A Romantic Weekend Get-Away At The Moondance Inn

 My husband and I celebrated thirty years of marriage this past August.  My daughter and son-in-law gave us a gift certificate to a nearby bed and breakfast so we could celebrate.  Because we had a vacation in September and a lot of fall hiking we wanted to do the rest of the time, not to mention a out-of-town baby dedication and Thanksgiving thrown into the mix, we couldn't enjoy the gift certificate until this past weekend.  But, that ended up being a good thing.  I don't know about you, but I really get stressed out about Christmas.  All the things that need to get done prior to December 25th tend to overwhelm me.  So it was so nice to just take a weekend off from all the hustle and bustle of Christmas and just relax!

 We stayed at the Moondance Inn in Red Wing, Minnesota which is about one hour from our home.

The house was built of 18 inch thick limestone block in 1874.  It was originally the home of a Red Wing doctor.  The main house is about 6,000 square feet, three floors, plus a finished basement.  There are five guest rooms, and two floors of public space for guests to use.

There is also a 1200 square foot carriage house where the owners live.

A gorgeous fireplace fills the lobby area.  The perfect spot to warm up on a chilly day.

 Across from the fireplace is one of the public spaces to enjoy.  We spent some time here looking at the "Before and After" pictures of transforming the home into a bed and breakfast.  They serve wine and appetizers at 5:00 pm for the guests.  We were happy to see they had nonalcoholic sparkling juice as well.

The home was sparsely decorated for Christmas.  They had a few Christmas knick knacks scattered here and there in the lobby, and a giant, gorgeous real Christmas tree!

The tree was decorated simply with vintage ornaments.

 The staircase was absolutely gorgeous with a curved landing a few steps up.  I only wish it would have been decorated with Christmas garland. It would have been breath-taking!

 

The upstairs hallway leading to our room.  The window above the doorway was right above our spa tub.

The owners had two pups, this is one of them.  They were allowed to meet the guests, and they even joined us for breakfast.

We had our choice of five guest rooms when I made the reservation.  We chose this room because it was the only room with a king size bed.  It was also the only bed with a canopy, and we thought that would be fun!

We had a small electric fireplace in our room, and we needed it, because the Inn overall was a bit on the chilly side for us.  

All the rooms are furnished with antiques.

They also provide white robes for guests to use.

There are no televisions in the rooms, but they did provide a CD player with three Christmas Cd's.  I picked a Bing Cosby one to enjoy.  They have a public TV in the third floor living space.  They also have free wifi throughout the building.

I loved the antique armoire on the side of the bed for hanging my clothes.

After we checked out our room and took a few pictures, we went upstairs to see the third floor living space.  It was difficult to photograph because it was very dark.  It was very spacious.  It is a nice living space if a group rents the facility and needs a spot to hang out and watch t.v. or play board games.

I really liked the stained class windows, the arches, and the circular windows.  You can really see the depth and beauty of the limestone here too!

There is another fireplace on the third floor too.

When we sufficiently checked everything out at the inn, we headed out for dinner.  My husband and I had been to Red Wing numerous times before, and headed to a Mexican restaurant we always wanted to check out.

I was thrilled to see this bean dip when they brought out our free chips and salsa.  I love bean salsa!  It was so good!

We both ordered chimichangas, but mine (in the foreground) was a shrimp chimichanga  and my husband's was a beef.  I ended up giving him half of mine, because his were so much smaller and not enough food for him.  I really enjoyed the taste of my shrimp chimichanga but I wish it would have also came with a side of beans and a salad like his did.

Well, I needed to walk a bit afterward to work off this meal, so we went right across the street to the Red Wing Mall.  It was pretty disappointing though to see this mall become less of a retail mall and more of an antique mall.  It use to be filled with lots of cute shops, but they have all closed and have been reverted to office space.  All that remains is an antique store and a candy shop.

After we sufficiently walked off our meal, we decided to head back and enjoy our room.  It was so peaceful and quiet.  The spa tub was wonderful and so refreshing.  I couldn't believe how powerful those jets were.  I really need one in my house!  Especially during the garden season.

The next morning we headed down to breakfast.  It was served promptly at 9:00 starting with fresh squeezed orange juice, Parmesan rolls, and fresh fruit.

The main course was a thick slab of ham and stuffed french toast.  It was delicious!  I've never had stuffed french toast before...I didn't even know there was such a thing.  It was filled with cream cheese.  So good!

And finally we had a breakfast dessert!  It was awesome! I never had dessert for breakfast before.  It was egg nog ice cream served on top of a wafer type cookie and covered with the owners home made caramel syrup.  Yum!

