Travail

Well this is not how you’re supposed to do this. Don’t write about an amazing restaurant experience 2 months after it occurred, without notes. All I have is my failing memory, a copy of the menu, and some pictures I filched off of their Facebook site. But it was a memorable enough meal that I’m going to do the best I can with what I have.

Travail is a really cool restaurant, the kind of place you’d expect to find in New York City, or San Francisco, or LA. But Minneapolis has a thriving restaurant scene. Its one of the best things about this town. If we plan things right, and get reservations for a weekday night, and get them early, we can go to the hottest restaurants in town.

Travail has been called “food theatre” and I think that’s a good description. They do themes, lasting for 6 weeks or so, and they put on a foodie show of sorts. You don’t just make a reservation, however. You have to buy a ticket, and you put down a deposit, so you’ve paid for half of your prix fixe meal ahead of time, and it ain’t cheap, especially if you include drink pairings. Is it worth it? Oh yes!

Travail is normally located in Robbinsdale which is in North Minneapolis, pretty far away from Waconia. But they are renovating their space there and are currently residing in Uptown which isn’t nearly as far away.

We grabbed a reservation in mid-January for 5:30 PM on a Wednesday night. It takes a couple hours to eat there so that would get us home before we turned into pumpkins, hopefully. It was also before the Polar Vortex descended on Minnesota, so it was cold but not insanely so.

Sarah and Erik had told us about Travail and I was pretty amped. We just happened to get our reservations for their Umami-themed menu, which is their take on dim sum. Now we are dim sum snobs. We like the traditional Hong Kong take on dumplings and noodles so if they were going to be creative with one of our favorite foods it better be good! It was.

The menu wasn’t strictly Chinese Dim Sum. There were Korean and Japanese influences too, and other Chinese crusines too.

We scurried into the restaurant right at 5:30 pm and were quickly ushered to our seats. We were seated at a banquette in a room with other patrons, all attending the 5:30 “show”. It wasn’t long before things started. Little tastes came out, fried shrimps, crispy bacon, takoyaki. The other thing they brought us was kimchee, to use as a palate cleanser and a refresher between courses. My history with kimchee is not great. I tried it ages ago and whatever I had, I didn’t like, so I’ve avoided it ever since. But I wasn’t going to turn down anything at Travail so I gave it a try. Clean, crisp, refreshing. This wasn’t at all like the kimchee I had in the past. It was great, and really was a good thing to chomp on between courses.

After a passion fruit puff we had hot pot, which was our least favorite course. It was fine, just not amazing, and kind of a let down after the first sumptuous little bites. Oh well, on to the next course!

Dumplings! They were all great, but the squid ink black dumpling was especially memorable.

Then we were all instructed to follow our servers to another room. Glasses of sake were balanced on chopsticks over glasses of beer. “A sake bomb!” I exclaimed! The woman next to me said, “how did you know what it was?” I smiled because, well, how did I? Something to do with having kids in college in the early oughts, I guess. We followed instructions, slammed the table, and watched our glasses of sake (mostly) fall into the glasses of beer. I took a few sips but I wasn’t about to waste calories on beer at this restaurant, especially run of the mill beer. Fun though, and a good time for me to visit the rest room.

The main course included some delicious salmon, short ribs, and ramen. The ramen kind of put me into overload, and it was good, but not San Francisco good.

Lee passed on the desserts, but I sampled most of them and the few I couldn’t we brought home for me to devour over the next day or so.

We got the drink pairings with our meal. I don’t remember most of them, except that they were very enjoyable and I was able to try them all, although I only drank half of the beginning cocktail since I was afraid I would be drunk before the meal had really started. I do remember a very good Pinot Grigio, but that’s about it.

We both had a great time, and intend to return. Its definitely pricey, but I’m already suggesting we go there for our anniversary, in June. And Sarah and I have said we’ll go there together sometime, but who knows when that will be, working moms, you know!

If you want to know more about Travail, here is a link to their website:  https://www.travailkitchen.com

Elsa and Sam’s Wedding and a Few Other Detours

This was written back in October.

Thursday, October 5th.

