Family Holiday Week

There is a week in August when Susan and I celebrate our wedding anniversary, and Abigail and I both have our birthdays. Abigail and Hillary both happened to be home for that week this year! (The school year has started in Tennessee for Suzanna, so she's back in teaching mode.)

Med school student Abigail has finished her year of clinical rotations at hospitals in New York City, so she drove home on August 7 to spend the next year living with Susan and me while applying for, interviewing for, and crossing her fingers for a residency with a hospital somewhere in the country. A residency would start next summer, so Abigail will spend this year teaching online college classes in anatomy and physiology.

On August 8, Hillary drove home instead of flying here, in part to have her vehicle with her so that she can haul some more of her belongings from our house to her townhome in Tennessee ... and in part to attend a college friend's wedding ... and in part to be here for two family birthdays and an anniversary!

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On August 9, my sister Sandy and our dad spent the day with us in Dickinson for an early birthday celebration. 

Sandy, Dad, and me

Hillary, Grandpa, and Abigail

Sandy brought homemade angel food cake, strawberries, and whipped cream; and Susan made a chocolate/zucchini cake with vanilla ice cream.

On August 10 (my birthday), we celebrated with Mexican food and margaritas at one of our favorite restaurants, El Sombrero. On August 12 (Abigail's birthday), there was mini-golf, food, and ice cream in Medora followed by supper in Dickinson: Thai food from another favorite restaurant, Upin Thai.

August 14, our anniversary, was a full day of back-to-school teacher workshops for Susan, so we saw a movie that night but delayed our dining out until the next day. Today we celebrated some more with dinner with Susan's family (her dad, Roger; his girlfriend, JoAnn; and Susan's brother, Jerrett) at The Lodge at the Stadium Sports Bar in Bismarck ... followed by supper at LongHorn Steakhouse with just the girls.

Abigail, the anniversary couple (32 years!), and Hillary

Tennesseans in North Dakota

Since moving to Tennessee, Suzanna has made an annual road trip back to North Dakota in June or July during her summer break from the school year. She drives so that she can bring her sweet dog, Zoey, to visit us, too! Here are some highlights from Suzanna's two-week stay with us this summer.

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Suzanna and Zoey arrived on Saturday, June 21. On each visit, it takes Zoey no time to get re-acclimated to our house (and the sound of the refrigerator's cheese drawer opening in the kitchen). Zoey alternates between being rambunctious and cuddly. I love playing with her, but I really love snuggling with her.

We know Zoey is here for a visit when we see the pile of dog toys and canine paraphernalia stacked up in front of the china hutch. Here, Zoey has the tennis ball ready for a game of keep-away, if only I will put down the camera.

While Suzanna was here, she and Susan, both secondary school educators, attended a professional development workshop for teachers. It was offered by Bismarck State College and involved three days (June 24-26) of hands-on experience in a variety of career areas, like robotics, unmanned aircraft systems (drones), cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and mass communication. The aim was for teachers to be able to help their students make decisions about their career options after graduation.

One of those nights, the college gave participating teachers tickets to a Bismarck Larks baseball game. Susan and Suzanna took me as their guest, and we had a meal and some drinks at the Bismarck Municipal Ballpark while enjoying the game. (I've got my cap tilted to use the lid to block the setting sun.)

Suzanna's fiancé, Jacob, flew in to Bismarck and spent a long weekend with us. We had a delicious meal at Huckleberry House, a restaurant in Bismarck that serves Nordic fusion dishes and creative cocktails. It's located on the Missouri River, right where people board the Lewis and Clark Riverboat for evening cruises. (The next night we ate at El Sombrero in Dickinson so that Suzanna could have her favorite: P5, which is grilled chicken on rice with queso ... ¡such bold Mexican flavors!)

On Saturday, June 28, we spent the day in Medora. We started south of town at Badlands Ministries, the Bible camp that all three girls attended for years ... and later worked at for years! Then we explored the town and drove up to the amphitheater where the Medora musical is performed nightly throughout the summer--a perfect spot for a photo. We ate at Boots Bar and Grill, a dog-friendly restaurant where our server fawned over Zoey.

The drizzly morning turned into a sunny afternoon, which we spent driving around and hiking in the Theodore Roosevelt National Park. We saw wild horses in the distance and bison and prairie dogs up close. Our photo folders are full of scenic pics like this one ... but I'll spare you the comprehensive slideshow.

