Update!

Tomorrow it will be 2 months since Michael and I were married!!!

  My, how the time does fly when you're having fun. :)

This is our home that we're renting from my folks.  I took this picture on a beautiful frosty morning last week.

 One of our wedding presents... :)

 We now have 2 guest bedrooms. The quilt on this bed was handmade by Rachael (Michael's sister) and was her wedding gift to us. Isn't it lovely?

 Our 2nd and smaller guestroom...  

Michael MADE this bed-frame years ago. :)

 The denim quilt was also a wedding present. Our friends were SO generous!!

 One of the largest of the 4 turkeys we "did in". It weighed 30lbs, dressed.

 A gift from my sweetheart...

 The honey we extracted from the honeycomb Michael discovered in SD...

 My beloved installed a new shower in our home! He's so handy...

 "They" sent us the wrong shower door home, so we used just the shower curtain until last night, when Michael brought the correct door home and put it in where it belongs. I love that man!!

He also dropped my rings off to get them bonded and it feels quite strange to be ring-less now.

 Here's picture proof that he even helped me write out some of our many thank yous 

(still a work in progress as there were 193 to write, but the end is drawing near).

And now, our big news!

It's about our new addition....

....to our farm....

Does this give you a hint?

 YES, we bought a milk cow!!!

 It took a while to decide on a name, but the matter is now decided.

Meet IVY...

Date of birth: July 10th 2013

Breed: Brown Swiss

Purchase date: 12/21/15

Bought from: Prairie Diamond Ranch, Steele, ND

Status: Milking for one month

Temperament: Very docile, but she does have the Swiss stubbornness and if you want her to go somewhere, it's best to let her follow you rather than trying to herd her.   

Notes:  She has quickly adjusted to being hand-milked, even without the kicker. Last night, she let Michael and I milk her at the same time, one sitting on either side.  We're highly impressed and pleased. 

We hope she'll be around for many years.

 She likes to eat...but that's no surprise.  She is a cow, afterall.

We are still waiting for wedding pictures to come from our photographer, but have a few to share.

Consider this a sneak-peek of our special day:

I bought my wedding gown on the Internet, as it is hard to find modest gowns locally. I wore my mom's wedding veil which was altered a bit (sequins were added and the front headband part was removed) by Michael's Aunt Joy.  Our colors were Watermelon and Sage. 

The flower girls, Amelia M, Johanna M, and Tracy Jo M looked like little angels. :)

Our ring bearer/wagon puller/wagon-sitter-baby boys were: Michael M, James M, and Vonn M.

My bridesmaids were: Anna U, Heather C, Miranda G, Dorena W, and Lauretta H.

Michael's groomsmen were: James D (his brother), Grant D (his cousin), Andrew B, Jacob B (my brothers), and Nate A (his college friend).

 My groom with our ushers:

Michael's cousins, Garrett and Ethan; our brother-in-law, Nicholas; and my second cousin, Hristiyan

 Michael's Aunt's sister, Katey has a flower shop (Paws Floral) and did all the flowers for our wedding.   She put these flowers in the bows on the chairs in the sanctuary a couple hours before the ceremony began.

That's all for now.

Happily ever after~

Hello everyone!  This is Mrs. Dalquist writing. :)

I've had several inquiries as to when I'd be getting back to posting on my blog and, well, maybe now is the time to start?  Life is by no means slowing down, but I do want to record some of the special moments of my first month+ of married life here so as to remember them better later, so I'll give a quick update.

Michael & I went on a 2 week honeymoon, traveling as far as Arizona to see the Grand Canyon. We had SUCH a great time and saw so many amazing things. My favorite memories are of being at Yellowstone National Park and the Coral Pink Sand Dunes, oh, and driving through snow in the mountains of CO. Michael also took me to see Cora, WY--a very tiny town. :)

The following 2 weeks were mostly spent in SD, helping my dad and brothers tear down 2 buildings which will later be rebuilt on the farm here and up at Andrew's place. We will be going down there to hopefully finish up that project next week. 