Here we are in Columbia, so familiar even while it continues to grow and change. We came in yesterday, got up early to take the dogs to Diane’s, then drove through rush hour traffic to Boston to get on our 11 am flight to STL. 

I’m sorry there wasn’t time to see Nancy and my cousins and aunt and uncle and friends Sarah and Jay. We would have had to come in a day early to do that. Instead we hopped right on I70, with a stop in Wentzville for Culver’s ice cream.

We are staying at Gail and Phil’s so that there is room for the kids to stay at Joanne’s and nobody has to get a hotel. In the evening we go over to Joanne’s and then to see if we can get a table at Flyover, a new restaurant that everyone is raving about. The wait is only 30 minutes so we sit outside on their porch and enjoy some adult beverages while we wait.

They have really good cocktails, but I stick to a glass of wine since I have a long run to do tomorrow. But Joanne gets their special Manhattan and wow! It even smells great! Something about setting the orange rind aflame seems to do the trick.

This restaurant serves small plates to share. I’m very hungry and jump right in, saying let’s get the chicken fried cauliflower, the spinach salad and the hanger steak. Nobody minds my pushiness and it’s all delish.

Friday, October 6th

I get up at 4:30. It’s warm,  it’s humid, and I have 20 miles to run. I’m supposed to run 18 of them at marathon pace, but it only takes a couple miles before I decide that’s a terrible idea. The humidity is so thick that I quickly decide to run as slow as I need to to make it through without collapsing.

That turns out to be very very slow by the end of the run. I maintain a pace for as long as I think is safe, and then reduce the run part of my run/walk segments until my heart rate goes down. By the end I’m running only 15 seconds and walking 30, but that’s okay. I get the miles in and I don’t pass out.

When I start it is just pitch black out and it takes at least an hour before it gets light enough so I can see without my phone flashlight. Normally I would have used my headlamp but I didn’t think to bring it to Missouri.

I run on the MKT rail trail, all the way to the KATY rail trail along the Missouri River, and then another mile toward Rocheport before I turn around. From the time I leave the Columbia city limits until I head back toward town I don’t see another living soul. Until it’s gets light it’s kind of creepy, and even then it’s a little unnerving. And the mosquitoes in the river bottoms along the KATY are terrible! My legs are covered with bites. I didn’t think I could possibly need bug spray on a run in October, but I guess I was wrong. It’s rainy, cloudy and so very humid. I’m just a puddle by the time I finish.

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Lee gets me Sub Shop sandwiches for lunch and now I’m resting, so hopefully I’ll be able to stay awake tonight and be up for Shakespeare’s pizza with the fam.

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I actually took a nap! It was a real nap, about an hour. It even registered on my Fitbit.

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Daniel gets in around 5. We go over to Joanne’s to say hello, then we head to Shakespeare’s. There has been a lot of development in downtown Columbia lately. Some parts were almost unrecognizable. Lots of tall modern buildings. Even the building that Shakespeare’s was in is now a 10 story apartment building. But Shakespeare’s itself had been recreated to look just like the same old place.  I’m glad; it’s a Columbia institution!

Lee finds a table and I get in line for the pizza, while Daniel makes sure Joanne get into the venue for the rehearsal dinner safely. They are holding the rehearsal dinner for the wedding at Shakespeare’s too! The three of us eat our pizza while we wait for Sarah and Erik to appear. When they are about 30 minutes away I order them a pizza too.

They finally make it to Shakespeare’s sometime after 8:30. Poor things! Just a very long rainy drive through Iowa. It’s great to see them both, including Sarah’s darling pregnant belly. It’s hard to believe that in less than three months my first grandchild will be here!

Saturday, October 7th, the Wedding.

We’re all watching the weather forecast anxiously. The morning is rainy but it’s supposed to clear up in the afternoon, and around 12:30 that starts to seem like it might very well be the case.

At around 2:15 we head for the Becker’s. All the rain has passed and it’s a beautiful sunny day! We pick up Sarah and Erik at Joanne’s on the way. Daniel has already driven Joanne to the wedding earlier. The Becker’s have arranged things so guests can park on Warren’s property across the road and then take a golf cart to the Becker’s.

