Ironman weekend

On Friday Ryan golfed in the St. Cloud Hospital Golf outing with Jim, Jim, and Brody. We did not win but we finished 7 strokes under par. We survived the rain and it was my lucky day, the bar had the seasonal New Belgium product "Hoptober" on tap!

On Saturday we went to Madison, WI to watch the Ford Ironman. Hagen finished the race in a little over 14 hours. GREAT WORK! It was very inspiring to see people from all 'walks of life' swim the 2.4 miles, bike the 112 miles, and then run a full marathon (26.2 miles).

Weekend fun

This weekend Mollie and I went to the State Fair, her uncle Rick's cabin, and got Direct TV!!! On Friday night we met my family at the state fair and did what most fair goers do, EAT. We had a rhubarb/strawberry malt, cheese curds, a corn dog, cookies and milk and I sampled Bacon on a Stick.

On Saturday we treked up to Rick's cabin with Mollie's family and enjoyed a pontoon ride, dinner and a fire with Mollie's favorite, S'Mores. On Sunday, after a nice run (12 miles for Rick and 8 for Ryan) we enjoyed Rick's mexican eggs (they were great!) and Mollie's watermelon. Then we went fishing and Mollie caught a whopper (note the picture).

We drove home around 5 pm just in time to judge a pie contest between Mollie's Dad (Barney) and the neighbor, Gayle. Here is where it gets interesting: I was chatting outside while the voting was taking place and I was judge number 5. The count was tied 2 to 2 and I was the deciding judge. After some encouraging from Barney, "You better pick mine!" I made my decision - Barney won by one vote.

Monday we worked around the house and the direct TV installation person came over to install the dish. Then Peater and I fished a little on the mighty Mississippi (Peater caught a northern) and we enjoyed a meal of organic steaks on the grill.

Wow, what a great weekend!!

24 Hours of Salsa "Afton"

Another year in the books. Thanks for all the family and friends that came to support me and the boys as we climbed Afton Alps from Friday at 5 pm until Saturday at 5 pm. I rode 7 laps but was only to ride the "Man Handler" 3 times (I hope Monte likes the picture with me walking next to the Whistler sign).

The weather was great and I think that every one had a great time.

Kayak

So while Mollie was working I spent the evening in the kayak on the Mississippi River. I put in about 12 blocks from our house and paddled up steam for about 30 minutes. I turned around and let the current bring me home. The little trip was about an hour long at sunset.

Fishing

Today I took Peater and his friend Cody fishing. Though we did not catch much we still had a great time.
It is amazing that Peater just turned 15. I met him when he was 8 and we have seen each other every 1-2 weeks for the last 7 years!!!! When I met him I did not have a digital camera (not to mention a phone that took pictures) in fact I did not even know what a blog was. Wow how time flies.

Kyrsten's squeeky shoes

This week Mollie went to visit her sister in-law and her nieces and nephew. They have shoes that squeek with every step. We pray for Ben and Crystal's sanity.

New Car

Mollie bought a new car yesterday, a Subaru Baja. The Baja is a cross between a Subaru outback and pickup. It has a sporty look and fits Mollie really well since she did not want a truck but wanted a vehicle that is safe for baby and for hauling compost.

It is a manual transmision and she will soon be great at driving a stick shift.