On November 22nd, we went to Mandan to celebrate my grandma Marly's 81st birthday and Thanksgiving with my extended family.

Last week, my husband and I went to MN to visit his family and to go to his grandparent's house for Thanksgiving. It was great to see everyone again and to get to know my new family better. Michael did the morning cow-milking for his dad while we were there to give him a little break. He says he doesn't mind not getting up at 5:20am every morning anymore though. 

This last week, Michael & I were finally able to get our house mostly in order and to work on projects that help to make this house our home. :) It's been a delight filling our kitchen and home with such generous wedding presents... 

 Michael has been helping up at Mid Dakota Grain as needed.  I got most of my name-change paperwork finished (social security # changed; new driver's license; credit card companies notified; bank accounts changed; local gas station card changed; etc...). We also did some shopping and spent our wedding money on buying a beautiful new bedroom set. Michael went to pick it up today so it will be very exciting to get our room set up tonight!  He also bought a pickup box so as to fix up his truck and picked that up this morning. We're now pondering buying a milk cow and stopped in at Carrie K's last night to look at what cows she has for sale. Prayers would be appreciated, that we know if we should buy a cow now and which one.

So, you see, I HAVE been busy, but no, I have not forgotten about blogging and do hope to keep writing from time to time in the future. There will be wedding pictures posted here when we get them from our photographer. In the meantime, if you'd like to watch our wedding (and slideshow AND the Kingery's concert), you may do so here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Re9vNZIJwHc

Have a wonderful December~

PS. YES, I am LOVING being married to Michael David Dalquist!!!

Last night...

Busy, busy days!!!

Tonight is the last night that I will spend in this house as a single woman. Tomorrow night, some of us will be going over to the church with the camper and will stay there until the wedding is over.

Michael just arrived and it is his last night of staying over at my parent's in their guestroom too. :)  He brought the last of his things. What exciting times!!  Please pray for his folks though, as I know they'll miss Michael and all that he did to help keep the dairy farm running well.

My mom and I went to Bismarck today. I got my nails done (first time of ever doing that), so that was fun. I think we're almost ready for Saturday now!

This will be my last post as a single woman too, come to think of it!!

May God bless you all and all of us.
Lots of love,
  Cora Bornemann

Head in the clouds...

I confess. I'm on cloud 9 and not thinking the clearest at times! It just might have something to do with the fact that I'm getting married in 6 days?

I'm more than a little excited!!!  It's been great corresponding with old friends, especially hearing of people who are planning to come share in our joyous day. 

Andrew and I spent our spare time yesterday (and the day before) putting together a slide-show for the wedding.  I finished packing for Michael & my honeymoon today. :) I also cooked up a batch of tomato soup and canned it. I think the rest of the garden produce can now wait until post-wedding.

Saturday, please hurry up and come, and Lord, give me patience! 

9 days...

I'm getting SOOOO excited!!!!  In 9 days, I will become Mrs. Michael Dalquist!!!!!    He is SUCH a blessing to my life. He even brought me flowers on his last visit here. :)  God has blessed me almost beyond belief.  While Michael was here, we worked on several wedding projects (one involved varnishing), and did I mention that my dearest lady-friend, Lauretta GOT MARRIED last Saturday???  :)

She was such a lovely bride and the day was very special. I was honored to be in her wedding party with her sisters and we spent all morning of the wedding curling hair and styling it and talking.... We got to wear hoop-skirts, so that was a new experience.  Michael came to the wedding too so, of course, we had to get a picture together:

I'm so very happy for my friend!!!

 Awwww.... :)

My mom and I spent the day in Bismarck, buying wedding supplies and such.  We'll need to go up one more time next week, then hopefully will have our lists checked off.

And now, I'm exhausted and am going to bed (after talking to my sweetheart for a bit first)!