At the Becker’s the tents and flowers are just amazing. We can get a rosemary grapefruit cocktail or another beverage. I opt for the cocktail and its very good! We gather in the front yard where the ceremony will take place. As Elsa and her parents come down the aisle I start to get tears in my eyes. Of course! I almost always cry at weddings. 

The ceremony is just beautiful. When it is over we retire to the backyard to toast the bride and groom, shower them with soapy bubbles from little champagne bottles, and snack on flavored popcorn.

Then it’s time for dinner. Mark and Mary are friends with people that own a restaurant in town and boyoboy that is the best wedding food I have EVER eaten! Skewers of chicken, pork and veggies, with amazing dipping sauces for each. Roasted potatoes. Spinach salad. Quinoa salad. French baguettes. I get a glass of a Grenache with my dinner and let’s just say it was a very generous pour. One glass is plenty, thank you!

Dessert includes an amazing apple crisp with caramel sauce, rosemary shortbread cookies, and a bit of very intense chocolate. No wedding cake, darn it! My only complaint. I think for our 40th wedding anniversary we need to have an anniversary cake. Or something.

Then of course it’s time to dance. It turns out my brother-in-law Mark can really dance. He twirls his daughter around the floor much to our delight. Pretty soon everyone is out there dancing away. One thing I like about my fam, even though we’re not great dancers we generally get out there and wiggle around. Daniel and I try our best to dance together but I keep stepping on his toes. Oh well!

Elsa belonged to a sorority in college and her Kappa sisters sing her some traditional sorority song. I don’t exactly get it but they gather in a circle and serenade her. And so does Joanne! She told me later she just got her 60 year pin and couldn’t resist.

We are back at Gail and Phil’s by 8 pm and I’m in bed not long after. I sleep a good 8 hours  and wake up still feeling groggy.

Sunday, October 8th.

There’s a brunch at Mark and Mary’s this morning, a variety of egg casseroles made by Joanne, donuts, fruit salad, juice and coffee. We sit in the sun under the tents and relax. They have a huge mess to clean up, I don’t envy them. One of the disadvantages of having a wedding in your own backyard for sure.

Around noon Sarah and Erik and I get in their car for the long drive to Minneapolis. I want to go up to Duluth on Monday and meet my new great nephew Harrison, Nicole and Tom’s new baby. The drive to Minny is long, but the sun is shining and we have ice cream for lunch. Frozen custard, a Missouri / Iowa thing. I have a turtle sundae; I’m hungry!

Sometime close to 7 pm we stop at Lund’s for a carry out dinner. We eat and not too long after I fall into bed, exhausted.

Monday, October 9th.

Monday morning I get up and go for a 7 mile run on the nearby Luce trail. The air is crisp and cool and it feels great to run, much better than last Friday! I love running in Minnesota but I’ve never tried it in the dead of winter. I’m afraid I’d have to spend way more time on a treadmill than I would prefer. I suppose I will be even more grateful to escape to Florida.

Sarah and I leave for Duluth around 10:30. We are there by 1, with a quick stop at Northern Waters Smokehaus for sandwiches. They specialize in smoked meats so Sarah has to nuke her salmon a bit b4 she can eat it. All the things they do nowadays that improve mother and baby safety! 

The sandwiches are yummy, Nicole looks great, and Harrison is just adorable! Nicole seems to really be enjoying mommyhood. Harrison just turned two months old. He has Tom’s dimple in his chin and is just starting to smile. Sarah and I hold him a lot. I’ve forgotten how to hold a baby, especially such a rolypoly wiggly one! 

Nicole puts Harrison in a snuggly, we put Jennie their rambunctious dog on a leash and go for a walk in nearby Chester park. What a beautiful park! It even has a little ski slope! We walk along the rim and then back to their house. It’s time to get back on the road and return to Minny. I like Duluth but man it’s ccccccold!

Tuesday, October 10th.

