Heritage Days 2009

For those of you unfamiliar with small-town life, every respectable small town throws a little party every year, normally ending with the word "days". There is Sauerkraut Days in Lisbon, Watermelon Days some where up north, Old Settlers Days in New Virgina, well, in Mount Vernon, we have Heritage Days.

Every year, everyone that grew up in Mount Vernon or has some kind of tie, tries their best to make it back... Why you ask? Because its always a blast! There is a street band, a mid-way, lots of carnie food and of course, beer!

This year was especially fun for Bryan and I. Heritage Days kicked off on Thursday night with a fireworks show right across the street from Bryan's new house, so we had people over for a bon-fire and watched the fireworks. The rest of the weekends events take place in uptown Mount Vernon, which is where my new apartment happens to be located. So I threw a little housewarming party on Saturday night before we all headed up town.

Its always fun to see people you haven't seen in awhile and especially fun to be outside on a summer night, listening to music and enjoying a few beers. :)

Already looking forward to next year...

Congrats Mr & Mrs Hansen!!

Over the weekend, Bryan and I's friends, Jamie and Troy, tied the knot! Bryan and I met Jamie while working at Highway and Jamie and I hang out a lot outside of work. :) The wedding was in Riverside and reception in Richmond. The day started off extremely hot and muggy, it down poured almost the second after everyone left the church and the evening ended cool with no humidity. Jamie looked beautiful - all her hard work on the wedding definitely paid off... Although, I am not sure what her and I are going to email back and forth about now at work...

On a side note, the following day was utter hell for me as I think I drank about ten too many beers... I have got to remember that I can not drink like I used to!!!

Summerset Winery

While at the end of our trip to Des Moines, Bryan, Brody and I made a trip to Summerset Winery in Summerset, Iowa which is near Indianola. Now, I am not a huge wine person at all, I prefer beer straight from the bottle, but this wine is delicious!!! It's very easy to drink a bottle all by yourself and not even realize it. (Yes, I have made that mistake, on a week night and work was not very fun the next day...)

Ron Mark is the owner and he has pioneered the grape growing industry in Iowa. Grape production and wine making are two of the fastest growing industries in Iowa, which I did not know until this trip. There are actually numerous winery and vineyards in Iowa, but from what I hear, none of them stack up to Summerset. (Sorry if you disagree, I am going solely off of word of mouth here!)

Ron and his wife are always milling around the winery and love talking to patrons. Ron even took a group of us down stairs to see where the wine is made and talked a lot about the business. He even let us sample some wine that won't be available for awhile. :)

Between Bryan and I while we were there, we bought 18 bottles to bring back with us! Summerset wine is sold in some stores, as you get closer to Des Moines it is easier to find. As far as I know in the Cedar Rapids area I think you can find it at a few Hy-Vees and also at Basket Bowtique. But, there are only limited flavors, so we needed to stock up. :)

Here is a link to their web site Summerset Winery, if you get a chance to go, I would highly reccomend it! I know Bryan and I are planning a few more trips there this summer, so maybe we'll see you there!

Where did March Go?

What a busy month!! I traveled to Orlando, Florida the first weekend in March for a trade show for one of my company's lines... I dreaded the trip as I do all business trips, but it actually ended up being a great time! The show hours were not very grueling at all which allowed for plenty of relaxation time, including time by the pool. The recent time change also allowed more time at the pool after the shows since it was light longer at night. We also ate at some awesome restaurants, which, you know me, food can make or break a trip!!! :)

I got back from Orlando on Friday the 13th (sidenote: flying on Friday the 13th is a little scary...) I literally got off the plane, hopped in the shower and picked Bryan up at work and we headed to Des Moines for a weekend with some friends. We first met up with his friend and college roomate Brody at Micky's off Hickman. It was Brody and I's first time meeting and he is a great, fun, hilarious guy. We had so much fun with him the entire weekend and he really made me feel "welcome" in his and Bryan's little warped world. Later that night we met up with my college roomie and close friend Tristan. With in two minutes of seeing each other, Tristan asked me to be in her wedding which will take place on May 22, 2010. Needless to say, I said yes!

Sidenote: If you know me, you know how I like to bitch about being a bridesmaid. However, I should clarify that it is simply the cost that gets to be annoying. That and not having control over what I am going to wear as I am ver particular. However, the fact that I have had four friends who think so highly of me that they chose ME to stand up with them on their special day, means the world. Plus, it's always kind of fun being apart of the wedding party, it almost feels like you're a celebrity for the day, even if it is only in front of like 200 other people. :)

Anyway, back to our trip. Bryan and I stayed one night with Tristan at her and Billy's cute new house and got to play with their cats. (Stay tuned for my next blog about the impact of the cats.) Saturday night we went out to dinner with Tristan and her friend Jess, who was a blast and then Brody met up with us and we all ended up at the Piano bar.

Later on that evening, Bryan and I's friend Burge met up with us too... Burge is always a trip. :) It was a great trip and a lot of fun, very tired when we got back!!!

Iowa/Minnesota Game

I made the trip up to Minneapolis this past weekend for the Iowa/Minnesota game. Iowa beat Minnesota 55-0 in their final game in the metro-dome, which added to the already fun-packed weekend we had! Three of my college girlfriends were in town, including my friend Erin who recently informed us all that she is pregnant! It was great seeing all of them and catching up and also hanging out with my parents! Go Hawks!