Beer Fest!

What is Beer Fest you ask? It is a Fest of Beer. In the best sense. This past weekend up near the Mall of America (the parking lot to be exact...super classy!) my friends hit up the second annual Twin Cities Beer Fest. Your ticket gets you in and you are presented with a small cup which you then take up to the different booths and you get a little 2oz sample of beer! There were all kinds of beer to try so most tastes had plenty to try. Ciders are my favorite! There was also music, giant jenga, bean bags, fake tattoos and a plethora of fake mustaches! I was a last minute addition to the group and I am really glad I went!

 Trouble makers...I tell ya!

I also helped out with the 'days of yesteryear' at the History Center that morning...but since I had to run off to beer fest I didn't get any good pictures!

Have you been to a beer, wine, or other tasting? What do you recommend?

Camping Win, Glamping Fail

 

Well my dreams of a glamorous camping experience did not really pan out. I was looking super cute as we traveled the 4 hours to our lake in Wisconsin but by the time we got there it was so cold I had to change into the warmest clothes I brought. Of course I would be more worried about how warm it was going to be! I had barely any warm clothes at all! But layers are my best friend (along with sunblock and bugspray!) and I made it work. Also once we arrived at our destination I realized the sad truth that it was really just us friend there and that I had no one to impress. Enter no-makeup and rumpled clothing. Perhaps most shameful of all? I went FISHING. This was the one activity that I was fairly sure I did not want to be a part of but they hooked me (excuse the bad pun) and so the first night we were out I bought myself a 4 day fishing license. It was really fun being out on the lake and I actually caught some good fish! Of course we had to let my 16" bass go because it was Thursday and the season didn't start until that Saturday. Boo. Also fishing is a pretty gross business- live bait, unhooking fish, etc. but I will put a shout out to the guys who were not only patient with me but helped me with many of the 'gross' tasks that I just could not handle.



We spent so much time out on those little boats that I still feel them moving when I sit really still. We had two boats for our group and the first night we just had 6 of us so four of us (and a dog : ) were in one boat and then our other two friends Brent and Ellen were in another. We joked and laughed and shouted when we caught something but at one point Ellen shouted over to our boat..."Hey! We just got engaged!" Those two have been going out forever and as a group we were pretty sure that Brent was finally going to pop the question but we didn't know when. It was really cute for them but I still think that someone proposing to me on a fishing trip would be a "no." But she is really happy and that is all that matters. Now we get to plan another wedding!!!!! Yay!!!!!

Besides fishing and life changing moments we ate really well. Of course this is the "foodie" group but I wasn't sure what was going to happen on this kind of trip. Bless Sabrina's little heart she sent out a spreadsheet the week before the trip dividing up all the meals. Couples had two meals and singles just had one. I actually only had 'sides' for our fish fry that we were planning on having Saturday (depending on us catching enough fish for the event!) so I made a couple of sides and then also some snacky food for in between times. I ended up bringing two kinds of potato salad, two kinds of hummus, mini banana chocolate chip muffins, mini trail mix muffins, and fixins for smores. The mini trail mix muffins were a new recipe and I thought they were fantastic, little bite sized portion of granola, mini chocolate chips, walnuts, and dried apricots. I also took it to the next level for the smores. I made homemade marshmallows and homemade graham crackers. They made fun of me for not making my own chocolate but they all thought it was delicious.

Everyone else brought their A-game as well. We had two different versions of stuffed burgers, hobo dinners, an entire rack of bbq ribs (oh my god yummy), sausage and eggs, the list goes on! By Saturday night we also had quite the catch for our fish fry. The boys took the fish to get them ready (I was not going to watch that). They brought a little fryer and fried up those fish right in front of us. From lake to table in under an hour? Do you get any fresher than that? I had never done anything like that before and I was just in awe. It was so yummy.

 

So overall it was an excellent trip. I was ready to go home though, the boys have a collective maturity of about 12 years old and I swear if I hear another bowel movement joke I will shank someone. But I got in a good chunk of fresh air, reconnected with mother nature a bit and rebooted for now that I am back in the city.

Shout out to one of my besties Krista! It is her birthday today! (Later in the week I will post about the gift I made her.)

Cheers all!

To the Kia! AZ 2011

 

Oh Arizona. It has already been a couple of weeks since I had sun and warmth in my life! It was so good to visit our friends and I am very sure that they were also glad to see us. Some of the highlights of the trip included a trip to the 'Desert Museum', hiking in the mountains, TOMBSTONE, and playing the x-box kinect dance game for hours on end. Also we ate as much delicious food as our systems could handle.

Fooooooood!

 OK Corral!

Earp brothers and Doc Holiday!

Our group in the old west. Not gonna lie- Tombstone was my favorite. It was a really great birthday! I bought a sheriff badge that I wear at work because I am such a nerd. As soon as I got home I bought the movie 'Tombstone'. Ha.