Maggie Moo's

We had a horrible, bland dinner at Champps [(maybe the double 'p' should have clued us in) afterwards  husband looked them up on Urbanspoon, if we had looked first we would not have stopped].  So we treated ourselves to some Maggie Moo's.

Being the great guy he is, he let me choose my two ice cream cupcakes first. :)  I shared them with my MacBook, lol.

Wish us luck, it's an early morning as we make our way to Afton Alps to participate in the Warrior Dash.  If you're not familiar with it, it's a 5k mud run with obstacles.  Should be loads of fun, and loads of mud.

Blaisdell Manor

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

This fountain greets you, after you enter the gate at the Blaisdell Manor (built in 1910) in Minneapolis. We were there for a wedding reception, and there were people milling around everywhere sipping champagne so it was hard for me to get shots of all of its beauty, minus people. But here are a few.

Many of the guests were from France, and this little French boy was just too adorable to resist snapping a photo of.

This is the chandelier in the foyer, entryway.

The cool light above the stairs.

I went upstairs, and no one was making use of this room.

And I looked down on the garden fountain.  Like the photos of The Basilica of St Mary's, these were all handheld and no flash.  We ate dinner in the ballroom and I shared my dinner with you a couple of days ago.  I had pork chops, and some cute little dessert.  Each dish came with an orchid and I had fun playing with mine.  You couldn't tell, could you?

If you’re interested in seeing the ballroom or more of the wedding it’s over on our Newdae Photography Blog.

PS - If you are a blogger and crafty you might be interested in the post below this one. :)

The Basilica of Saint Mary (part 1)

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

First up let me say that I feel like big fuzzy pink something-or-other has taken up residence in my chest.  Yes, my grandson was so sweet and special to share his cold with me and breathing has become an effort.  Well, when you can't breathe, not enough oxygen gets to your brain, so you can't think so well either.  Luckily I prepared this post yesterday, before the oxygen deprivation began.  But if the elephant doesn't remove his tail from my lungs and lift his big furry pink butt off my chest I will be slow making the rounds.  Please forgive me.  Now on with the show.

Recently, I had the opportunity to admire The Basilica of St Mary, in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota, up close and personal.

It’s 100 years old this year and was the first Basilica in America, and it’s on the National Register of Historic Places.

But I really don’t want to overload you with words when I have so many photos to share. I tried to weed it down, but there were so many I liked or so many features I wanted to share. The place is huge! And beautifully intricate! And old!

I loved the shadow on the wall - see it?

All of these were taken with the Canon 40D, 50mm 1.8 lens, handheld, with no flash, ISO 640 and shutter speeds of 8-15. Yes, I hate using a tripod so much that I handhold as low as possible, even if I have to hold my breath. When I first started I was lucky to shoot at 30 without the tripod, now I can go down to 8. I don’t think I’ll ever top that.

Oh, btw, Happy Halloween!

UPDATE: Part 2 is located here.