Jacob, Suzanna, Kevin, and Susan in the Badlands

The next day (Sunday, June 29), we went to church in Dickinson (St. John Lutheran) and then took Jacob back to the airport in Bismarck. First we met Susan's dad, Roger, and his girlfriend, JoAnn, for dinner at Laughing Sun Brewing Company, another dog-friendly restaurant that made Zoey feel welcome.

Suzanna and Zoey had a low-key week in Dickinson, and then we spent the Independence Day weekend in Tioga with my dad and my sister Sandy. I had to work, so I drove separately ... and before I got there, Dad took Susan and Suzanna to Dakota Drug Company in Stanley for a Whirl-a-Whip. It's a whipped ice cream treat, like a Dairy Queen Blizzard or a McDonald's McFlurry, but made using a vintage machine that once was common at drug store soda fountains and ice cream shoppes.

I grew up 35 miles from Stanley but never had a Whirl-a-Whip as a child ... or as an adult, for that matter. Dad has taken all three of his granddaughters for a Whirl-a-Whip and now his daughter-in-law, too, but never his son. It's an outrage.

On the 4th of July, we gathered at my cousin Jon's for what in recent years has become an annual get-together for the Moberg cousins, aunts, and uncles. We spent the night trying to shield Zoey from the sounds of the fireworks being shot off by Dad's next-door neighbors on both sides.

On Saturday, July 5, Susan joined Suzanna and Zoey for the road trip back to Tennessee. Susan will spend a week there helping Suzanna with preliminary planning for the wedding (which will be in October 2026). I will fly down at the end of the week to join them there.

Meanwhile, I stayed in Tioga and joined Sandy in the Freedom Fest parade. Sandy works for Hess Corporation, an operator of oil and gas processing plants and infrastructure in northwest North Dakota. I donned a Hess T-shirt and joined her in following the Hess entry in the parade while tossing candy to the spectators.

Today Sandy hosted Dad and me for dinner on the family farm, where she lives. The three of us hopped in her UTV and drove around the farm, touring the property and listening to Dad's tales about his childhood on the farm and admiring Sandy's work at upkeep. This photo was taken out on her deck before I departed for home.

A Two-Week Birthday Celebration

Susan's birthday was two weekends ago. It was on a Sunday, but her birthday festivities started two days earlier and continued through tonight!

Fridays are usually date nights for us, and a frequent spot for us to eat on a Friday is El Sombrero, a family-owned Mexican restaurant in Dickinson. When we arrived on the Friday before Susan's birthday, she asked for a table for two--but one of the brothers who run the place saw me and directed us to a table set for eight instead. I had called him earlier to make a reservation, and I surprised Susan by inviting some of our couples friends from church to join us for an early birthday celebration.

On Susan's actual birthday, her dad and his girlfriend, JoAnn, joined us at noon for a birthday meal at Butterhorn in downtown Bismarck. Butterhorn has great brunch items--and of course we had to start with some hot butterhorns topped with butter, raspberry jam, and vanilla icing (health food). In the afternoon we enjoyed a family video call with our daughters. In the evening, I made Susan a birthday supper of sautéed scallops, cavatappi alfredo, and Caesar salad. (It was just too frigid outside to venture out for another restaurant meal.)

Tonight we combined our date night with another (belated) birthday gathering. We met Susan's "lunch bunch" (a group of her coworkers with whom she eats lunch each day and who socialize with us and their spouses outside of work) at Los Cabos, another Mexican restaurant in Dickinson. The ladies in this group always exchange birthday and Christmas gifts, so Susan got to open presents; and the servers gathered to lead the other guests in singing "Happy Birthday" to her!

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I had a bouquet delivered to Susan at work on the Friday before her birthday. Our daughters had flowers delivered to her at work that day, too!

JoAnn and Roger with Susan and me at Butterhorn.

Susan and I had mimosas with our meal.

For Susan's birthday cake, I got her a variety of "bundtinis" from Nothing Bundt Cakes.

The servers at Los Cabos had Susan wear this sombrero while they led the restaurant in singing to her--and then they gave her a birthday dessert!

