We HEART Visitors!

We were able to spend this past weekend with my parents, as they visited us from Michigan! From a previous past you may recall that we ended up riding out with them from Michigan to Minnesota because of vehicle trouble. That is still in the works, but as we see that situation unfold, we see God’s blessings in so many ways.

It was SUCH a wonderful weekend with them! One of relaxation, exploring, games, talking, and just quality family time together. I definitely shed a few tears when they drove out of the driveway! I think the emotions of the past week got the best of me. There is something about a mother and father’s love that is just unexplainable.

Wednesday night into Thursday there was quite a winter storm that came through (Dan couldn’t even go into work), so we spent the day relaxing at home – which was nice after traveling from Cadillac, MI to Minnesota all of Wednesday. Friday we met Dan for lunch at Frieda’s (AWESOME restaurant in Willmar) and then took a tour around the greater Willmar area. After Dan got home from work we decided to head west from Prinsburg and take an area tour – it was good to see the surrounding cities west and south of us! It started to snow and get a little crazy again, so we headed home

Saturday, though, ended up being a BEAUTIFUL day! We were supposed to get ANOTHER snow storm (yes, we live in Minnesota…), but it held off! We had heard Alexandria was a cool town, so we headed there for the day after grabbing breakfast at a family restaurant in town.

The drive up was very scenic – there was one lake in Glenwood that had a scenic overlook and WOW, it was SO BEAUTIFUL! The lake was 7,000 some acres! As we headed into Alexandria we went along the Glacial Ridge Trail, which has a lot of historical and scenic sights on it, which was fun to see. Unfortunately it was a little chilly while in Alexandria and all the lakes were frozen over, so we couldn’t see a whole lot. Nevertheless, it got us excited for summer in realizing what a summer town it probably is!

Amidst the snow, we still had a wonderful time stopping at the antique and gift shops downtown. And of course, seeing the famous viking!

Downtown Alexandria (they even had a Quilt Shop!)

This was probably my most FAVORITE part of the trip: the drive home. The sun started to come out and the roads just became more and more breath-taking. Moving to Minnesota, I expected it to always be flat and where you could just see for miles and miles. Well, on the road called 104, it was probably the most beautiful drive I have been on in a long time. It was just hill after hill, where you could just see for miles. Hills with lakes right next to them, prairies rolling along them, with deer grazing and the natural world showing it’s colors. It is so hard to put into words the beauty of what we saw Saturday – these pictures just do not do it justice at all!

At one point, we got to the top of a hill and I just stopped. I told Dan to just take a bunch of pictures, but there was no way of capturing it all in a picture. I just kept saying “wow, oh wow!” What a mighty God we serve! While heading home we also took my parents through some lake towns as well. We had a lot of fun showing them the area and all that Minnesota has to offer!

You will just have to come and visit us and we can show you what we mean by the rolling hills and prairies!

Like I said earlier, we also played a lot of games (something that is pretty common in our family).

Dan even put a spotlight on the dartboard :). The cardboard box behind the dartboard apparently was a necessity.

What a blessing it is to call these two my dad and mom. Not that we look alike or anything ;), but I am proud to say they are my parents and praise God for them!

As hard as it is to say goodbye to family, we know we have a family here too that takes SUCH good care of us. There are people who we can call up at anytime here, with a question or just to talk. Again, we praise God for EACH one of you!