November Highlights:

• Carrying new holiday items at Minne Made and More & Simply Creative
• Making lots of Christmas cards and ornaments
• Cozy autumn evenings as the days became shorter and the weather transitioned to winter

December Highlights:

• Family trip to Duluth with a stay at Fitger's, visit to Glensheen Mansion and Bentleyville and bringing Frankie to see the North Shore
• Festive lefse and cookie baking
• Snow just in time to give us a white Christmas in Minneapolis
• Holiday celebrations with family
• Cozy nights around the Christmas Tree

A huge thank you to everyone who supported our small business this year. We greatly appreciate your support - whether you liked and shared our posts on social media, purchased cards and/or 3D printed items, gifted our items to others, or told your friends and family about our products - thank you! We look forward to new products and new opportunities to share raindrop paperie and eggheadcopilot with you in 2025!

Autumn Outings: We took the opportunity of warmer autumn days to adventure with Frankie and do some annual autumn traditions! We visited B.F.Nelson Park, Pleasant Valley Orchard and Rustic Roots. The leaves were beautiful and the fresh autumn air was perfect.

Anniversary Celebrations: We celebrated our 5 year wedding anniversary with a beautiful patio dinner at Jax Cafe where we got married in 2019. Truly one of the best patios in Minneapolis!

Family Gathering: My dad celebrated a milestone birthday and we rounded out his birthday month with an autumn themed gathering celebration!

New Retail Locations: Exciting news - you can now find raindrop paperie greeting cards at two new shop locations, Simply Creative in NE Minneapolis and Minne Made and more in Elk River. Additionally, you can find eggheadcopilot 3D printed items at Minne Made and more. We're so excited to be partnering with these retail shop locations.

Christmas Cards and Decor: Now available - holiday greeting cards and decor! Check out the fun assortment of Christmas cards, decor and ornaments.

     

Patio, Pizza and Paws on Grand: We welcomed the month with a visit to a local brewery - Bauhaus and pizza from the Brick Oven Bus. The sun was shining and there was a beautiful breeze as we relaxed at a great NE Minneapolis spot. We enjoyed a fun dog event - Paws on Grand with Frankie meeting new people and other pups!

Enjoy the Neighborhood: Different walks different days showed us new blooms and beautiful views of Minneapolis. I love how our neighborhood changes with the seasons.

New Spooky Season Cards and Decorations: Exciting things have been happening with raindrop paperie, have you noticed? This month brought all new Halloween greeting cards and Spooky Season Halloween Decorations - the perfect adds to your autumn. All greeting cards are handmade and the home/office decor items are 3D printed.

Brewery Visits: This month we visited some of our favorite breweries, as well as trying a new one be close to us! We visited Lake Monster, Utepils, Wabasha Brewing, Forgotten Star, Indeed, and tried out Brokenclock Brewing! Love all the great patios we're able to bring Frankie to.

Neighborhood Walks/Outings: We love where we live and especially how many great things are within walking distance or a short drive. We spent a lovely morning having coffee from FRGMNT Coffee along Main Street on the great patio area by Riverplace. We also took Frankie to one of his favorite parks - B.F. Nelson - to play with his favorite firehose toy!

 New Products Launch: Now available - Spooky Season Halloween cards and decor! This is such a fun and exciting new launch with handmade greeting cards, 3D printed spooky season decor, and fun bundles! Be sure to check out all the new items and add some spook to the next few months.

Just Finished Reading: Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah &  Fly Away by Kristin Hannah

July 4th Holiday Weekend: We took advantage of the sunny times during the 4th of July weekend to get out and about. We went to Forgotten Star for beers on the patio and delicious pizza from Brick Oven Pizza Bus. We also enjoyed a bar-b-que with my parents.

Neighborhood Happenings: Minneapolis Craft Market hosted one of their summer markets at the Machine Shop. It was even more fun because I won a gift card to use at one of the makers there! I treated myself to some fun self-care sugar scrubs and coco melts from Three of Coco (they all smell fabulous!) I also got some coffee from The Get Down Coffee Co. What a fun day it was! At the end of the month we watched the annual Aquatennial fireworks on a warm and breezy summer evening. Additionally, we enjoyed the growing blooms both in our neighborhood and on our patio.

Minneapolis Institute of Arts: My cousin Heather drove in from Wisconsin for a lovely morning wandering around the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. Did you know the museum is always free admission? We both are quite art lovers and it was a great morning catching up and chatting as we took in art from different time periods and cultures.

Birthday/Celebrations: My mom celebrated her birthday AND her retirement this month on the same day! Woo! We all gathered for some beers on the patio at Indeed and tacos from Centro. A great day together and a big new adventure for my mom as she settles into retirement life.

*New: Home & Office Decor* - Check out the newly added home & office decor items to help you create an organized and beautiful work/home space. These colorful and uniquely textured items are 3D printed to add to your desk or home.

