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!!!

Birthday Trip to Phoenix

I am really horrible about keeping my page updated! Anyway, for my 26th birthday on February 18th Bryan and I took a long weekend to Phoenix. He used to live there and his brother (Mike) and sister-in-law (Jill) are down there now along with all his college roomates, so we had plenty to do and plenty of places to stay. I had never been to the south west before and I loved it, although, I think visiting is enough. There were actual real cactuses (sp?) everywhere and the weather was perfect while we were down there. During our trip, we hiked to the top of South Mountain, I was not sure if I would like it or not but I had a blast and it was such a sense of accomplishment when we reached the top. I will definately climb another, bigger mountain during my lifetime! I also got my first tattoo while down there! I was nervous and I'm not going to lie, it didn't feel like I was being tickeled with a feather, but I think it is really cool and I would like to get another one some day. We also spent time with Bryan's college roomates and their finacees, wives and girlfriends, they were all such nice, down to earth people! It was also a lot of fun hanging out with Mike and Jill - you can definately see the brotherly bond there. (Between Bryan and Mike, not between Mike and Jill.) It was a great, relaxing trip and I definately want to go back someday in the near future!

South Mountain

Hiking to the Top

My first tattoo!

Out on the town in Phoenix!

Louisville, Kentucky

As many of you know, this past May I started a new job with Highway Equipment Company where I am the marketing coordinator. Part of my job entails traveling across the country for trade shows. This past week I was in Louisville, Kentucky for the National Farm Machinery show. We were pretty busy so I didn't have much spare time to do any sight seeing, however, I did attend my first tractor pull!! Those of you who know me probably think it's pretty funny that I was at an actual tractor pull, but I had so much fun!! I would definately go to another one! The best is when the tractors get going really fast and the sound litterally shakes your whole insides. (We were definately wearing ear plugs!) Spectators got really into the "colors" of the tractors (for those of you who are not farm-oriented, people are very loyal to their "color" of tractor... John Deere green vs CaseIH red vs Ag-Chem gold, etc. etc.)

Next trip on the agenda will be this upcoming Wednesday (also my 26th birthday) when Bryan and I head to Phoenix for a fun trip to see his brother as well as some of his friends. Ah! Warmer weather!!!!