What a great day!

Michael and I had our last counseling session with the Kyners (we took them out to eat this time) AND got our marriage license in Jamestown. :)

Wedding favors...

My mom came over this afternoon and helped me by finishing up the wedding favors I made for the big day. (They're still a secret.)

I'm caught up with the tomatoes now, so somebody please tell the pink and green ones to stay that way for a month. ;)

Michael is a sweetheart!!  He's been very helpful and interested in the wedding planning project, even when the 304 miles separate us. I just learned today that my childhood friend, Kjersti (and her little family) is coming to the wedding, so now I'm even MORE excited!!  My other childhood friend, Lindsay is also coming, so maybe we can get a picture together, for old times' sake? The three of us used to be inseparable.

Tomorrow I get to start on the big project of baking/decorating cake and cupcakes for Lee & Lauretta's wedding on Saturday, October 10th. I need to get everything ready anyway.  This is going to be a WONDERFUL weekend!!  I'm so happy for my dear friend!  AND Michael is coming on Friday. :)

Please keep my mom in your prayers in the next 2+ weeks. She's had some heart issues lately and I just hope she can enjoy the wedding and not stress about anything.   October 10th is ALSO my parent's 35th wedding anniversary!  So much love and joy!

I probably won't have time to update here until after the weekend....

God is SO good!

In an hour...

...my brothers and are I leaving for MN.  Michael and James are having a paintball-bachelor-party and my brothers think that that sounds like fun, for some reason?  SO, as long as they're going, I figured I might as well hop aboard and go visit certain people that I love. :)   We'll be back tomorrow sometime.

Gotta go feed the birds.

2nd fitting...

Bill and Anna E. came today from Grand Forks. Anna has Lauretta's wedding gown finished, so Lauretta came over and tried it on and it was PERFECT!  She took it home with her for her wedding (in 9 days). :)  Anna isn't finished with my dress yet, but had me try it on. She needs to hem it up a bit more yet. I don't desire to go tripping up the aisle.

I babysat the past 3 days, then worked on putting up tomatoes in the evenings. Still have half a ton to do.

A lot of RSVPs came in last night and today, so that's helpful.  It's going to be a wonderful wedding----with so many friends coming......

A few of the ways I spend my time lately...

...no need to say that life is very VERY busy and full at present!

These are some of the reasons why:

Michael comes and visits every 1 1/2 weeks or so and is a huge distraction to me. ;)

(Here we were up at Mid Dakota, looking at the hopper bins I bought.)

Of course, he's always very helpful too. Yesterday morning, I went out to do chores and found him expanding the turkey pen so they can have more grass and weeds to peck around in. I love that guy so much!

 I still babysit for parts of 3 days every week (and this little one keeps me hopping!)

 I went and had a "Wedding-hair-trial day" with Lauretta and her sisters...

 ....making pickles and sauerkraut....

 ...trying to keep up with the tomatoes.  Today, my mom, Andrew and I picked all of the tomatoes and peppers (I pulled the onions up a few days ago), as there is a chance of a frost the next 2 nights.

 ...and going to special events!   This year, Michael was able to go with me and most of my family to the Alfred church's annual Harvest of Thanks celebration.

Then yesterday, my mom and Michael and I went to a GoDesana essential oils class in Jamestown (we were there for 6 hours). We learned a lot, and yet, I'm sure there is still a vast amount of knowledge to be had on this topic.  

This morning, Michael and Andrew worked on some projects around the house here. They assembled the little red wagon that we'll use at the wedding. Michael and I worked on our wedding programs and are almost satisfied with the wording there. :)  We've also been working through our last 2 lessons in the Pre-marriage counseling book, "Preparing For Marriage".  We're talking about Money, Money, Money now.... 

We've been getting a lot of RSVP replies recently for our wedding, so that's been very helpful. I'm getting more and more excited for THE BIG DAY to arrive!!!  

God is so GOOD!  