Just this month - new Limited Edition Summer Card Sets were added to the online shop! Check them out before they're gone - many have only one set of each style available making them very unique and one of a kind.

Just Finished Reading: The Book of Lost Names by Kristin Harmel

Currently Reading: Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah

            

Art in the Hollow: The first weekend in June we attended the 15th year of Art in the Hollow, a local artist fair that featured close to 200 different makers! The event took place in Swede Hallow Park, a beautiful, lush green park in St. Paul. It was a great day to wander around and see all the awesome makers and art.

            

Birthday Celebrations: June is my husband's birthday so we took the opportunity to get out and have some special celebrations including patio beers, coffee and rhubarb pie (baked by my parents!).

                        

  

      

Father's Day: Dad and I got to celebrate Father's Day with mini-donuts and iced lattes at Bread & Pickle by Lake Harriet. We lucked out on a day when it was cooler and partly cloudy - with the true excitement having the weed harvesting machine pass by us multiple times while we sat on the bench and talked. Highly recommend the mini-donuts and lattes here - they're open every day of the week too!

Northeast Dog Parade: An annual event in our neighborhood is the Northeast Dog Parade! We love this event and it’s one of Frankie’s favorite too. We all gather at the park, costumes galore, and we walk around the neighborhood, seeing lots of people and providing some great entertainment for those sitting on the local restaurant patios. Lots of great sponsors put on this event.

  

  

New Card Designs: I am truly inspired by the things around me and my experiences. This month I had lots of fun creating new cards that are bright and colorful - inspired by the current summer vibes.

Just Finished Reading: Reign by Katharine McGee

Currently Reading: The Book of Lost Names by Kristin Harmel

         

Flowers, walks and time outside: This time of the year our neighborhood becomes beautiful with flowers and everything turning green. We have been enjoying strolls to the park and time outside on the patio to get some fresh air. The trees bloomed and the city really showed off.

Machine Shop Makers Market and Nicollet Island Pavilion Market: Two venues in our neighborhood hosted makers markets on the same day so we were able to walk and check them both out. One was at The Machine Shop (hosted by Minneapolis Craft Market) and the other was at The Nicollet Island Pavilion (hosted by the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board).

Mother's Day: I spent Mother’s Day with my mom having coffee at SK Coffee in St. Paul - we lucked out with a beautiful sunny day! After our lattes we went out to the cemetery where my grandma and grandpa are. We ended the day with lunch on our patio with the whole family. I even got a beautiful plant from Frankie for Dog Moms Day.

Minneapolis Sculpture Garden Art Fair: We ventured over to the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden near the Walker Art Center for the first Sculpture Garden Art Fair. What a great event! Lots of wonderful artists and makers set with the city background and awesome sculptures. 

      
Art-A-Whirl and Doors Open Minneapolis: If you haven’t been to Art-A-Whirl ever, mark your calendar to attend next year! This annual weekend event that highlights and showcases hundreds of local artists is a weekend full of walking around, music and cool things in NE Minneapolis. We also visited one of the sites for Doors Open Minneapolis - the A Mill Artist Lofts and saw into the tunnels of the old Pillsbury Flour Mill.

 Dog Market at Saint Paul Brewing: We love taking Frankie to different breweries, especially when there is a dog focused event happening. We checked out the dog focused market at Saint Paul Brewing and got Frankie a new sporty bandana! Their patio is huge with lots of cool seating areas and decorations.

New card designs: This month also came with some fun new card designs including Blooming Beauties, Donut Sweets Birthday and more! Also a very fun custom Bull Terrier Card order!

Just finished reading: Somehow - Thoughts on Love by Anne Lamott

Currently reading: When Harry Met Minnie by Martha Teichner

        

Farewell to the Stone Arch Bridge: As the Stone Arch Bridge planned to close mid-April for 2 years for a planned maintenance project, we took a final walk across and back as a family. This bridge holds many memories for us and has been a place of special days for our little family. Frankie loves walking over this bridge and it is one of the reasons we love living where we do. The final day it was open was sunny, warm and beautiful and we spent several hours strolling over and back to embrace the views one final time for 2 years.

Earth Day Cleanup: We took part in our neighborhood Earth Day Cleanup! It was great to see so many people out working to keep our green spaces and parks clean, even though it was quite the chilly morning! Thanks to all who picked up trash in our neighborhood.

Time Outside:  Frankie loves to get outside and sniff around and go for strolls in the afternoon. We love that Father Hennepin Park is so close to us and we can go there to walk around. The tulip bed on Main Street is now blooming - a seasonal favorite to see!

   

 

April was National Card and Letter Writing Month: Every year in April National Card and Letter Writing Month is celebrated! It's the perfect time to send out a few extra pieces of mail and handwritten notes. Snail mail is something I absolutely love and think it's equally fun to send and receive!