I drive Sarah to work so that I can have her car. Lee has scouted some properties, mostly land, in the area, and I’m going to check them out. One, only a mile from Sarah and Erik’s house, is really nice. It’s for sale by owner and he has actually RAISED the price. It’s been on the market awhile and I bet the guy is some kind of nut cause otherwise it should have sold. Another one, in Excelsior, is also attractive. It’s a corner lot, a tear down, and requires a little more imagination to see it as something we could make our own. 

Then I get Sarah’s car washed and vacuumed and go buy some Dogwood coffee. I’ve drunk up most of their coffee, since they don’t drink coffee at home very often. I split a bag with then so I can take some home too.

We meet Sarah at a ramen place close to her office for dinner, Ramen Kazama. Ramen is not something that easy to find where we live, unless my very talented husband makes it! The restaurant scene will be one of the big advantages to moving to Minnesota.

Wednesday, October 11th.

I have to get up very very early for my flight back to Boston. I call Uber and he shows up right on time and gets me to the airport without any trouble. Security is slow even with TSA Pre, and I need to grab some breakfast before I get on the plane. First I try Surdyks but his cash register stops working and he has to shut down. I get in the line next door at Carabou Coffee. Its long and slow. By the time I get my coffee and banana bread I only have time to walk to my gate and get right on the plane! Well at least I didn’t miss my flight. 

A Wedding

When I arrive in Minneapolis on Wednesday I have a list of things to do to finish off the welcome bags for our out of town guests. There's very little I've had to do on my own for this wedding. My daughter and Erik have handled almost all the planning all by themselves. The wedding is in their town, and I live on the east coast, so it only makes sense. But it's also just the way it should be. My daughter has been a planner all her life, making lists of activities to do with friends, schoolwork tasks, chores; with little boxes to check off, from the time she was small. And Erik is a designer. He has definite ideas of what this wedding should look like, and is far from the baffled disinterested groom.

Mainly I has been the research assistant, since that's something that's easy to do from far away. Research hotels, research florists, dress shops, limousines. I do my best, send in the data, and Sarah and Erik make the decisions.

But the welcome bags are all mine. And I manage to throw a wedding's worth of anxiety into these bags. After I pick up the rental car, I drive downtown and park in what I hope is a fairly central location. Downtown Minneapolis always initially confuses me. There are numbered STREETS and numbered AVENUES, and which ones run which way? But soon I figure out where the river is, and then my mind is set to rights.

First I go to pick up copies of the Minneapolis Saint Paul magazine, but get sidetracked by a Caribou Coffee shop, cause I need 30 $5 gift cards. Will they sell me all of them? Sure! I hope the people behind me in line don't hate me, but I can check that off my list. Now back to the magazines. I need 18 copies. I'm afraid they will be really heavy but 18 magazines turn out to be compact and not very heavy at all. Drop those off in the car. Next the little candy boxes from Candyland. It is freezing in Minneapolis and I need to walk several blocks to get there. Their store smells fantastic. They make popcorn balls too and I'm momentarily sorry I didn't order some of those as well. Take the candy to the car, drive to Lunds. They have cases of water buy one get one free so I get two cases, which is way more than I need for the bags, but I figure we'll use it so what the heck. I want 30 bottles of a locally made soda, Joia. It comes in glass bottles and strange flavors, lemon hibiscus, orange nutmeg. Now those are heavy, but it's not far to the car. I pick up some stuff for dinner and then it's off to Sarah's house.

Sarah is busy putting names on the guest cards for the reception. Presents for the bridal party are spread around the floor. I put my welcome bag ingredients in the spare room and take a breath.

We are busy, but calm. We are pretty happy too. Aren't weddings supposed to be stressful? Shouldn't we be freaking out, snapping at each other? I guess not!

I set up an assembly line in the spare room and put together the gift bags. Now all I have to do is drop them off at the hotels, but that can wait until tomorrow.

Sarah, Erik and I have a nice dinner together and go to bed early. We have a busy day tomorrow.

In the morning I go for a run, get ready and lug my completed welcome bags back into the car. First I take most of the bags to the Best Western and drop them off at the front desk. We make sure we have bags for all our guests, and we do, almost. One set of guests must have registered after I did my final count. Dang! I feel badly but there's nothing I can do about it. Then it's time to pick Lee up at the airport and check into our hotel. As we check in I drop off the bags for the guests staying at The W too. This all goes smoothly as well. Our room is comfortable and quiet. There is time to relax before we go out for sushi at Origami with Sarah and Erik that evening. They have all their tasks in order and will check into the hotel tomorrow.

