Funning in Trempeleau

We had a spectacular outing last weekend to "compete" in the Chase Trempeleau scavenger hunt. Chase is actually an acronym in this case for cycle, hike, and seek - all things that we enjoy! The organization Communities Off N' Funning puts on this event as well as a number of other events throughout the year. Their mission is to get kids to have fun outdoors. They know that to do this, they have to get adults to also have fun outdoors. In the end, they create an environment where kids are surrounded by healthy adult role models. Due to the competition rules, we have to play in the non-competitive segment of the event. However, we have the right equipment and skills to really be competitive. This year, with some knowledge of what we were doing and a much more capable "tail gunner", we rocked it! We accumulated 220 official points (we had calculated 240, but had at least one answer wrong and a photo fail). We rode a season record of 32 miles during the 3 hour race, and we had a ton of fun!

See if you can spot Noah with a face-wide grin running to the finish line in this album: https://offnfunning.shutterfly.com/pictureschasetremp/1498. Our team was called "big red bike" can you figure out why?

Let me explain this event a little better. You get a map with clues on it, a punch card, and the clock starts for a 3 hour race. You ride your bike all around town, with your team, to as many places on the map as you can get to collect points. The close-by, easy stops are worth 5 points, the far-flung or challenging spots are worth more, up to the highest point punch being worth 40. There are lots of 5 pointers, and only 1-40 point checkpoint. There are 38 or 40 total checkpoints and it would be impossible to complete them all. Sometimes, it's just a punch (they use Braille alphabet punches, I believe), other times it's a trivia question that is answered at the location somehow, other times, you have to take a picture to get the points. If you come back late, you lose points. Both years now, we cut it close and truly had to put on the gas to get ourselves through the finish line on time. Then, they feed you a fabulous pasta dinner (and cookies and brownies and lemonade) and give out prizes. 

Noah's favorite stop was the one where we had camera failure- take a picture of a member of your team roasting a lil smokie over the fire. I think he ate 3! Note to self, so that we don't take as a long at the roasting checkpoint, bring lots of good back pocket snacks to fuel the race. There are also a number of checkpoints that you have to hike to get to. If you're a big cross-trainer, these might suit you. We dislike the Mississippi jungle and bugs, so stuck mostly with the roadside checkpoints. Most checkpoints are un-manned, but a few have volunteers that might give further instructions. Ooh I almost forgot to mention that for one of the checkpoints, you had to hop into a canoe and paddle a little ways in the Mississippi backwater to get to the punch. How can you pack that much fun into a sunny morning anywhere else?! 

Anniversary River Ride

15 years, can you believe it?!

I don't feel old enough to be married that long.  

Here's our "happy couple" picture heading out onto the river.  That's how we get sunburned on good weather weekends in SE MN.

 We put in at Oxbow park for this outing.  There was just the right amount of water for the trip.  In a few places, there were cool cliff walls  - Brian was quick enough on the camera for this one. The river was moving pretty good in places and lazy in places.  Not nearly as swift and fun as last weekend, but it had a few more maneuvering challenges.

 In the final mile before Genoa, there was an extensive log-jam.  We had to pull up next to a huge tree, climb out of the canoe, balance carefully, and lift the canoe over. There was a lot of careful tree avoidance in this stretch.  We deemed it a poor choice for kayaks or beginners.  Good thing we have 15 years under our belts!

When we pulled out, we finished our lunch on the tailgate and I thought this was a lovely scene.  

The shuttle for this river ride was Brian's fat bike.  We were going to tandem, our anniversary custom, but the shuttle route involved a good amount of gravel. I soaked up the sunshine at a picnic table with a magazine while he drove to the end and biked back.  

We didn't see a single other boating party while on the route, though there were some people around Oxbow on the bridges.  There was an obnoxious lawnmower at one of the river-side estates that we had to listen to for about a mile. There was a huge, handsome bald eagle that we saw twice along the route.  There was an amazing number of ducks that kept trying to distract us away from the youngsters in their flock. And, black-winged, glittery green-bodied dragonflies were flittering about all the way along the river edges.

I'm just going to end this since I'm out of pictures and have added plenty of commentary.  If I don't, you'll get some sappy essay about how marriage is like a canoe trip down a river...

The "Before" Kitchen

Today, the last day of May in 2015, our microwave died. This has caused some reflecting on our kitchen, and likely accelerated the remodel.

Let's review the sweet appliances we're working with these days.

Meet our stove. 

One day in the past 21 months, we bought a deep dish deli pizza to cook for dinner. That was the day the oven igniter went out. 45 minutes later, instead of a tasty pizza, we had a lukewarm mess that had to get thrown away. After a dinner recovery, we spent the whole night tearing the oven apart and swapping the broiler igniter with the oven igniter, so we can still cook.  So, we have a semi-functional gas range in a hot almond/black color combination. At least it blends in with the always dirty laminate countertop.

Let's continue our tour of kitchen awesomeness.

Meet the fridge.

This sweet piece actually is a first week replacement. When we moved in, we found out that the fridge that was here didn't keep cold, at all. Fortunately, we caught this flaw before closing so we got just enough credit back to only pay $3 at the used appliance store for this classy piece. The front is ugly enough that we encourage Noah to post lots of art to cover it up! He's willing to make that sacrifice for the good of our kitchen. Note, it's white, so we have a second appliance color going on. 

Now, the interior...

Do you see that strange plastic box half full of water? We keep this custom drip pan in just the right place to catch water that is produced by the compressor(?).

And, the freezer, below, has a funny bulge across the bottom, and is sealed by a thick line of caulk.  There is no shelf, so we keep a box in there for organization.

Continuing our tour, here's today's inspiring microwave.

I haven't really had much to complain about the microwave until today. Yes, it's stainless, the third appliance color in the kitchen. It is now a special kitchen clock, timer, and could function as a nightlight, if necessary.  

Next, the dishwasher. It's the finest appliance in the kitchen. For the most part, it cleans the dishes. It's newer than most of the appliances in the kitchen. And, it's black, so we add another color to our stylin' space.

Notice, the funny wear spots on the floor at the corners of the dishwasher? That's because it leaks. Somewhere around the door it doesn't seal properly. Sigh.

How about the sink?

Since we don't have a working microwave, we put our pack of frozen meat into a warm water bath to thaw. The only way to get the sink to hold water is to use both the standard plug and the rubber ring plug to block the drain. No sprayer, old workhorse faucet.

I almost forgot, the hood.

Sorry about the poor quality photo. The oversized copper piece sucks up lots of light. The fan is loud enough that it is rarely turned on. The slope is covered in kitchen grease and dust. I'm not sure I should have demanded ventilation in my kitchen when we left the yellow house, the pot rack was way classier! I think the backsplash piece is covering a tile backsplash; I'm looking forward to tearing into that and discovering the old finish. Note, copper is yet another appliance color in our space. We've got it all!

We're close to done with the upstairs and stairway work. I think we're going to buy an appliance per month this summer and move right into implementation on the kitchen/dining remodel...

I hope my sarcasm wasn't too much for you this weekend! Now that I made you all feel really good about your kitchen, have a good week!