He's keeping us sane through all the busyness and I'm finding this planning time mostly enjoyable too. :)  I was working on a wood-burning project this evening...but I can't tell about that until after the wedding, as it's a surprise.

Hair-styling...

This afternoon, after I was done babysitting, I drove over to Lauretta's house to get in on the fun of trying out different hairstyles for her wedding. Some of her sisters were there too, so the table was full of hair clips and curling irons and bobby pins... I also tried on the dress (again) I'll be wearing as one of Lauretta's bridesmaids. Now they can finish sewing the zipper in and hemming it up.

This evening, my mom came over and we turned several heads of cabbage into 11 quarts of sauerkraut. Yummy!

The guys came yesterday to dig her telephone line in, so soon she'll have a landline at their new house.

My dad and Andrew have been very busy getting and keeping Mid Dakota Grain up and running at Steele. One or the other of them have also been doing jobs with their portable rigs. Jacob has been down with a cold (everyone else but I have had that too), so he's been helping Mom with projects over there.

And the big news:

It is ONE MONTH TODAY until I become Mrs. Michael Dalquist. :)  I can hardly wait!!!

Tables and chairs!

Praise be to God----we have tables and chairs reserved for our wedding at last! :)  We can get them from the Christine Community Center, so that will be very handy to have them so near the church.

Ohhhh, there is so very much to tell...about James and Jenny's wedding and the craft fair that Michael took me to and the bridal shower...... And I have pictures too, but don't have the needed ambition to get them over to my computer from my phone tonight, so that will have to wait a while yet.

Lauretta came over last night, just to visit and talk about wedding plans, and we watched a movie (to take a break from all things wedding related). We're both very much looking forward to our wedding days (and are practicing walking in our wedding shoes to get them broke in a bit, both the shoes for our own weddings, and the shoes for each others').

The guys now have the bins and conveyor moved to Steele. They had to get them from Woodworth, ND and ended up renting  a trailer and also Andrew bought a low-boy trailer at the ORR auction last Friday.  While they were loading a bin, a chain dropped and smashed Andrew's telehandler windshield in, so that wasn't helpful, but at least everyone was kept safe. PTL!

Michael is coming tomorrow evening. We are hosting a Project Appleseed shoot at the farm here on Saturday and Sunday, so it will be a blessing to have him here to help prepare on Friday!!  Plus, it will just be nice to have him here. :)   He's bringing the freezer he bought for us, and it's full of the beef he had butchered for our wedding and our future lives together.  There was a mixup at the butcher-shop, so our menu is changing slightly, as we need to figure out what to do with hamburger, rather than the roasts we were planning on using for pulled beef.  Hmmmm

I babysat yesterday and today, and will again tomorrow.   In mid-October, Paula's mom will come and stay for a while and babysit, so I can prepare for the wedding; get married; and go on a lovely honeymoon with my beloved. I can hardly wait!

Will blogging ever be "Back to normal"?

Paula and I were talking about my blog yesterday and were commenting how it might never again be on a daily basis that I post about our lives. Life is just getting fuller and busier than it has ever been before! 

BUT, I do not plan to completely abandon this little spot on the Web, so I hope some of you will check in from time to time still. :)

God answered our prayers favorably and we were able to sell our calf to a lady west of Jamestown. Michael & I delivered the heifer to her new owners on Friday morning, before going to our next pre-marriage counseling session with the Kyners and then going from there to the Crystal Springs Baptist camp for the Labor Day Family Camp work day. Andrew met us there later and brought over the camper. 

 While the guys helped with putting sheetrock up in a building on the campgrounds, I was busy picking rocks (yes, picking rocks!) and scrubbing decks and tables and chairs off.

Mr. Israel Wayne and his wife, Brook were the speakers at camp this time. It was really neat to meet Brook finally, as I feel like I've known her for a long time from reading about her and Israel's betrothal when I was a young teenager. She's very sweet and gentle, just the way I'd imagined her to be. 