Just Finished: The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah (highly recommend!)

Currently Reading: Somehow: Thoughts on Love by Anne Lamott

               

Frankie's 12th Golden Birthday: Our best pup turned 12 years old this month and celebrated his golden birthday! We spent the day together going for a car ride, to the park for playtime and a beautiful walk around the neighborhood wearing his golden birthday crown. The weather was perfect and he got some fun cards and gifts in the mail from family and friends.

 

Wild weather month: The month started off very springlike with warm temps and sunshine! We went for many walks and trips to the park for playtime. The end of the month brought lots of snow and cold - a complete opposite to how the month started.

 

 

New cards were added to the online shop this month and fun new items to help you elevate the greeting card experience! Easter greeting card holders were a hit to create festive decorative areas!

Currently Reading: The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah

Currently Baking: Carrot Cake Cheesecake Bars

Trips to the Park and Walks in the Neighborhood: We took full advantage of the unseasonably warm weather this month and headed to the park on multiple days, as well as took many walks in our neighborhood. It's still very hard to believe we've had such little snow this winter and temps in the 40s, 50s and 60s!

Birthday Celebrations: February is birthday month for me and we celebrated with a great lunch at my parent's house. It's always a special treat to have Dairy Queen ice cream cake - yum! Celebrations continued at home with lovely cards, presents and well wishes from many friends and family. I also used a gift card that I had won last summer to pick up a beautiful bouquet of flowers from Brown and Greene Floral in South Minneapolis.

Valentine's Day Celebrations: We all dressed up in our reds and pinks to celebrate lots of love! Day was complete with dinner from Punch Pizza - one of our favorites! Frankie got a sweet package in the mail from friends out east.

New Cards: Many new card designs appeared in the month of February and there's even more on the way next month!

Currently reading: The Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley Heller

Highlights from the month include:

Final cozy moments around the tree: We spent the first few weeks of the month still enjoying the glow around the Christmas tree and the colorful decorations. It's always hard to pack up the decorations, but it sure does feel good to have a clean, organized start to the new year when they come down!

Time outside: On the days when it wasn't super cold we got out for some walks around the neighborhood. Frankie always enjoys getting in some good sniffs out and about.

Park trip: On January 31 we hit 55 degrees with sunshine and blue skies, so we headed to BF Nelson park in Minneapolis with Frankie to play around in the field. He loves playing with his toy and it sure does tire him out!

New card designs: This month many new card designs were added to the online shop! Right now Valentine's Day cards are really popular, and there's some new Bull Terrier Valentines added with cute silhouette add-ons

Currently Reading: The Paris Assignment by Rhys Bowen

Current Favorite Recipe: Baked Turkey Meatballs from Well Plated by Erin

Christmas Decorations: Every year we put up our tree and decorate for the holidays. We have lights and figurines, cute stuffed animals and candles. Our tree is full of lights, childhood ornaments and ornaments made by/from friends and family members. And there's a lovely assortment of ornaments that have been gifted to Frankie too.

Cookie Baking with Family: We baked several kinds of cookies with my in-laws, an annual tradition! We made mint chocolate chip, ginger molasses, sprtiz and more! The cookies always smell so good and it's a fun festive day.

Frankie's Ear Hematoma Surgery: Right before Thanksgiving we had a small hematoma on Frankie's ear drained. Unfortunately it came back (which we knew was a strong possibility) and he had surgery to drain and repair it early in the month. All went well, but it meant a few weeks of extra care and attention, as well as wearing an ear wrap 24/7 to let the site heal. Luckily we got him a maroon colored wrap so he was still festive for all his Christmas photos.

Annual Lefse Day: A favorite of the holiday season, Lefse Day at my parents house. For the past several years, my dad and I make lefse for the holiday season. It's always a festive time and I love that we have this tradition together.

Christmas Day: This year we celebrated Christmas Day at my parents house with tasty meatballs, good drinks and a great time.

#bullysunitesccex23: Once again Frankie participated in the Bull Terrier Christmas Card Exchange and sent over 100 cards and emails out to his friends all over the world! It's one of the best times of the year and an incredible joy to receive beautiful cards from all over.

Fresh Air: Took some final autumn walks in our neighborhood when the temps were still seasonable.

Celebration: Had belated birthday celebrations for my dad complete with a White Castle Crave Case, brownies and pumpkin cheesecake ice cream!

Final Apple Orchard for the Year: Visited our favorite apple orchard, Pine Tree Apple Orchard, for sweet treats to last throughout the winter.

Duluth Trip: We went up to Duluth for a few nights to enjoy views of Lake Superior and kick-off the holiday season! Highlights included Glensheen Mansion, Bentleyville and sunrises over the lake.

Added some fun new cards to the shop!

