This morning in Moscow

 

Charles took to the road east of Albert Lea this morning to attend worship at Moscow Lutheran Church. It is a quaint country church, reminding Charles of one of his early churches, Stark Valley UMC in Nebraska.

Night out in Albert Lea

When Belinda got home from work, we made our way to the American Legion where the Ladies Auxiliary was hosting a soup and dessert fund raiser. It was a lot of good food and a great atmosphere!

Backyard surprise

Our bird feeder is starting to attract more birds. We've also seen quite a few rabbits and squirrels in our backyard and even chipmunks. Today was a surprise however with the appearance of two mallards!

Today in Blue Earth

Little Bean Sprout is seen around town

A treat for Charles

What a difference a day makes! After yesterday's warm weather, today was chilly and wet! We drove to Blue Earth to see our friend, Judy, enjoying a nice visit which included buttons for Charles and lunch at The Farmer's Daughters Kitchen.

Minnesota golf!

Charles took advantage of the opportunity to get in a round of golf, his first since last August, on an unseasonably warm day. This was his first time playing in Minnesota since 2009 and the first time playing in Albert Lea at Green Lea Golf Course.

Night out in Albert Lea

After a long day at work, we decided to treat ourselves to a bit of refreshment at 112 On Broadway. We shared a mega pretzel and even played a few cards of bingo!

Sunday morning in Austin

We made our way east this morning to attend worship at First United Methodist Church in Austin. It's a beautiful building with a LOT of history.

A spring afternoon drive

Ellendale turns 125 this month

welcome to Clark's Grove

A pretty rack for our quilts

We took a drive today, visiting with the pastor at the Owatonna United Methodist Church and then having lunch in Owatonna before heading back toward Albert Lea. We passed through Ellendale which is observing its 125th anniversary this year. Our last stop was in Clark's Grove, where we visited Vintage Grove, an antique store where we got a nice quilt rack.

Seeing clearly on Garfield Ave.

We took another step in getting our cottage in shape with the installation of double-pane windows in the living room. This may be the last of the big projects we undertake for a while!

One year ago...

One year ago today, Charles was in the hospital in Boulder receiving a pacemaker.

 

Winter says its goodbye

 

The last day of winter came with blizzard conditions in southern Minnesota! The heavy snow began to fall on Albert Lea around 8:15 AM and continued until around 5 PM.  We are guessing about 6-8 inches.

Last Sunday of winter

Glenville UMC

Community Lutheran Church

Quilts on each pew

Charles took the morning to visit two more churches for worship. First up, Glenville UMC (southeast of Albert Lea) which is paired with Alden UMC (where we worshipped a few weeks ago). The second service was just north of Albert Lea at Community Lutheran Church (ELCA) in Geneva.

Last Saturday of winter

After yesterday's unseasonably warm spell, today was a last gasp of winter with blustery conditions and snow flurries. Charles had a treat with a batch of buttons from a friend in Florida.

Wesley's camper

Charles picked up some toys at the local pet supply store for Wesley. We put his "camper" on a table in the three-season room where Wesley likes to spend time watching the squirrels, bunnies, and birds.

A nice day for painting

Mailbox, lamp post, front door rail

t

Bench and lawn art

The look of spring just around the bend

Fresh looking tulips

Touching up the lawn tools by the shed

Charles took advantage of some unseasonably warm weather to tackle seven outdoor painting projects.

Downstairs this afternoon

Charles spent some time in the studio this afternoon, starting a new painting with supervision by our resident cat critic.

Ash Wednesday in Albert Lea

We enjoyed the 8" of snow which gave our Ash Wednesday a winter look! Charles conducted a service yesterday afternoon at Thorne Crest with 42 taking part!

The big snow

The first "big snow" of the winter descended on southern Minnesota overnight with just over 8" falling on our neighborhood. We had an interesting walk across the street in the deep snow for work in the morning and were tickled to find that someone had cleared our driveway this afternoon!

A morning in Ellendale

We had a nice morning with the people at Ellendale UMC. It was extra special because we were there on their potluck Sunday!