Daniel arrives very late Thursday night, I see his text in the morning, letting me know he has arrived safely. Friday morning Lee goes to pick up Gail and Michael, our dear friends from Nashville. After they are settled in their room they come down to say hello. I practically burst into tears at the sight of them. It's just been too long, and I'm so happy they have come all this way for the wedding.

My Dear Friend Gail

At 5 pm it's time for the rehearsal dinner. It's still unseasonably cold and the ceremony is outside, in the Walker Sculpture garden. The wedding party gathers shivering and Sarah goes through the plan. We get our marching orders. First Daniel with Joanne, his grandmother. Then he scurries around; he gets to go twice. Then Suzanne with Erik. Then the bridesmaids and groomsmen enter two by two, and finally Lee, Sarah and I together. Both my parents escorted me down the aisle as well. This is a Jewish thing, but I didn't know this until recently. I thought it was just a quirk my mom had at the last minute. I'm charmed however when Sarah asks me to walk together with her and her dad.

The Wedding Party Shivers While We Get Our Instructions

Once we have all of that in order it's off to The Butcher and The Boar for the rehearsal dinner. Suzanne has outdone herself. We have a great private room, the tables are beautifully set. I've managed to get the last of the welcome bags for the wedding party into the room and set on a table. This is a barbecue place, and Suzanne has managed to get paper bibs for all of us messy eaters, printed with Sarah and Erik 2014. It's funny, and practical as well. I've tucked one away as a souvenir somewhere.

Lulu, Maice, Erik and Sarah

The food is great but there is a lot left over. Suzanne makes sure all of the young people have doggie bags to take home so nothing is wasted. I'm slowly realizing that it is the day before my daughter's wedding!

Saturday is sunny, and a little warmer. In fact if you get in the sun it's very comfortable. We have a busy day planned. The girls are meeting in the bridal suite between 10 and 11. We are getting our hair done, and Sarah and I are getting our makeup done too. I'm a little apprehensive about this, but Sarah has assured me that the people she's hired are good, and enough people have told me it's a good thing to do for photographs, so I'm hopeful.

My one other task that I was entirely in charge of was making sure there was food for the girls to eat during the day. No fainting and no crankiness allowed. I have Surdyks Wine and Cheese Shop do the catering and they do a great job. I order a veggie plate, a fruit plate, cucumber, Brie and peach chutney finger sandwiches, a dipping platter with pita bread and hummus, chèvre, and white bean dips. I order orange juice and prosecco for mimosas. And I order some sparkling water too, so there is a non alcoholic option. There are a couple of bottles of champagne too, hidden away for the limo. The only thing I forget are plates and forks. Oops! But the hotel comes to the rescue and sends them up from room service in short order.

Sarah Shows off the Food...And Her Curlers! Photo by Maice Scott

I've invited Gail to come and hang out with us as we get ready and Suzanne is there too. The hair and makeup  ladies come and start on my hair, which doesn't take long. They do a great job! They want to do my make up next, but I want to eat something first. I want to be sure to try out what I ordered! A mimosa isn't a bad idea either. And all those extra water bottles come in handy too. We are well hydrated!

There are dresses, shoes, foundation garments, hot curlers and makeup bags everywhere. The florist arrives with the bridesmaids bouquets and the corsages and groomsmen's boutonnieres. I run the boutonnieres down to our room where the groomsmen are getting ready. There is not nearly the chaos there that there is in the bridal suite!

Back up in the suite everyone is getting dressed. We all look nice! I've seen pictures of the bridesmaids dresses, but this is the first time I've seen them in person. What Sarah did was decide on a certain light mint shade of green and choose a variety of dress styles. Each bridesmaid picked a dress style they liked, so everyone had a dress that suited them, including the pregnant bridesmaid. And they were short so they will probably be able to wear them again.