Highlights of the month included:

Visited Pleasant Valley Apple Orchard: It's great that this apple orchard allows dogs and has a fun little nature walk to do while there! We picked up some cute little pumpkins while there, along with very tasty apple donuts. Glad that this place has become a yearly tradition for us.

Visited Whistling Well Apple Orchard: Another great apple orchard that allows dogs! We walked around the orchard and checked out the pumpkin area too. Before we left, we picked up some yummy apple cookies in their shop. Lots of character at this cute apple orchard.

Walks in our neighborhood: We absolutely love our neighborhood and we love going for walks in our neighborhood. There are so many great views along the river and from the several bridges that are right by us. Autumn is a great time to see the changing leaves and how different it looks season to season.

Attended the 3rd Ave Bridge Reopening Celebration: After several years of this bridge being closed for repair, it opened to the public again at the end of this month. How fun it was to get to cross the bridge in the middle of the road and see new views! Frankie had a great time checking it out too!

New cards to the shop: You may have noticed that the online shop got a little revamp over these past few months with a new design. I've been thrilled to add new card sets to the online shop and will continue to add more over the next few weeks.

I also celebrated my birthday this week and got many lovely cards in the mail, as well as birthday texts and calls from loved ones 🥳 The day was made special with yummy iced coffee drinks, birthday donuts and cheesy noodles for dinner (one of my favorites 😊)

I've gotten into painting my nails quite a bit as a fun way to add color to my style and days. Over the holidays I got a 10 color set from Target that had these great neutral and pastel colors in it. I decided to go with this mauve/purple color this week and wasn't disappointed.

Continuing on my healthy skin care routine, I've been loving these two items from Salve Natural BC - a lip balm and a hand salve that is so hydrating and nourishing. I got both of these items as Christmas gifts and they are a perfect thing to have around to moisturize with.

The dry and cold winter air has been super harsh on my skin. In an effort to combat that I’ve been drinking lots of water and taking good care of my skin! I love using this Rose Water Face Spray from Trader Joe’s - it’s so refreshing and smells amazing!

The third thing that brought me joy this week was my Simplified Planner. I love using a paper planner and this one is the best. It helps me track my work days, but also things I need to do, meals we’re eating for the week and a great place to write random reminders. The layout is really clean with pops of great color throughout.

Looking ahead helps me to know cards I need on hand and when I'll need to mail them by to arrive by the special date. I will often make a note in my planner of the event, but also the mail by date so it can arrive in a timely manner. Think about the last time you got a fun piece of mail - maybe it was a card for your birthday or a thank you for hosting a gathering. Be sure to share that feeling with someone else when their birthday rolls around!

My friend Alyssa has recently gotten into making candles and has made some that truly smell amazing! I've burned through several different scents, but Pine Berry from her winter collection is one of my favorites. After burning through one over the holidays, this week one of my joys was lighting a brand new Pine Berry candle and letting the scent fill our home. You should check out her candles: ajlt candles

Since I work from home, I’m pretty frequently snacking. And while the majority of the snacks lean towards the healthy side, I’ve got to have some sweet treats around. I just ordered these Dark Chocolate Covered Pretzels in my last Target order and they are truly delicious! And just a few hit the spot for a sweet snack.

I've made it a goal to read more often, and read more books. Since the start of the pandemic, I've been making it a point to try and read a little bit each day. I recently started this book, Anxious People, and it has been really enjoyable to read. I have read several other works by Fredrik Backman, and each one is unique but lovely. Cold winter days are also perfect for snuggling up with a fleece blanket and getting lost in the book pages. 

I just order these sets off USPS.com and they arrived quickly and packaged very well, so as not to be crushed when shipping! 

Photo by NarrowLeaf Photography

2020 has looked nothing like we planned for or dreamed of. We're all aware of the changes that March brought, how our social lives were halted, our normal routines dramatically changed. I don't need to get into the weeds right now of the hardships this year has brought for so many, or the emotions that we have all experienced this year because we all know them too well. We've been living a different experience for months now.

I'm excited to jump back into writing blog posts here and hope to share with you recipe/meal ideas, how we're celebrating the holidays this year (with many changes from a normal year), crafting ideas, organization ideas, and some of my favorite products/items these days. I look forward to connecting with you all again!

More to come soon!!

Shawn's birthday is in early June and I took the day off to spend with him. We went for a nice bike ride around Como Lake and ended the day with dinner over on Main Street at Hideaway Burger Bar in the St. Anthony Main neighborhood with my parents and his parents. It was a beautiful summer night and the food was great!