Family Birthdays

Yesterday was Suzanna's 27th birthday ... and the 27th time that she has been with her parents on her birthday, even though she lives several states away! Let's see how long we can keep that going. (We already broke the streak with both Abigail and Hillary.)

We picked up coffee and headed to Bismarck, ND, in the morning. We shared appetizers and cocktails at the Ground Round before heading to Tilt Studio, a place in the Kirkwood Mall that is a giant arcade. We played video games, pinball, mini bowling, mini golf, go-karts, and laser tag and had a great time.

We had supper inside an igloo! We ate at the Paddle Trap in Mandan, ND, where we had reservations for "The Polar Trap," their wintertime outdoor dining experience: they set up clear vinyl igloos on their deck with tables, chairs, and space heaters inside. Then we went to Holiday Lights on Main, a Christmas light display in Dykshoorn Park in downtown Mandan. It was fun to explore the many giant light features and pose for pics ... but odd to see it all with so little snow on the ground.

Today we had lunch with Susan's dad, Roger; his girlfriend, JoAnn; and Susan's brother, Jerrett. Tomorrow is Roger's birthday, so this was an early birthday celebration and a chance for the girls to see more family before they leave ND. (We took Hillary to the airport this afternoon, and Suzanna and Zoey will drive back on Friday.) Tonight Suzanna, Susan, and I ate at India Clay Oven in Bismarck for our NYE supper and next will have a video-call with Abigail and Hillary to ring in the new year as a family.

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Before going to the Ground Round, I hung out with Zoey while the ladies got pedicures at a place that pampers with massage chairs and cocktails ... how luxe!

The girls did best at the arcade games and mini bowling, but I kicked their butts at mini golf, go-kart racing, and laser tag!

It's so North Dakotan to subject ourselves to this frigidity just for the unusual dining experience. Behind us are a row of igloos on the deck overlooking the Missouri River.

One of many, many, many over-sized illuminated Christmas decorations in Dykshoorn Park. The below-freezing temps did not keep away the Mobergs ... or several other groups who wandered the displays, posed for photos, and warmed up beside the fire pits.

Family Reunion in a Day

We were up at 4:00 A.M. today in order to get to Fargo early enough to maximize our limited time there. We had to return again tonight due to our previously scheduled obligations in Dickinson tomorrow. However, we wanted a chance to see Susan's family, including her out-of-state sister and her family!

Cassie and her family live in Tennessee but were in Fargo for the weekend to participate in a friend's wedding. Susan, Hillary, and I headed east to spend some time there visiting. (Suzanna and Abigail couldn't join us because of their jobs at a summer Bible camp.)

Here is an infrequently gathered group: Nick (Susan's sister Cassie's husband), Roger (Susan's dad), Jerrett (Susan's brother), Cassie, Susan, and I.

After eating dinner together at Doolittles Woodfire Grill, we headed to the Holiday Inn, where everybody but us will spend the night . . . and where the kids spent most of the afternoon in the pool while the adults visited poolside. After some Happy Joe's pizza for supper, we said our goodbyes and hit the road for home. A short-but-sweet visit.

Cassie and Nick's kids, Marly and Davis, are so! danged! cute! and sweet! They spent a lot of time with their cousin Hillary, not only in the pool but also at the arcade games near the pool.

Such a handsome family! We surely wish that we all lived nearer one another--but it's terrific that, whenever we do get together, time doesn't seem to have passed. Well, except that our nephew and niece keep growing up!

90 Years of Ministry

Today Susan, Hillary, and I joined Suzanna and Abigail for an anniversary celebration at Badlands Ministries, the Bible camp that the girls have attended for years . . . and, more recently, at which they have been working.

It wasn't to celebrate our own wedding anniversary, mind you. That will happen next month. Instead, it was to celebrate Badlands Ministries' 90th anniversary!

There were activities all day for all ages. We arrived in time for the 4:00 P.M. worship celebration. Scripture readers and speakers included the bishop, the current and past directors of the Bible camp, and Suzanna! This year she is serving as the summer program director (and Abigail is a counselor). Suzanna presented a meaningful message with confidence and grace.

Later in the evening, many in attendance found Susan and me to tell us what a great job Suzanna had done. One couple read Suzanna's last name in the program and didn't recognize it--but they were sure that she must be a Gustafson (Susan's last name) because they thought Suzanna resembled Susan's dad's sisters Bonnie and Nancy!

