Frontenac State Park

Last Saturday, Ian did a 10 mile race on the trails of Frontenac State Park.

Afterwards, we did some hiking and the views of the Mississippi were spectacular.

On our way back to Rochester, we stopped in Kellogg to visit LARK Toy Company. It seemed to be the only thing there was in the extremely small town. They specialize in making wood and tin toys. There was also a beautiful handcarved Carousel.

Downtown Rochester

View of Downtown Rochester from the Farmers' Market.

You know you are in MN when...

it's mid-September and you:

1. are already wearing a hat, scarf, and mittens on your walk/bike to work.

2. have already put your warmest comforter on your bed.

3. had your first frost already.

It's supposed to be a bit warmer this week....phew!

Rochester Farmers' Market

This Farmers' Market is just down the street from our house. Once we rode back on Ian's bike together. That was an adventure!View of the market from the bike path across the river.

Back to School

Here's where I'm teaching second grade this year. It is the newest elementary school in Rochester (built in 2001). It's about a 10 minute walk from our house, so the car will continue to spend most of the time in the garage. My classroom is the second set of three windows from the right on the second floor.
I survived my first week of school. It was my most challenging first 4 days of school yet. I have been told by colleagues that Riverside has the most difficult population of students in the district and is essentially an inner city school.

Bike wagon

For less than $100 and under 3 hours of labor, Ian manufactured this nifty bike trailer for his commuter bike. It's sweet. It can fit 60 gallons of water or 30 boxes of cereal or 2 cats + accessories. He gets odd looks as he rides around town.