Summer is the perfect time to attend events and explore new breweries! Our goal was to get outside as much as possible, and to take Frankie out and about as well! We attended the Dogs and DJ's event at Utepils Brewing in the Bryn Mawr neighborhood of Minneapolis. Frankie jammed out to some tunes (and made new friends!) while we enjoyed a nice beer in the backyard patio. We also made a stop at Able Seedhouse in NorthEast Minneapolis for an afternoon beer and to use our Sidewalk Dog Brewery Pass. We went to Urban Growler for lunch with my parents and checked out the Summer Buzz Craft Show. Afterwards, we stopped at Bang Brewing for a beer under their nicely shaded patio. Sociable Cider Works hosted the MPLS Vintage Market in June and even though it was a little cloudy and cool, the event was well attended and Frankie had a blast meeting a lot of people! We made a couple of visits to Pryes Brewing in Minneapolis and we attended the Save-A-Bull Summer Brewery Tour night at Indeed Brewing and enjoyed a lovely evening out on the patio. Using our Sidewalk Dog Brewery Pass even more, we checked out Union 32 in Eagan, as well as enjoying some time on Summit's patio in St. Paul. We made sure to celebrate National Donut Day with coffee and donuts at the Finnish Bistro. And we made it to Lake Monster for a nice patio night and pizza! Headflyer was also an evening visit one week with patio time and we ventured to White Bear Lake to Big Woods Brewery as well. 

We celebrated with both of our families for Father's Day. With Shawn's family we went to the Pryes Brewing Block Party and then went for a nice walk along the river to a park all the nieces and nephews could play at. Frankie had his first ice cream experience with a pup cup from MN Nice Cream - he loved it! On Father's Day, my dad and I got coffee and donuts and then went to the airport to watch the planes land from the viewing area. It turned out to be a nice sunny day and we met up with mom and Shawn at Bang Brewing for beer and brick oven pizza.

Shawn's side of the family hosted a very lovely bridal shower in July with yummy food and a fun mimosa bar! It was a great day with some wonderful women and I'm so excited for our upcoming wedding (under 80 days as I write this!) 

We celebrated the 4th of July at Pryes Brewing and brought Frankie along. It was a warm day, so we got a very delicious and sweet ice cream treat from MN Nice Cream.

We took Frankie to the Minneapolis Pride Festival and walked around Loring Park. Additionally we went to Stillwater to pick out our wedding rings and had a beer at Maple Island Brewing to celebrate!

We went to the farmer's market at Keg & Case in St. Paul one Saturday, as well as the Como Zoo with our friend Dan. We checked out all the fancy cars at the Wheels of Italy event at Pazzaluna in downtown St. Paul in July. 

My mom turned 60 this year and I spent the day celebrating with her! We went shopping and had a great lunch from Cosettas. We ended the day with beers and cheers at Bad Weather Brewing. 

Lots of cards headed out the door to various customers and shops!

            

We had many family celebrations, including celebrating a family birthday at Gasthof Zur Gemutlichkeit in Northeast Minneapolis. We had lots of great food and drinks. We also celebrated our niece Hazel's first birthday and our other niece's graduation from preschool.

April was National Letter Writing Month, and I once again took part in the #write_on challenge to write 30 pieces of mail in the 30 days of April. While I didn't quite get 30 pieces of mail sent out, I did send quite a few and had a lot of fun making different cards and adding lots of stickers to the pieces I mailed out. I enjoyed sending out some fun spring time cards! 

We celebrated Easter at my parents house and at Shawn's parents house. We ate lots of yummy food and the nieces and nephews all ran around in a very exciting egg hunt at Shawn's parents house. It was nice weather the whole weekend, so it was great to be outside and get some fresh air. 

With the return of spring and warmer temps, we definitely got out and about more! We visited the Galleria and saw the spring flower show. We went to Able Seedhouse with Frankie and had a nice walk around Northeast Minneapolis. We went to the HAMMS event at Urban Growler and saw some great booths from local artists. 

We also started using our Sidewalk Dog Brewery Pass at local breweries including Urban Growler, Pryes, and Wooden Hill Brewery. And we visited Bang Brewing in St. Paul on a sunny Friday afternoon. 

We wandered around Minneapolis quite a few weekends, and visited many neighborhoods that we love! This included lunch at Red Cow in the North Loop as well as a lunch at Wilde Cafe along St. Anthony Main. 

Now that it's finally not freezing out, we have taken Frankie on many walks and I have stopped to enjoy several beautiful blooming flowers. I love when all the colors come out at this time of the year, and all the great flowers!

My wedding dress arrived at The Wedding Shoppe for me to pick-up at the beginning of May. It's beautiful and I can't wait to wear it in October!

We attended the Bad Weather Brewing Arcade Weekend on both Friday and Saturday in May. Lots of great beer, food and games - and time with family. It was also Mother's Day - so I got to spend some time with my mama!

I had my first Bridal Shower thrown by my aunt's on my mom's side. It was a great time with family and friends, and I felt very honored to have such wonderful ladies surrounding me for the day. Lots of laughs, great food and drinks!

We started the month by having our food tasting at Jax Cafe for #thislittleweddingofours ! It was a fun date night and we loved how the matchbooks were all set-up with our wedding date on the table when we arrived. The food was delicious and I can't wait now for our wedding dinner this fall!

