Mill City

On this breezy Sunday afternoon the Mississippi River at St. Anthony Falls was high and forceful as we crossed the Mississippi River on the pedestrian bridge to tour the Mill City museum.  The museum is built on the ruins of the Washburn A Mill that exploded in 1878 due to poor ventilation of flour dust within the walls.  Minneapolis was the biggest producer and disbributor of flour in the world.  The stories of harvesters and the millers were fascinating.

I love it that Michelle and Greg wanted us to take their picture in front of the giant Bisquick box!    2014

Sunday Brunch

Last week we visited our son Greg and daughter-in-law Michelle in Minneapolis.  The kids treated Bob and I at Kramarczuk's Minneapolis Restaurant for Brunch.  The buffet of Eastern European dishes, all homemade, was scrumptuous.  Cabbage Rolls, Muesli, homemade sausages, Eggs Benedict and a smorgasbord of desserts delighted our taste buds.  Our fun day with Greg and Michelle was off to a great start.

Isn't it fitting that the restaurant was founded in 1954-the year Bob was born!

Vacation Vice

Son Chris worked over Spring Break this year and decided to wait until summer to vacation.  He joined with other friends, who also work with him at Belk department store, and rented a town home at Nag's Head, North Carolina.

They had a great time in a modern condominium, complete with a balcony hot tub and the beach nearby.  Before they left, the 3 girls and 2 boys had this old time photo made.  The guys hold tommy guns and beers and the girls are gulping bottles of Jack Daniels.  Gotta love it!

Bob aptly titled it "Vacation Vice".

Lean on, Learn from, Look up to

For my Dad. on Father's Day.  The sentiment is from the card I got him.
"You've been someone I could lean on, learn from, look up to. . . "

Dad will be 92 years old in July and I hope he knows how much those words hold true.  In this daughter's eyes, he can't do anything wrong.  I'm sure he's made some odd decisions, but his love for my Mom and his kids is unfailing. 

Picnic in the Park

Memorial Day weekend at the beginning of summer deserves a special picnic in the park.  We packed a cold meal and traveled to a nearby West Virginia Park at Tygart's Lake.  Here's my menu:

Salmon with Pineapple Mandarin Salsa
Sesame Quinoa Salad
Strawberry Cream Pie Parfaits
Grapes

The Salmon is one of the signature salads we serve in our Healthy Cafe.

Paper plates are not in my cupboards, so I packed the red, white & blue table settings to accent our fun meal.

My Australian scrapbook friend, Cheryl, sent me an envelope of beautiful papers, embellishments and a $2 Australian coin!  When I opened the surprise package, Bob pointed out that the die cut paper looked like a placemat.  I love pretty dishes and table settings to complement my home cooked meals.  A food page was eminent.  

I have been spending much of my creative time on preparing healthy meals and posting these and recipes on my new blog, cindyshealthymeals.blogspot.com.

Here's the link to our Red, White and Blue Picnic:
http://cindyshealthymeals.blogspot.com/2014/05/picnic-in-park.html  

Be sure and check out Sunday's "West Virginia Picnic" and my watermelon cut outs of our beloved state!

Thank you Chez!