During the service, we prayed for the staff of the Bible camp. There's Abigail, 11 people from the left. And there's Suzanna, two people farther on.

Afterward we enjoyed visiting with other members from our congregation and eating a delicious meal provided by Mulligan's Catering in Dickinson. We chose not to stay for the post-supper games, campfire, and s'mores because we need to get up so early in the morning. Check in tomorrow for all those details!

2011 June 13-19

Friday, June 17

The arrival of house guests: Susan's sister Cassie and her two kids, Davis (two years old) and Marly (three months old--and my soon-to-be goddaughter)!

Davis needed sunglasses for the car ride.  Clever style of wearing them!

Abigail and I were delighted to meet Marly Sue!

Rainy Memorial Day Remembering and Partying

This has been the rainiest, chilliest May in a long time.  It continues to drizzle outside, and a cold wind is still blowing.  This has gone on for days.  It made for an unpleasant trip to the cemetery today to visit Susan's mom's grave for Memorial Day, and it drove us indoors for a barbecue that we were invited to attend at our friends' house.  First, the photos:

Daddy's Home!

Many thanks to Grandpa Gustafson for staying with the girls last night through this evening!  He got them to/from their piano recital last night, school this morning, and swimming practice after school.  In exchange, they made his meals and showered him with affection.  Fair trade.

I spent the day driving around northeast Minneapolis, MN with my colleague Dawn (remember?).  We visited with school administrators from an elementary school, a middle school, and a high school, all with highly diverse student populations (i.e., 80-90% of the students speak English as a second or third language and come from low-income families).  We would like to take our own teacher education students to these three schools for experience working with students in settings featuring urban diversity, something they don't get much of in Western ND!  The Minneapolis schools were receptive, so we will move ahead with this initiative in the coming months.

I came home tonight to find the sweetest thing awaiting me:

Parentless Pianists

Now, not only must the girls survive without Susan around (remember this and this?), but they must also do without me!  After Sunday school this morning, I left town with a colleague to drive to Bismarck, ND to fly from their airport to Minneapolis, MN for work-related appointments there tomorrow (more on that later).  That meant leaving the girls in the care of Susan's dad today through tomorrow evening.  The girls are pretty self-sufficient, taking care of meals for Grandpa and getting themselves ready for school tomorrow (and they did all the laundry and cleaned the house yesterday while I made Scandinavian Saturday supper).  But they can't drive (yet), and their piano recital was scheduled for tonight (while both Susan and I were gone).  So Grandpa took them!

They captured the performances on video, too.  Wanna see/hear?

A Weekend Without Susan

The girls and I are Susan-less for the weekend!  Yesterday she drove to Mandan to spend the night at her brother Jerrett's place so that she could get up early this morning and fly out of Bismarck to their sister Cassie's place in SC.  Cassie and her husband Nick recently had a second child (remember?), and Susan is there to meet the baby (Marly Sue) and spoil her and her brother Davis for a few days.  Wanna see Marly?

A Child Is Born

In November we got news from Susan's sister Cassie that she and her husband Nick were expecting a second child.  Well, their son Davis is now a big brother to a sweet little girl: Marly Sue!  "Marly" is a family name on Nick's side, and "Sue" was Susan and Cassie's (and Jerrett's) mom's name.  Sue passed away 12 years ago; we think Marly's middle name is a wonderful tribute to her memory.

Wanna see some photos of our beautiful new niece?  (She was born over a week ago, but I'm just now getting around to sharing photos . . .)

Simultaneous Norske Obligations in Two Cities

Last summer I was asked to serve on the board of directors for Trollfjorden Language and Cultural Camp, the Norwegian camp that our family has attended the past two summers (see 2010 and 2009).  There are generally two board meetings between summertime camp sessions: one in the fall and another in the spring.  At the fall meeting (at a board member's home near Glenburn, ND), I was elected treasurer, so I have had some money-related duties to carry out since then.  The spring board meeting was today in Minot, ND, so I made a quick up-and-back trip today without the ladies.  They couldn't come because they had an important event of their own to attend:

Food Service Memories

It was another lo-o-ong Saturday for our family, thanks to a swim meet in Mandan, ND.  We left in the wee hours of the morning in order to arrive in time for pre-meet warmups, and we returned home late after spending some time shopping.  Thus, no Scandinavian Saturday supper this week.