My cousin Heather came in town and we grabbed brunch at a cute little place in St. Paul and caught up on life. We had breakfast sandwiches at Augustine's and enjoyed the leisurely morning. 

This month I grabbed coffee at a few new places: Five Watt in NorthEast Minneapolis and Gray Fox Coffee in downtown Minneapolis - both were quite good coffee!

We celebrated Frankie's 7th birthday! I can't believe he is already 7 years old - seems like just yesterday he was a little pup climbing in our laps. His birthday was complete with a fun "Happy Barkday to Me" bandana and new toys and treats! He truly is the best pup ever!

Shawn and I went to the Auto Show in downtown Minneapolis. We've gone several years now and it's a fun way to see all the different cars and dream about what our next one might be!

We celebrated St. Patricks Day at Bad Weather Brewing with my parents. Even Frankie put on his green bow tie for the day.

Lots of fun crafting items arrived this month from Thatch and Thistle, as well as another great The Hi Five from 1canoe2. 

Shawn and I went to Stillwater on a sunny spring Friday to look at wedding rings at Allure by Greatons Jewelry and start planning what we want to do. We first grabbed lattes at MADE Coffee and later grabbed lunch with his parents at Feller which is located inside the Lora Hotel. I would highly recommend the burger there!

At the end of the month Shawn was honored with the Outstanding Student Award in Engineering CAD Technology from Century College. He has worked so hard in his program and this award was very well deserved. My parents and his parents were all able to be there for the ceremony and we went to dinner afterwards to celebrate. 

April is National Letter Writing Month and I am once again doing the #write_on challenge - to send 30 letters (handwritten pieces of mail) out over the 30 days of April. I gathered all my snail mail materials and stocked up on some fun cards to send out!

November marked two years since we said good-bye to my grandma - so Shawn and I went out to the cemetery.  Afterwards we stopped at Summit Brewing and had a beer in her honor. 

Frankie started to gear up for winter and all the cozy time inside.  He got a bath and was so relaxed that we actually had to hold his head up in the water so that he didn't fall asleep.  He really is a goofy dog!  He spent much of the two months bundled up in his blankets and squeezing himself into boxes.

My mom, Shawn's mom and sister, and I went to Craft'za in Northeast Minneapolis and had a fun day checking out all the neat booths.  It was a nice variety of vendors with all sorts of products.  I love getting out to local markets and supporting fellow creatives whenever I can.  We had a yummy lunch at Wilde Roast along the river in Minneapolis after the market.  We also made a stop at Keg and Case in St. Paul!

A work retreat took me to the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum for the day in late November.  It had been quite awhile since I had been there and it was fun to walk around and take in some greenery!  They were right in the transition of putting up all the holiday decorations and it was fun to see all the lights and trees going up.

We celebrated Thanksgiving with my mom and dad at their house with a full turkey meal.  Even Frankie got to join in on the fun of the day!  We also celebrated Thanksgiving with Shawn's family and had a yummy steak and fried rice meal at his sister's house.

We visited many breweries in November and December - especially with Frankie to use our Sidewalk Dog Brewery Pass beer stamps before they expired.  We went to Bent Brewstillery in Roseville, Headflyer Brewing in Minneapolis (also to kick off 12 days of vacation) and Able Seedhouse in Northeast Minneapolis (with my mom and dad).  It's great that so many breweries allow dogs inside - Frankie loves to get out and meet new people!

I participated in two cookie days this year - one with my mom/cousins/aunt and one with Shawn's side of the family.  It's always fun to bake lots of yummy cookies and get into the holiday spirit!

My dad and I continued with our traditional Lefse Making Day and enjoyed a nice holiday morning making lots of lefse.  It's always a nice thing to have around during the holidays and a tradition I look forward to with my dad!

I was very excited to be a part of the Santa's Shoppe event at Amy's Cupcake Shoppe once again this year.  It's always a fun, festive event and I love connecting with people and being able to share my passion of making cards.  There were other great vendors there again and lots of yummy cupcakes and treats!

Shawn and I brought Frankie to the Holidazzle in Loring Park, as well as the holiday market that was happening at Lakes and Legends that day.  Frankie was pretty festive in his plaid coat and it was nice to get out and walk around in Minneapolis.  The large art displays at the Holidazzle were pretty cool to see.

I spent the day with my parents checking out some holiday festivities around the Twin Cities.  We first stopped for breakfast at Augustine's in St. Paul which was quite delicious.  We then headed over to Rosedale Shopping Center to check out the holiday light displays they had up - including the giant moose in the middle of the mall.  We were also able to stop at the holiday flower show at the Como Conservatory.  The flowers were absolutely gorgeous and incredibly festive for the holiday season!