Erik called Sarah. He said he couldn't find his socks and thought he had left them in the room! We started pawing through the piles of clothing and shoes scattered about. Sarah was mildly exasperated, I started trying to imagine what the groom would look like in a nice grey suit and no socks. But it turned out to be a joke; he just wanted to talk to Sarah one more time before the ceremony!

We also discovered the magic of something called dress glue. You apply it to your skin and press your dress into it. It keeps things in place and won't damage fabric. I used it on my shoulders to make sure my shoulder straps stayed where they were supposed to and it worked!

On with our shoes and jewelry. Sarah's dress looked wonderful and her earrings were amazing. A friend of hers at work had made her a beautiful bridal purse. Inside the purse one of my mothers handkerchiefs had been sown into the lining. I know mom would have loved that idea! Suzanne looked beautiful in her purple dress. My dress still fit, and my spanx were very comfortable!

Sarah's Bridal Purse

The limo driver called, he was downstairs waiting. We called James, Erik's best man, to warn him that we were heading downstairs and to make sure Erik didn't come down early and see his bride too soon.

Time to troop down to the lobby. I wanted to drop my stuff off in our room so I went down a little early. I got to the lobby first, stood around a bit, and then realized I had accidentally left my little beaded purse up in our room. Back up I went a little panic stricken, but not to worry, I still was back down in the lobby before anyone else.

The limo driver was waiting patiently out front. I handed him the champagne and clambered inside. It's hard to safely get into a limo in a long dress! Sarah said she couldn't imagine doing it in a big poofy wedding dress. She was grateful that her's was slim and that she herself was tiny!

It was fun and exciting riding in the limo, but it was a very short drive. In a few minutes we were at the Walker. We clambered out. Sarah and Erik were meeting the photographer at the front door of the Walker, which was around the corner from where we were parked. Erik was waiting for her at the door, the scene of their first date, a blind date set up on Match.com. Sarah wanted to go there by herself. There went my little girl, down the sidewalk all alone in her beautiful dress. I couldn't help but think about one day in a park in St Louis long ago right after she learned to walk. We were sitting on a blanket but Sarah wanted to practice her new skills. So off she would go tottering down the walk as fast as she could. I would let her go until she was almost out of sight and then go grab her and carry her back so she could do it again. But this time I let her go. We all watched her disappear around the corner of the museum where Erik was waiting for her.

We took pictures before the ceremony. In between the picture sessions we would go sit in the conservatory, because if you weren't in the sun it was still pretty chilly. But the greenhouse was hot, so we would go out to cool off, get cold, go back inside.

Theresa Models Her Bridesmaid Dress in the Greenhouse

Guests started to arrive and sit in the chairs in the sunshine. The officiant brought the marriage certificates and Sarah and Erik signed them. The chairs were full of our family and friends, and it was time to begin. The music starts and we listen for our cues. When it is time Sarah Lee and I start down the aisle in the sunshine. Suddenly everyone stands up! I almost burst into tears, I have somehow forgotten that everyone stands up when the bride comes down the aisle! I have been to so many weddings, and once as a bride myself, but this is the absolute best.

The officiant welcomes us, talks about Sarah and Erik using little stories that Suzanne and I have given her. Kris, Erik's sister, does a reading from Jonathan Safran Foer's book, Everything is Illuminated. I need to find that passage in my copy, because it was great, all about the ups and downs, compromises and bargains involved in being married for a long time.

Sarah and Erik say their vows. Erik's goes first, and he starts to cry. Well that sets off my sweet soft-hearted husband, and before long he is crying too. Daniel is standing up in front of the congregation with the other groomsmen, and when his father starts crying, well HE starts to cry too! I had tears in my eyes until that point, but then I started to laugh! All these men crying ....it was so touching, and kind of joyous too. I often cry at weddings, but at this one I was just too happy to cry.

Before I knew it the ceremony was over. There wasn't a receiving line, and the wedding party was going over to Bryant Lake Bowl for pictures and drinks before the reception, so I thought Lee and I should get over to Spill the Wine as soon as possible to be there to greet our guests. Gail and Michael needed a ride, and I had an odd feeling someone else needed a ride too, but I couldn't think who.