Before I post the few pictures I have from camp, here are a couple of the ever-growing-and-changing boy, Vonn Gunner. :)  I babysat yesterday and today and will have this little guy here tomorrow. 

 He still enjoys his bottle from time to time. :)

OH, and Jacob and I got a pen set up and let the turkeys outside. They're really enjoying their new freedom.

I've been busy with trying to keep up with the garden, although I'm feeling quite behind. I've made a lot of pickles and tomato sauce, and yesterday made peach jam and chokecherry jelly. Today I started dehydrating zucchini. Tomorrow I need to turn my attention to tomatoes again. AND cabbage that Michael's mom sent me...

~~~ 

Back to camp:

Saturday and Sunday were both cloudy and cool days, not very ideal for playing in the water, but that didn't stop everybody.

 Water-skiing was popular, as usual.

 ...And guess who learned how it's done??

 Yep, my guy!

Doesn't he look like a pro already? :)

This was right before we decided to go change and go swimming (and went down the water slide a few times too). That didn't last long though, before it was time to warm up again. 

 One of our camp friends captured this moment on her camera.  Michael and I were on separate teams in the "Amazing race", and we had just received our instructions and were just getting up from the tables to get started, when I felt a hand on my shoulder and turned to see who it might be.... :)  

I sure do love my Michael!!

 My mom came over on Sunday for the day. We all went home Sunday night.

Monday (Labor Day), we got to work. My dad, Michael, my brothers and I cleaned up the mess of old stinky grain on the pavement behind our new business in Steele, (Mid Dakota Grain Processing), and Michael also mowed the lawn up there and I took the big weed-whacker around the building and under a bin, but then ran out of string and had to stop. 

 Andrew was knocking down old dusty stuff...

 ...as was Michael...

 Jacob and I swept it together and Dad loaded it up...

 I should have taken a "Before" picture, but believe me when I say that this is a huge improvement.

This last picture is, well, just because. :)

Michael and I got a little more wedding planning done before he had to leave Tuesday morning.

AND we have some big news!!!  

Michael and I purchased our first vehicle together!! :) We want something reliable and fuel efficient for our honeymoon (and for other times too, but especially for that). Our car is currently at Michael's place, as Michael's Pastor, Dan rode with Michael to Fargo and drove it home for us. I'll share pictures at another time. I have to see it first...

This weekend, I/we'll be heading for Minnesota for Michael's brother, James' wedding!  SO much love and joy is in the air these days. 

THANK YOU, LORD.

First clean grain!

Mid Dakota Grain Processing, LLC did it's very first grain cleaning job today!! :)  Hooray!  The guys are still working on some improvements, and have lots of plans for the future, but at least it's up and operating now.

My mom went to Bismarck today and also picked up our Azure order in Dawson. I had placed a good sized order and bought a bunch of spices to fill my cupboards with, so now my food can have flavor again! NICE.

After babysitting today, I went over to our neighbor's (Duane & Shirley) house, as they had a ring-bearer pillow that they donated to our wedding (and some cake pans too). :)  We had a really nice visit and I got to see pictures of some of the places they've traveled too (honeymoon ideas).

This evening, I've been making phone calls, trying to get our one and only bottle calf sold (the ad is on Bismanonline) and attempting to find tables and chairs that we can use for our wedding, as we need a bunch more.  Anybody have suggestions??

And now it's time for sleep. Awwwww

God is so good.

More fun...

It's been a very busy week!!

My mom's childhood (and current) friend, Anna and her husband came from Grand Forks and stayed a few days. Anna is a talented seamstress and will be doing all our dress altering (and Lauretta's). So, a couple evenings were spent in having our flower girls and ring bearers come over to try on their wedding clothes and to get them pinned for alteration. Then, Anna pinned my wedding gown, and Laurettas. We had a lot of fun!

I've been busy babysitting. The guys got all of our wheat combined, so the oats is next. My mom is getting more of her moving boxes unpacked everyday, and has decided on and ordered her dress for Michael and my wedding. :)