And may I also add how much I enjoyed the coffee?  It was a special blend the owners created with the help of Pepin Blue Cafe Roasters.  Oh, it was so good!

Even though my husband and I have stayed in hundreds of hotels during the course of our travels, this was the first time we had ever stayed at a bed and breakfast.  It was quite the adventure for us, and very different from what we were use to.  I think B&B's are perfect if you just need to get away from it all and relax.  I don't think I would ever stay at one while on a travel adventure because of the set check-in and meal times.  We need our lodging to be a bit more flexible than that.

What about you?  Have you ever stayed in a Bed and Breakfast before?  I'd love to hear from you!

Have a Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE!

Bell Sleeve Chenille Sweater

My husband and I celebrated our 30th Wedding Anniversary in August and our daughter and son-in-law gifted us with a free night at a Bed and Breakfast in Red Wing, Minnesota.  We had so many of our weekends already booked in late summer/fall, that we decided to use the gift certificate as a Christmas getaway.  It was a good idea because it allowed us to step away from the hustle and bustle of the holiday season and enjoy a relaxing weekend;  plus, we got to see the B&B decorated for Christmas!

It was a pretty cold weekend, so for the first evening I wore a new bell sleeve chenille sweater from JCPenney.

This sweater is so soft, cozy, and warm.  I am such a sucker for chenille and I am very grateful it has made a comeback.

I echoed the color purple of the sweater in my jewelry choosing a lavender and silver necklace and a deeper violet bracelet.

Bell sleeves are a huge trend this season, but I'm trying to hold back and not buy too much for I don't want a closet full of trendy blouses that are no longer of any use to me once they go out of style.  So far I've only purchased this sweater and a dress with statement sleeves.

I paired my chenille sweater with a Kut from the Kloth jeans and black ankle booties.

The bell sleeves are a 3/4 length,  so they don't get in my way like a longer bell sleeve would.

They style of the sweater is a bit square, and could add unwanted pounds to your frame, so I suggest sizing down if you purchase this sweater.  I'm wearing a medium, but I probably should have bought a small.  I ordered on-line and ordered a medium to be safe.

The a.n.a 3/4 sleeve chenille crew neck pullover sweater is available in nine different colors.  I'm wearing Violet Night.

I will share more of our stay at this beautiful B&B on Wednesday's Travel Post.

Have a Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE!

Memorial Park, Red Wing, Minnesota

Now that my husband and I feel we have gotten a handle on summer home improvement chores, we've started to get out and enjoy ourselves a little bit each weekend.  We don't usually go far and usually combine our trips with a Sunday church service...spending a little time with God in the morning and enjoying His creation in the afternoon!  We've been having a lot of fun discovering new things to do within an hour of our house.

Several weeks ago I wrote about The Ellsworth Cheese Curd Festival.  On the way home we drove through Red Wing, Minnesota and decided to stop at Memorial Park.   Memorial Park is located right across the street from Barn Bluff.  You might remember reading about that disastrous first time hike HERE.   Hiking Barn Bluff might be more of a challenge for some individuals,  whereas Memorial Park requires no or little hiking at all to enjoy these gorgeous views!  You simply drive up, and up, and up, park your car, and wa-la!  This is your view!

Now I love to hike, but sometimes it's not possible if you're not wearing the right footwear, or you have individuals in your party that are not able to hike...especially up steep hills!  So it is so nice that the city provides this beautiful park overlook to enjoy the view without the strenuous hike.

Memorial Park offer views of the city of Red Wing, the Mississippi River,  and the bluffs of both Minnesota and Wisconsin.

There are hiking trails in this park, but they aren't necessary to enjoy this view!  They also have mountain bike and cross-country trails.

There is an expansive green lawn on top of the park.  We've received so much rain this season, that all the lawns are just so lush and green and everything is growing beautifully.  I love how you can see the gorgeous views of the bluffs in the background of this lush green lawn and landscape.

Also up here is this fun old water tower.  We had fun using it as a backdrop for some fashion photos for THIS POST.

As much as we enjoyed spending time on top of this bluff,  our favorite part of Memorial Park was not the views from the top (Upper Quarry)  but the Lower Quarry Area.  The park use to be a limestone quarry.   When quarrying ended in 1910 Red Wing civics leaders started working on developing a park dedicated to soldiers.

The Lower Quarry was so pretty and magical.  It was also very peaceful in comparison to the Upper Quarry where there were a lot of tourists.  I think it's a hidden gem of the park.  Most people don't bother to drive down there because they think the best view is at the top so why bother?  But they don't know what they are missing!

Lower Quarry Parking Lot

The drive into the lower quarry, the parking lot, and the path to the lookout are surrounded by gorgeous limestone rock formations cut out from the old quarry days.  There are also limestone picnic tables and fire pits to rent in this area.

