Wisconsin Part Two: The Gadgets

The cheese was unique to Wisconsin, but gadgets are unique to my tech-savvy brother. And man, did we make use of some fun ones!

Brother bought a Samsung smart watch to encourage him to get his steps in every day. That led to the discovery of some beautiful hometown trails. 

The Traeger grill led to some tasty cookouts:

Lamb kebabs

Grilled chicken

I made some tasty cocoa with his electric kettle that heats water to a precise degree.

He made us banana ice cream with his Creami.

(This seriously had the consistency of soft serve ice cream, and it was just mashed and frozen bananas.)

I'm probably missing some gadgets, but this is a pretty good list, don't you think? (We may or may not have some of these items pegged for future wish lists.) In all seriousness, though, this was a dream of a trip, and we are so grateful to my brother for his hospitality!

All the Cheese

We just returned from a lovely trip to visit my brother in Wisconsin. This trip ticked all the boxes: good food, special times with family, and lots of outside time and exploring new spaces. I would totally go back, like tomorrow. But anyway. Brother said I should name my trip recap "cheese and gadgets," so in his honor, here is part one: the cheese.

We ate, like, a lot of cheese. There are stereotypes about Wisconsin cheese, and then there is the real thing. Yes, cheese is really a big thing up there! I mean, have you every seen this big of a cheese aisle in your grocery store? This photo was one side of the aisle, and this was at a budget store!

Needless to say, we picked up some cheese at the store, and tried it later at home.

Bread cheese (fried on the stove)

But before that, we visited a local farmer's market and bought some local stuff

Yes, the curds squeaked when we ate them. It's a freshness thing?

Spicy cheese roll with havarti

We ate fried mac 'n cheese bites at brother's company picnic.

The boys loaded up their baked potatoes with some shreds when we grilled out.

Brother got a pesto grilled cheese and shared when we went out for coffee at Barrique's Market.

We got all the cheesy appetizers at dinner:

Bavarian pretzel with cheese sauce and fried cheese curds at Great Dane Pub and Brewing

And plenty of cheesy entrees:

Texarkana burger (with sharp cheddar) and waffle fries

Irish road reuben (with melty Swiss) and house salad

Big dog smash melt (with sharp cheddar and white American cheese)

We tried goat cheese with marinara at Sugar River Pizza Company for lunch another day.

As well as some green goddess pizza

and ricotta be kiddin' me pizza.

We snacked on some tiramisu we made with marscapone cheese at brother's house.

And yes, we brought some smoked gouda cheese home. I don't think we're cheesed out yet?

Whirlwind Weekend

We took a whirlwind trip this past weekend, flying out Friday night and back Sunday morning. I never thought I would take such a trip. I never thought I would be so willing to travel wearing a mask, but you know what? It was totally worth it!

We traveled this weekend to attend an event at my brother's work. We rarely get to see him, so when he invited us, we jumped at the chance. Normally, our vacations are about eating and seeing the sights. This time, it was more about soaking up time together. We still did a little of our "normal," though.

Eats

More bao from Dumpling Haus (I went there last time I visited, and we had to go again.)

Taco bao-definitely different, but surprisingly tasty!

Treats

A walk to see the lake

Complete with fall colors

Cheese curds (a Wisconsin must)

Using my brother's Japanese fire table after a walk in the cold.

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Most of all, though, it was just good to be together!

The Big 3-0!

Well, it's May 5 again and the date of my "big" birthday. Am I finally an adult now? No one really believes that I'm 30, but whatever. My birth certificate proves I am.

And now, on to the year in review.

My three favorites from the year:

1) My new job: Hard as it is, I'm finally doing what I trained to do. Lord, help me do my job with grace and strength!

(No, I don't play in the sand every day, but I do engage in sand tray sometimes. This was a tray I created in supervision.)

2) Traveling! Yes, I actually left the state to this year, three times in fact! First, I went to Kansas for my cousin's wedding. Then I visited littlest brother in Wisconsin, and more recently I went to Texas to run the Fresh 15 5K with my brother and sister-in-law.

3) King and Country: Maybe it wasn't the best concert experience ever, but I did it and checked another item off my bucket list.

My Goals for Year 29:

How'd I do? Ehh. I'm working on it, I guess. I have been trying to cook more. I've discovered that I really want chocolate most mornings at breakfast, so I've been having it, usually in the form of chocolate oatmeal or hot chocolate. I stopped being so vegetarian and started eating more meat because it just worked better for me. I'm eating what sounds good even when it sounds ridiculous, like the other night when I had chicken salad and green peas for a bedtime snack. Food isn't the end all, be all, but it's nice when it is satisfying.

My sleep got a little better, as I focused on it more all the times I was sick. But recently it's been not so great. I wonder if the changing of seasons has something to do with it, seeing that I'm waking up at 4 am again.

I've played around with exercise a little bit. I've taken a few more days off due to tiredness and sickness. I got a FitBit watch and am trying to move more during the work day. I'd like to be stronger and healthier, but this is the body I've got, so I need to be grateful for what I can do and not lament what I can't. And I still need to learn to listen to my body more.

My Goals for Year 30:

I'm working on my #bucketlistproject. Those are my specific goals for 2018. In the next year of life, I guess I'd say that I more globally want to:

1) Get better at my job. I need to attend trainings and apply what I learn. That's often a challenge in the fast-paced, ever-changing work world, but it's possible.

2) Stress less. I stress a lot. I really need to get better at managing my own stress so that I can achieve goals one and three.

3) Live life. I'm bad about letting stress and tiredness steal my joy. I need to let those things go and live as much as I can. Certain things are out of my control, like getting married or finding a house I can afford. But I can live in the moment, enjoy what I have, and keep reaching out to find new experiences and relationships.

And that's a wrap. Any comments or suggestions about my goals? What goals did you, or do you have for year 30? Please share in the comments section.

Fresh 15 Race Weekend + Visit to Family

I wrote about my travel oopsies on Monday. Now I'll share about the travel blessings, 15 of them to be exact. See, I had it on my #bucketlistproject to visit my brother and sister-in-law and run a 5K together. Brother suggested the 5K that accompanied the Fresh 15, and I was like, "Okay. Here we go!" There were certainly more blessings than these, but these are my tops:

1) Seeing the sights of everyday life for my brother and sister-in-law.

2) Meeting my cat-niece.

3) Picnic in the park.

(Spinach sweet crisp salad from The Corner Bakery)

4) Target shopping. Brother humored me and I found one shirt, plus a dress I didn't need, but can use for Easter.

5) Home cooked meals by team brother and sister-in-law. (They've got a system!)

6) Finishing the 5K (not my fastest time, but done!)

7) This is only the second 5K for Sister-in-law, and she finished well. I'm pretty stinkin' proud of her!

8) Doubling over in laughter at the silliest of things

9) Sushi + Thai food

10) Catching up with the hostess of my first trip to visit brother in his "real life."

11) Spending plenty of time outside.

(Look at the ponies I saw!)

12) Good old gospel singing and Scripture-preaching at church on Sunday

(I'm the shorty of the family.)

13) Lunch with a soul-friend

(She treated me to shrimp remoulade salad at Newk's.)

14) Long and leisurely naps

15) Overall quality time with people I love