This evening, Heather C. and her brother stopped in on their way home from visiting friends and Heather picked up (and tried on) her bridesmaid dress and shoes. We had a very nice couple-hour long visit, and they just left a few minutes ago.

Tomorrow is the start of a new busy week. I'm trying to remember to count each day as a blessing, even when I want them to pass by faster. ;)

Scratching things off the list...

It's so nice to feel that you've accomplished a lot at the end of a day!  This was one of those kinds of days. :)

TODAY IT IS 2 MONTHS UNTIL MICHAEL AND I ARE WED!

I babysat Vonn here for over 8 hours (Zach brought him over), and Vonn was a good boy today and I was able to do wedding planning, as well as getting caught up on the apples (cut them up and added spices and sweetener and put them in the freezer for baking pies this winter).

• Reserved a block of rooms at another hotel in Wahpeton because there was a difficulty that came up with the original one (information can be found on our wedding website, which I updated today : http://www.mywedding.com/michaelandcora/
• Enjoyed seeing RSVPs starting to come in on the website!!  
• Talked to my sweetheart about a project we're working on together for the wedding day, oh, and about a car we're talking about buying
• Figured out how many mints we'll probably need and Kathy and my Aunt Peggy and her sister have agreed to make those--yay!
• Talked to Mrs. Geiger who is making the dessert for our wedding and figured that all out
• Texted to Katie (Michael's Aunt's sister) the rest of the flower order that I'd like for the tables at our wedding and wrote out a check for the total to send her way tomorrow
• Got answers back from Amy (the church's wedding coordinator) about kitchen related things
• E-mailed and Pinterested back and forth with Lauretta's future mother-in-law, Laurie who is helping me with decorations and I think we're making a lot of headway there with a new idea she had today
• Talked to Paula to figure out this week's babysitting schedule and about when she'll bring the Littles over when Anna is here--to get their wedding outfits fitted if they are too big.

I think I'll sleep even better than usual tonight. :)

Wedding planning....

.....There is more to it than I'd thought! But, for the most part, it is enjoyable. Just time consuming.

Guess who came to see me/us yesterday? Yep. My sweetheart. :)  He had to leave again today. While Michael was here, we were up at Mid Dakota Grain Processing (our grain cleaning business in Steele), doing several different things that needed doing. The guys hauled up the misc. extra cleaners that have been sitting in the shop for a long time and put them in the building.  They also pulled some trees out of places where they weren't supposed to be.  I was the cleaning lady and got a little start on tidying up the office and washing windows. Oh, what a mess.

My dad bought a huge conveyor on an online auction, so he went to Grand Forks and pulled that all the way home on Thursday.  My dad also found several hopper-bins and another conveyor on BisMan, which I am buying, but which aren't picked up yet. Andrew has been busy designing a logo for the business.  Mom's kept busy cooking for everyone, and she's been sick a lot (she thinks from the chemical/paint/carpet smells of the new house), so she'd appreciate prayers.

On Tuesday, I went up to Bismarck with Lauretta and we spent the day shopping for wedding supplies. Fun! I've also been busy babysitting.

Today, Michael and I and my parents talked a lot about the menu for the wedding. A very important topic, I assure you. :)

God is so good. I feel so very blessed to have Michael as an ever-growing part of my life. 

And at that very moment,  my phone rang.... It was Michael. I'd offered to talk to help keep him awake. He's home now....and it is time for me to sleep. 

Ketchup time...

Oops, I mean, "Catch up" time.

This is nearly disgraceful, how much time has passed since I posted last. *shocked face*

I shall attempt to get caught up here yet this evening, although I may let the pictures do most of the speaking.

That Friday (over a week ago), Andrew decided he would indeed attend the Lake Itasca music festival, so my mom and I were able to catch a ride with him there. Michael arrived before us, so gave us a warm welcome. :) 