However, we did have a great meal, thanks to a mid-afternoon stop at the Ground Round.  Susan's brother Jerrett stopped by the pool to watch each of the girls swim this morning, and he joined us for a late dinner/early supper once the meet had ended.  We chose the Ground Round partly because it's located near some of the stores where we intended to shop but also because we haven't eaten at one of their restaurants in a long time, and we have fond memories of it.  Susan and I both worked at the Ground Round in Grand Forks during our university years, and I loved my coworkers and have many funny stories from our interactions at work.

So I was predisposed to be in a good mood walking into the Bismarck location today and enjoyed the whole meal: the salty popcorn and cold beer, the overloaded burger, the visit with Jerrett, the friendly service . . . a great dining experience overall.  (The shopping afterwards wore me out, though, and the long drive home was very sleepy . . .)

Christmas Road Trip: Day 11

Road Report
Today's route: Tioga, ND to Dickinson, ND via Hwy 2, Cty Rd 21, Hwy 1804, Hwy 23, and Hwy 22 (148 miles).  Minimal drifting on the way to New Town; some compacted snow and ice between New Town and Mandaree; lots of wind and drifting while driving through the Killdeer Mountains and on into the town of Killdeer--otherwise, nothing too bad and an uneventful drive overall.

Notable Events
Beverly had extra pasta left over from our spaghetti supper the other night, so I volunteered to make dinner for us today at noon and made use of those noodles.  Suzanna helped by browning some Italian sausage while I diced an onion and a green pepper, which Suzanna then sautéed with the sausage.  We added the leftover spaghetti sauce from Thursday and added cans of garlic- and cheese-flavored tomato sauces, into which we added the leftover spaghetti noodles until they had warmed and separated and become coated with the sauce.  We stirred in shredded parmesan, asiago, mozarella, and white cheddar cheeses and served the bowl of pasta with grated parmesan to shake atop individual servings.  Susan made garlic toast in the oven to complete the meal.  Pretty danged good.

Christmas Music

What a lot of music we've heard/provided the past few days!

Special Events

Yesterday Suzanna took her grandpa (Susan's dad, Roger) to a Veterans Day program held on the university campus.  Suzanna's geography teacher, himself in the military, encouraged his students to attend and suggested that they invite a veteran to accompany them . . . . so Suzanna did that!  She didn't have school yesterday anyway, so she phoned Grandpa and asked if he could pick her up.  Afterward I asked Suzanna for a debriefing, and she said that it had been interesting but that the speakers "weren't really talking with seventh-graders in mind"; she didn't know really what their speeches were about.  At least it was quality grandpa/granddaughter time.

This evening Susan and Suzanna went off to a rosemaling workshop (sponsored by our Sons of Norway lodge) that will continue all day tomorrow, so Abigail, Hillary, and I went by ourselves to a music concert, the next one in the Dickinson Area Concert Association's series for this season.  We thoroughly enjoyed Cahal Dunne, an Irish pianist and singer who has lived in the U.S. for a couple decades.  He told jokes (very funny) between songs and played instrumental solos (expertly--he's a classically trained pianist) and accompanied himself as he sang (with an easy-to-listen-to voice) and changed his suit coat often to match the kinds of songs that he would be playing (e.g., red/white/blue for patriotic tunes).  And it was a super-long concert; we definitely got our money's worth!  You can hear some of his jokes, piano playing, and singing here.

Sacred Drum and School Daze

Well, first it was Abigail, and now it is Hillary.  Abigail had one impromptu and one planned musical performance a few days ago; and Hillary just had a planned musical performance only a few days after an impromptu one herself.  Allow me to explain:

Movers (and, as a Result, Shakers!)

I AM SO WORN OUT!  Today I helped Susan's dad, Roger, move out of his apartment in town and into a house in Richardton, ND.  It was a long, chilly day that ended (for me) with a hot bath, despite which I cannot feel parts of my body--and those parts that I can feel are in pain!

Chef Susan: Watery Wednesday and Thirsty Thursday

(First, refresh your memory here and here.)

Last night and tonight, Susan continued to consult Food Network Magazine for recipes to suit our family's nightly supper themes . . . with continued success!  (Just ask her dad, Roger, who was our guest for supper tonight.)  (Or just take my word for it.)