A Trip Down Memory Lane

Today the kids and I had the chance to go to Albert Lea for a play date with some very good friends of ours. We had such a great day and one of the best parts was just being back in the area. Albert Lea will always be a place that is near and dear to my heart for so many reasons. Those being...

• I met Matt there!
• I did my student teaching there and also had the opportunity to teach at the high school for two years
• We met and still have some of our best friends there
• We built a house there
• We were part of some of the best high school basketball there...go Tigers!

There are many more reasons but these are some of the highlights. Matt and I were there for four years and they were great years. When we first arrived in Albert Lea this morning I just drove around for a bit. I stopped by our first house we lived in after we were married...our High Street House.

It looks like it needs a little work now but it is such a cute little house that we loved being at. So many memories flooded back when I drove by. The neighbors, walking Sogn down by the lake, our little garden in the back yard, etc. Everything in that house was tiny but it was cute, quaint and we were happy there!

We went on to have our play date at the Richards. Jess and I had a great visit and the kids had a chance to play. We've been friends with the Richards for a long time and their company helped us build our house in Albert Lea. Their twins Maxx and Maya are so sweet and just a few months older than Cameron. We had a great time!












After we left their house the kids fell asleep before we even left town so I decided to drive by our other house...the house we built. 71827 Phillip Drive....a beautiful neighborhood and a beautiful house. We only lived in it a year! Not enough time but it was such a blessing to have the opportunity to build and get to know a lot of different people in the process. One of my most vivid memories was shingling in the frigid temperatures of Christmas break! It was Matt, our friend Kelvin, and me. One of the days Kelvin actually put a nail through his thumb with the nail gun....craziness! As I went through the neighborhood I also stopped at our good friends the Troe's. They were our friends through church and then became our neighbors. Again, some of the best people we know. It was great to see Carrie and Emily who was graduating tonight. I took a picture of the what our house (still have to say it is our house!) looks like now. It is so beautiful with all of the grass and the landscaping done.

I think there were about 20 other people I would have loved to stop and see today but I guess I'll have to leave it for another trip to Albert Lea!