 After listening to the music for a couple hours, Michael, my mom, and I went to see the Mississippi headwaters. Michael had been there earlier in the day and wanted to take us, and I'm really glad we went!

 Our destination...

 Michael, crossing the mighty Mississippi!

 "Nothing to it". :)

 My mom crossed in a different fashion...

 The trails were so pleasant there, as long as you were careful to stay away from the poison ivy...

 Michael found some Touch-me-nots which I'd never touched before, but now I have.  What a fun little plant! 

 Too bad this one blurred, as I love pictures of my sweetheart and I. :) He's so tall.....or am I just short? Hmmm

 The next day (Saturday), my mom, Kathy, Jenny's mom (Dana), James, Jenny, Michael & I headed down towards Litchfield, MN to eat a delicious meal that Michael's grandma Joyce and Rachael had prepared. Then, it was off to the double bridal shower that Michael's Aunt's had planned for Jenny and I.

 The party was held in a lovely gazebo (and yes, it was raining when we got there).   One of the Aunts had worked hard to get both our wedding colors incorporated into the decorations..... Jenny's yellow and my watermelon, with red and green highlights here and there. :)

 The cake with two sets of rings on it...

 The Brides-to-be, Jenny and me...

 Guess who? 

 My future family: 

Jenny, Rachael (Michael's sister), and Kathy (Michael's mom)

 Loved the hats they made for us!

 Someone called these guys to come help load things up after the shower was over. Of course, we had to get a picture with them. :) 

So, do Michael and James look like brothers?  They sure act like brothers!

 The four of us "love birds" went shopping in St. Cloud that evening. 

We made a rather long stop at Tip Top Tux... I have pictures of that, but they will remain a surprise for the time being.

Back at the farm, I like to go out to the barn to help with a few chores, although they all have their routine, so I feel more in the way than anything at times. But, I was able to help Michael move the electric fences around, and managed to get stung by a bee for the first time in my life. It was nice to find out that I'm not allergic to the venom. 

 The next day, Sunday was MICHAEL'S 26th BIRTHDAY!!! 

We all went to church, then Randall (the small town near their farm) had a community meal, so we all went to that and ate almost too much. Michael and I went to a movie later in the day (after he opened his presents).

Monday morning, we helped my mom load up Michael's car with shower gifts and her luggage and she headed for home. Michael and I headed for the fairgrounds to help set up for the fair, but most of that was already done, so we just walked around and looked at the grounds before heading to our next destination:

PAWS Floral in Atwater, MN. Michael's aunt Kim's sister, Katie is the owner there and we picked out flowers for our wedding. That went a lot faster than I thought it might.

While in the area, we toured the college that Michael attended; Michael showed me his aunt's dairy where he used to work and stay over the winter months; and Michael took me out to eat at a Mexican restaurant.

Along the way, we stopped to get a picture with this big bird. :)

 The next day found us touring the church where we'll be married (please pardon the bug splots)...

 I was told to get pictures of the kitchen, so I did....

 Then, on the way to my family's farm, we stopped in Jamestown to have our next marriage counseling session with the Kyners. :)

Michael stayed at our place until Saturday afternoon, so we got a lot of wedding planning accomplished, mainly focusing on getting the invitations ready (addressed, stamped, sealed).

On August 12th, Michael and I wished each other a happy anniversary, as it was one year since we first said "Hello" to each other. :) God has done many marvelous things in that year!!!  
I'm SO grateful. 

My mom asked Michael to put up some curtain rods in the new house, so he did that. This is in the guest room, where Michael stays now when he visits.

 The Morning Glories are taking over the chair!

 My dad and Jacob (and Andrew, before he left to combine for neighbors) worked on building the deck for the new house today. 

I babysat Vonn today, and made some more pickles and banana bread.

And now I really need to post this and get some sleep, as tomorrow will be another busy day.