Shawn and I enjoyed a fun bavarian breakfast with my parents at Clutch Brewing within Keg and Case.  It was a great event with really good food, fun music and great beer.  If you haven't been to Clutch Brewing you should check it out - lots of great beer and fun seating up on the second floor. 

                  

Holiday break brought 12 days of vacation for me that involved a lot of fun and relaxing. Holidays tend to bring family and friends from out of town back to Minnesota and it was great to see my dear friend Franny at the new Revolution Hall in Rosedale.  We had yummy tacos and great beers and caught up on life!  I also had breakfast with my friend Leeah at The Copper Hen before she takes off on her next adventure!  Shawn and I went to the Minneapolis Institute of Art and visited our favorite galleries.

Christmas celebrations were had with both sides of the family.  We had extended family Christmas with Shawn's side the weekend before Christmas.  The two of us were "gifted" the legendary family duck in what we thought was just a nice engagement cake baked by cousins.  We spent Christmas Eve with my parents having a nice spread of appetizers and a good meal.  Christmas Day we spent with Shawn's family with apps, drinks and all the energetic kids!  And of course Santa Paws came for Frankie!

Frankie was once again a part of the Bull Terrier Christmas Card Exchange with all his friends on Instagram.  We ended up sending out over 100 Christmas cards to families all around the world and received so many back!  It is always so fun to get mail from other bull terriers and dog lovers.  He also loved being festive in his holiday robe and holiday pjs!

Frankie being the only child that he is, was spoiled with a new plaid hoodie and Halloween treats from friends out east.  He's a pretty fashionable dog and likes to stay current with the trends :)

I went to happy hour with a friend at The Beacon within the Graduate Hotel on the East Bank Campus of the U of M.  We enjoyed some yummy apps while catching up on life.  I always forget how cozy that place is.  I also had a fun Saturday shopping with my mom checking out the outlets in Eagan for the first time.  I was excited to see the new store at Rosedale Shopping Center - Rose and Loon.  It's full of locally made items and carefully crafted goods.  Stop by the next time you're there!

We had an early birthday celebration for my dad at the beginning of the month.  We celebrated with brownies and beer! On his actual birthday him and I checked out the new Bogart's Doughnut Co. and Five Watt Coffee in the new Keg and Case Market on West 7th Street.  The donuts were very yummy and we liked the chocolate cake donut the best.  Keg and Case is really neat with a very open feel and lots of shops and restaurants to check out.

Shawn, Frankie and I spent a day in Stillwater.  We first went to the Dogtoberfest event at Lift Bridge Brewing and then enjoyed a beer on the patio of Maple Island Brewing.  It was fun to take Frankie out and about and he enjoyed sporting his new plaid hoodie.

We had our first visit to Sociable Cider Werks with Shawn's parents one afternoon.  I love cider so it was fun to get a flight and try a couple different kinds while we were there.  We also brought Punch Pizza and enjoyed that.  Frankie got to come too as they allow dogs inside and we used one more stamp on our Sidewalk Dog Brewery Pass.  

October 21st is our dating anniversary (7 years this year) and we typically try to do some fun things around it, especially if it lands on a weekend.  This year we took a long weekend to relax and do some of our favorite things and little did I know the weekend would end on such a happy note!  We went to lunch at Groveland Tap on the Friday of our long weekend and then enjoyed a lovely autumn drive up and down the St. Croix River thru Stillwater and Afton.  It was a beautiful afternoon and nice to get out and see the fall colors.  On Saturday we went back to our favorite neighborhood, St. Anthony Main, and had a cozy lunch at Aster Cafe.  We walked up and down Main Street and onto the Stone Arch Bridge.  We headed over to the North Loop and walked around some shops over there.  It was a nice leisurely afternoon walking around Minneapolis. 

Another tradition we have is to go to Pine Tree Apple Orchard every autumn, and usually around our anniversary.  This year it ended up that we were able to go on our actual anniversary - Sunday, October 21st.  Shawn was very adamant that we got to the orchard at 9:00am to beat all the crowds, which was fine because neither of us really enjoy big crowds.  It was a beautiful blue sky sunny day, a little chilly but perfect for cozy outfits and autumn boots.  After we got there we got our usual apple cinnamon donut and apple turnover before walking down to the lake that is at the orchard.  It's really pretty down there and we usually take some photos.  Little did I know that we had to get there early that day because Shawn had the biggest surprise ever planned for me by asking me to marry him and having a photographer capture the entire thing!  I was so extremely surprised and so, so happy! 

We had a great time after the proposal taking photos with NarrowLeaf Photography all around the orchard.  Check out the photos here!  Our whole engagement story was even published on the How He Asked website: right here!  The rest of the day was spent going to both of our parents and sharing the good news with them.  We are so happy to be engaged and I'm so excited to marry my best friend!

The rest of the month was filled with sharing our engagement news with family and friends, having a family autumn birthday brunch celebration and gearing up for my favorite time of the year - Thanksgiving into Christmas into New Years!

