further surgery to make certain all the invasive cancer cells are removed from his bladder. Chemo and radiation will follow at the University hospital in Madison.

Brave decisions sometimes equal a better quality of life. My dad's last words today before I left to drive home were........I'm just going to put this in the hands of the Lord. As I drove home this afternoon I kept hearing those words in my head.

My dad is not only brave, but he also understands where to find his comfort. You're in good hands dad. We love you!

Apples in November

I drove on roads today that would have been perfect for cycling. Nothing like ridges, valley's and hills for a good workout. Some of you may not know this, but I grew up in Southwest Wisconsin, which is known as the area of Wisconsin where the glacier totally went around or bypassed. I guess I forgot how beautiful the hills and valley's are around Richland County. Many times today I imagined myself cranking up the hills on my bike. Too bad I didn't throw my bike in the car before I left for the conference. The 60 degree weather was perfect for cycling.

Most of the apples are past their peak and now overripe or rotting on the trees and the ground.

There's nothing like a good crisp apple grown on Wisconsin soil. Can you believe the apple orchards are still open, and it's November! $4 for a half bushel of assorted apples varieties......now that's an awesome deal.