Sarah and Maice at Bryant Lake Bowl

We piled in the car and arrived at Spill the Wine right away. I got myself a French Cocktail (gin, lemon and champagne) and started greeting people as they arrived. Suddenly my phone rang. It was Suzanne. "Where are you?" She asked politely. "Are you still at the Walker?" "Why no," I said "we're at Spill the Wine!" Suddenly I realized with horror who it was we were supposed to bring to the reception - the mother of the groom, my co-mother in law! Dang! I feel awful and apologize  profusely but she insists that it's no big deal and gets a ride with one of her cousins.

Things start hopping; almost everyone has arrived. There are hor d'oeuvres and drinks, and music playing in the background. There is a fun guest book with a Polaroid camera where everyone can take instant photos of themselves, glue them into the book and write their comments. Everyone finds their tables. The table numbers are held up by Erik's father's beer can collection. These are old, heavy steel beer cans so they serve the purpose well. Erik's father passed away when Erik was 12 so this is his memorial to his dad.

At each table setting are two recipe cards. One holds Erik's grandmother's Swedish rice pudding recipe. One holds my Mom's plum pie recipe. These are the memorials for the two grandmas that both passed away this year.

The various dishes come out, one after another, interspersed with toasts. First Theresa, then James, then Suzanne and finally Lee. Everyone did a great job but I really only remember Lee's toast, since I edited it for him several times. He told two stories. The first was about Sarah. When she was about three years old one day she asked me, "Mama, how do you get to be a princess?" "Well," I told her, "you have to marry a prince." You could see those little wheels turning. "Mama, are there any princes in Columbia?" Then Lee said that he was glad she had found her prince.

The second story was about Daniel. On a visit to Chicago the men were off doing manly things together. Daniel was about 8. A friendly bus driver took a shine to Daniel and was talking to him and kidding around. "Son," he said, "You have a choice. You can be right, or you can be happy. Ain't that right dad?" Dad of course agreed, and Lee wished that both Sarah and Erik would have many years of happiness.

The food was good, but not nearly as good as it was at the tasting. Sarah and I agreed...must be the difference between making dinner for a table of 4 and a room full of 100 people. Some of the sides were great, but the chicken was terribly overcooked and the fish was just okay. Oh well! You wouldn't want to have a wedding where NOTHING went wrong, would you?

Soon the tables were cleared and the music was turned up a notch. Erik danced with his mom, Sarah danced with Lee. Sarah had picked Wildflowers by Tom Petty for their dance , and THAT made me cry. So many family car trips, so many memories. I hugged Daniel and told him how lucky I was, how incredibly lucky and blessed to have such an amazing family.

After the traditional dances everyone got out on the dance floor. I danced with Lee a little, but I also just got out there and danced danced danced, and hoped I didn't look too ridiculous. I danced to Michael Jackson, Nsync, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Arcade Fire, and lots of music I had never heard before. I only stopped when my feet hurt too much to continue. It was lots of fun!

Finally I sat down and put up my feet. Whew! It was nice to just relax, but then the late night ice cream came out and I had to try it. Salted caramel gelato and Strawberry Vanilla gelato. Yum! There was some lemon sorbet too but I never saw it, nor did I get to try the flourless chocolate cake. Oh well!

When the night was over, we remembered Suzanne and everyone else that needed a ride back to the hotel. It was late, way way past our bedtime. What a day! Truly one of the best days of our lives. I have to laugh, thinking of that hideous little newborn girl, so very annoyed at being born, and how my first thought when I saw her was "wow we're going to have to love her a lot, she'll never get any dates!"

The next day I actually got up and ran along the river, took a shower and then walked across the street to help host a brunch at the Hen House. Just. Give. Me. Coffee. Oh yes, and blueberry yogurt pancakes. Thanks.

We were so, so, so very tired, but later in the afternoon we went for a walk around Lake Calhoun with Gail, Michael and Daniel. A few leaves were turning, but the air was warm and there were wind surfers on the lake. Gail and I admired the asters and I took a few pictures. Time to send Sarah and Erik off on their honeymoon. Time to go home.