I also received the October HiFive from 1canoe2 and it was the best one yet!  I loved getting so many fun holiday cards in anticipation of the upcoming holiday season.

The month was filled with little visits to Twin Cities restaurants and coffee shops.   We got lattes and "puppy dog tails" (the best cinnamon twist pastries ever) at Isles Bun and Coffee and grabbed burgers at Selby Bar and Grill.  We also went to The Happy Gnome to enjoy one of the last truly nice weekends of the season.  Even Frankie had a great time sitting out on the patio.

The annual tradition of going to the Nativity County Fair on the Friday night of the three day festival continued.  We went with my mom and dad and enjoyed a nice night outside with burgers and beers.  

Earlier this year we got the Sidewalk Dog Brewery Pass and have been making an effort to use the pass to explore new breweries in the Twin Cities.  One sunny Sunday we headed to the west metro and went to Excelsior Brewing and Unmapped Brewing Co. Since it was warm and sunny we walked around the water in Excelsior and Frankie had a great time exploring new areas. Beer at both places was really good!

My October HiFive from 1canoe2 arrived and was full of fabulous cards!  

We visited Waldmann Brewery for the first time by attending their Oktoberfest.  It's a super cute brewery off of West 7th Street in St. Paul and the inside has a ton of character!

With some Fridays off during the month, Shawn and I hopped around the Twin Cities.  We visited one of favorite spots to get a latte - J&S Bean Factory in St. Paul.  We also went over to our old neighborhood and grabbed lunch at JL Beers.  If you've never been there I highly recommend it as a great place to grab a burger and fries with a large selection of beers on tap.  We spent time outside on our patio too with Frankie so he could smell all the smells outside!

Having actually never attended the Uptown Art Fair, we decided to go this year.  In true MN summer style it was a hot and humid day, but we enjoyed grabbing a beer and walking around all of the different booths.  Studio Ink was there with some great new greeting cards and you were even able to take a few home for free.  Lots of great color and design on their cards!

We attended a dog event at the New Bohemia restaurant in Roseville out on their patio.  We'd never been to this location (having been to the NE Minneapolis one as well as the one in St. Paul on West 7th Street).  Yummy food and a big selection of beers.

Towards the middle of the month Shawn's aunt and uncle were in town from Colorado and it was a great time to have a family gathering with everyone.  Hosting at our place allowed for all of the nieces and nephews to go swimming in the pool and be outside on the nice sunny day.  It was a great time and everyone had a lot of fun.

I spent a fun Saturday with my parents hopping around the Twin Cities.  We started the morning with coffee and pastries at Cosettas in downtown St. Paul.  The Cafe inside has a great seating area and the decor is really pretty.  After there, we went over to Minneapolis and visited Homespun MN - which is one of the stores that carries raindrop paperie cards. It's a super cute shop and carries work from a lot of wonderful MN makers.  From there we headed to Venn Brewing, had a few beers and food from the food truck that was there that day.  Shawn met up with us on our next stop - Lake Monster - and we sampled a couple of beers there as well.  We were growing hungry at this point, so we went over to Urban Growler and had apps and beers on their patio. 

A big milestone was hit for raindrop paperie as it turned five years old!  Back in 2013 it officially became a small business and I started selling in local shops and creating more designs.  I had no idea all that would happen within the five years that I've had a small business.  There have been late nights and long hours finishing up special orders, but there have also been many wonderful opportunities and connections made by being a creator here in Minnesota.  Thank you to everyone who's purchased cards, to all the store owners who have taken a chance on carrying my cards, to my family and friends who have supported and encouraged me, and all my followers on social media for liking and sharing posts!  Look for more cards to come in the next five years!  

We enjoyed the last few parts of summer by attending a few more events and spending time outside.  Neither of us had ever been to the Greek Festival in St. Paul at Saint George Greek Orthodox Church.  Shawn got a gyro and I got spanakopita, which was amazing!  With the introduction of Lime Scooters to St. Paul, we were on a mission to find some around Como Zoo and the lake.  Unfortunately we were only able to find one instead of two, but Shawn had a good time riding around and I walked around the paths after him admiring the flowers. It was a warm summer night, but always good to get some fresh air.  

I finished the month out with my dad and I's annual trip to the Minnesota State Fair.  We started the day early and are were in the gates by 7:15 a.m. to have our mini-donut breakfast.  Afterwards we roamed the fair grounds and got our usual: pronto pups, french fries, and all you can drink milk.  We wandered some of the animal barns, checked out the Education Building, saw many "as seen on tv items" in the Grandstand and saw the baby animals at the Miracle of Birth building.  We couldn't have asked for a better weather day with cool temps and and a nice breeze!  Great time had by both of us.  (Stay tuned for September's post - I go back to the fair two more times!)