This is the path leading to the Lower Quarry lookout.  It's a very short walk from the parking lot to the lookout.

You're obviously not as high up at the Lower Quarry lookout, but you get a closer look!

We especially loved getting a closer look at the turkey vultures!

 And my favorite of the day...this pretty butterfly!

If your ever in Red Wing, swing by and take a drive through Memorial Park.  It doesn't take long, and the views are certainly worth the stop!

Have a Great Day!   Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE!

Hiking Barn Bluff in Red Wing, Minnesota

If you read my fashion post on Friday, you would know my husband and I took yet another fall hike.  Most of the color is past peak in our area, and there are already too many barren trees.  Oh, fall is such a short, short, season.  

This was a short hike that we actually tried the weekend before on our way home from Minneapolis, but it was disastrous!  We were driving home and saw people walking high on a bluff above the highway and my husband said "Hey, you want to go up there?"  I said "Sure, why not?".  After driving around in circles for quite a bit trying to figure out where to enter at the base of the bluff, we gave up and pulled into a parking lot.  There I brought it up on my GPS, and we eventually found the place, but it wasn't easy.  They should have signs for this famous bluff on the main highways or major roads, but they don't.  The signs do not appear until you hit the side streets.  Once we found the place we encountered another major obstacle.  No trail maps or descriptions of the trails.  There are signs with names of trails and arrows pointing in the direction of that trail, but that's it.  So we asked some other hikers, and decided on the Midland Trail.  After hiking on this trail a bit, my hubby saw a unmarked trail going straight up.  So he insisted we take this short cut.  Big mistake.  It was literally straight up and very dangerous.  When we finally made it to the top, there was a sign with a fence blocking the trail saying it was closed because it was "too dangerous".  Ha!  Kinda needed that sign at the other end too morons!  Anyway, now we were lost.  So we found some rock climbers and asked them how to get to the trail that takes you up to the top.  They said they didn't know because they never got up to the top that way, they just climbed rocks!  But they did point us back to the trail again, which we followed, and it took us right back again where we started, where, we also found more hikers, who were lost, and had no idea which way to go.

By now, we were frustrated, hot, and tired.  My husband didn't have appropriate footwear on so he just wanted to call it quits.  I was disappointed, but agreed.  We were only a little more than an hour away from home, so we could come back,  but I was worried one week later would mean a lot less color.  Nevertheless, we headed back down the bluff and to our car.  

When I got home I looked up Barn Bluff on Trip Advisor and discovered we weren't the only ones with these issues.  Almost every review I read said that the place was hard to find, they got lost on the trails, and/or they wish a trail map was provided.  So Red Wing Officials....if your reading this, get your act together and provide trail maps, trail descriptions, and better signs from the main road leading to the bluff.

Now that I got that off my chest, here is our second experience with Barn Bluff once we were better clothed and educated thanks to the travelers on Trip Advisor.  By reading the reviews, I knew exactly which trail to go on this time...the South Trail, and we had no issues whatsoever.

The South Trail is a short, easy/moderate trail to a gorgeous scenic overlook of Red Wing.  The trail one way is only .83 miles, but, it is quite steep at times.

Barn Bluff rises 400 feet above the city of Red Wing.  You get views of the Mississippi River, the city of Red Wing, and Lake Pepin to the South.

The trail is mostly a worn path.  You walk through the woods at times, but then other times your walking in open prairie land like this.

Even though most of the leaves have fallen by now, there was still some color left to enjoy.

At the top of the west bluff is a large American flag that can be seen from the town below.

The wind was so cold and fierce at the top of this bluff, but I didn't mind at all as I was quite hot and exhausted from the steep climb up.

Once we had our fill of soaking up the gorgeous views from the West Scenic Overlook, we headed for the Prairie Trail and the East Scenic Overlook.  This is a gorgeous trail through a prairie on top of the bluff with scenic views all along the way.  It's a short .55 miles from the West Scenic Overlook to the East Scenic Overlook.

This overlook had more natural views than the West Overlook as there was a lot more water and bluffs instead of a city view.

There are two long staircases to climb to get to the top of the bluff.  This is one of them.  They were put there by the Kiwanis and each step has a name of a Kiwanis member who bought a step to help pay for the stairway.

Coming down off a bluff or mountain is always so much easier and faster than going up!

I'm so happy we decided to go back to Red Wing and try this hike again.   It was such a beautiful and special day!  We even saw another bluff to hike while we were there, I wanted to do that one right away and my husband said "Let's save that for next time!".  Good idea, now I'll have time to research it first so we don't get lost!

Have a Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE.