Experience Albania: Travel, Pictures, History, Culture

Starting Sunday evening, close to 8 inches of icy, heavy snow fell in and around the Twin Cities. Don’t you just love March?!
Our mailbox serving as a snow gauge as of Monday afternoon:

An iced chai tea latte in Dunn Bros Coffee after running errands in Uptown:

A few views and sights around Lake of [...]

She’s a natural - effortlessly cute and only getting cuter, little Gracy Jane is one of many awesome things about the Brinkman family. While my photos are a bit lopsided with Gracy, yesterday’s get together/dinner included Nancy and Jeff, Grandma Jeanne and Grandpa Vern, Heidi and Dan, Ben, Tony, Aly, & Tom.
Ben with Aly, [...]

After meeting up with Jaimi and Ken, Ben and I got together with Jon, Jessie, Adam, and Lori. We got an itch to be hipsters and nothing was stopping us from heading to NE, the new Uptown. And so it goes that we ventured to The Sample Room:
Jessie and Jon

Lori and Adam

Me and [...]

Ben and I met up with his sister, Jaimi and her boyfriend, Ken at The King and I - a Thai restaurant in Minneapolis. They are such a great couple to hang out with. Ben and I have always wished we lived closer to them and look forward to spending more time with [...]

As promised, Friday night’s fondue fest was well documented.
Follow along and you will learn about the shinanigans we got ourselves into!
It began with a small gathering at Barb and Dave’s …

And progressed to a wonderfully orchestrated fondue fest at Aaron and Jamie’s:

We had three courses … bread, apples, and celery with cheese; chicken, beef, [...]

Our plans were to meet at The Newsroom around noon. But I made it downtown a little earlier than expected, giving me time to stop in at his office so we could walk the walk together.
For those of you wondering, Ben’s O2 supply is just great at his desk.

This tree was at least a [...]

Don’t tell anyone, but Jill left a little early from work to meet me for an impromptu stroll around her neighborhood.
Down along the river and up to the Witch’s Tower …

…we enjoyed the beautiful afternoon and inspiring messages along the way:

Nothing beats a sunny day, a walk with a good friend.

(Jill, come visit me in [...]

Thursday was a true spring day - and my last day babysitting Emma and Sam, who have been such a great part of my weeks since June.
Sam and I strolled down their road to pick up Emma from the bus. It felt so good to walk outside in such comfortable weather!

We also made chocolate [...]

P3100746.JPG

Originally uploaded by nicollet.

The next handfull of posts will hopefully do justice to such a great night of fonuding at Erin and Jamie’s new home. Such a fun group and a wonderful setting. Thank you so much for having us over, Erin and Jamie!
May I now take you through the evening …

Tonight’s Fondue fest has been in the making for over three months, as it includes the five couples that result from the Decker/Silus Family.
If you look closely, we’re all present in this photo, taken at Mike and Lauren’s wedding breakfast:

Two couples from the Decker side:
Jamie and Erin (The Lovely Hosts and Team New House Owners)
Lindsay [...]