2011: Year in Review

Like I said before, 2011 was a great year for us. We went on some really fun trips (Kansas City, Duluth, Montana/Canada, Florida for Stef), did a lot of little house projects and took up some new hobbies. We spent a lot of time with family, friends, Chester and each other.

It was really hard for me to pick the highlight of each month, but I tried. I've also included a link (when applicable) to where I talked about it in the blog. Here we go...

January: Twins Fest with my sister

Christine had never been to Twins Fest before and she's a pretty big Twins fan. It was a lot of fun to take her even if the Metrodome roof collapsed so it had to be moved to a less than ideal venue.

February: Wild game for Adam's birthday present

For Adam's birthday I got him a pair of Wild tickets. He graciously agreed to take me with.

March: We finally buy a DSLR camera

I had been wanting a DSLR forever. We did some research and finally pulled the trigger on a Canon 60D. Adam is just as into it as I am. We took some classes but we're still learning. The photos it can take are amazing though.
Weekend Recap: New Camera

I also started this lovely blog in March. You're welcome!

April: Chester's portrait 

 Our little guy had his portrait painted. It was a fundraiser for the rescue (30 Pugs in 30 Days) and some of the cost of it was donated to MN Pug Rescue (where we adopted him from). I love it.

May: Adam gets into fishing big time

Adam and my dad did a lot of fishing in the spring and summer. Now Adam is obsessed. It's a great hobby for him though.
Weekend Recap: Christine's Birthday

June: Kansas City road trip to see the Twins

We planned a roadtrip down to Kansas City to see the Twins take on the Royals. We loved the Kansas City style bbq and the chance to see a different ballpark. We had great weather plus the Twins won both games we went to!
Kansas City Day 1
Kansas City Day 2
Kansas City Day 3

July: Chester's first birthday

 Our little guy turned one. We celebrated with presents and pupcakes.
Chester's First Birthday
Chester's Birthday Party 

August: Trip out west

We went on a roadtrip with my family to Montana and Canada. We saw Glacier National Park, Waterton Lakes National Park and Banff National Park. The scenery was unreal. We had a blast taking photos of everything.
Out West: Days 1-4 at cabin
Out West: Day 5 at Glacier
Out West: Day 6 at Glacier
Out West: Day 7 at Waterton Lakes
Out West: Day 8 at Banff
Out West: Day 9 at Banff
Out West: Days 10-11 Long Route Home

September: Oktoberfest with our families

At the end of September we went down to La Crosse for Oktoberfest. Adam's parents joined us. We had a great time with everyone at the Maple Leaf Parade and the fest grounds.
Weekend Recap: Oktoberfest  

October: Halloween costumes

 Adam's friends have an annual Halloween party. This year was our first time having a couples costume. We had so much fun buying all the different accessories for it and putting it all together. We were inspired by a show we like, Boardwalk Empire.
Weekend Recap: Halloween Party

November: Stef's trip to Florida

Over Thanksgiving I went down to Florida with my mom, aunts and cousin to see Stine and Kelly march in the parade at Disney. We spent 5 days at the Disney parks and 1 at Universal's Islands of Adventure to see the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. The weather was perfect and we had so much fun together.
Florida Trip: Day 1 at Magic Kingdom
Florida Trip: Day 2 at Epcot & Hollywood Studios
Florida Trip: Day 3 at Islands of Adventure
Florida Trip: Day 4 Parade Day
Florida Trip: Day 5 Thanskgiving at the Parks
Florida Trip: Day 6 Last Day at Parks
Florida Trip: Day 7 Return Home

December: Celebrating Christmas with our families

Christmas can be a stressful time of year (I hate Christmas shopping), but it was also nice to spend time with our families. We celebrated early with Adam's family and then went down to my parent's for Christmas weekend.
Christmas with the L's
Our Little Christmas
Christmas with the D's Part 1
Christmas with the D's Part 2
Christmas with the D's Part 3


So long 2011! You were a great year.