4th of July 2019!

Day 1- 

We started our trek from Marshall up to the schreckenghaust cabin in Cushing. We started off with Sibley state park. A 5 mile hike that was way harder then either of us expected. Lots of ups and downs but it was beautiful. A hidden gem of a state park! Then we continued where we stoped at Red head creamery.. and this place was awesome, but the service was meh- we were super. Infused when we walked in and the ladies working weren’t in the mood to help. And I hate ripping them but when I worked at the winery the number one rule was to greet people when they walked in... but the cheese alone would make us come back. They do some cool summer events too I wouldn’t mind going to! Lastly the Amish, I am super overly obsessed with the Amish, they’re lifestyle amazes me. Well come to find out they sit outside of the local grocery store in Browerville on Fridays, I was so excited for my first interaction where we bought garlic dill pickles and some peach jam. I’ll let you know the pickles were gone in one sitting. ( And every time we’ve gone back they haven’t had any ) they were so. Damn. Good. 🤤 

Day 2

We woke up early and brought my brother with for the day. We started with Charles L Lindbergh state park in little falls where we hiked about 3 miles in a quarter of the time at the last park. A much easier hike withal billion bugs so our walk was almost a run. We saw the site where Charles landed his plane and a few other historic sites. They did have a museum but we skipped it due to being complete cheap asses. Next we maneuvered through little falls construction to Starry eye brewery. A large warehouse style brewery with a lot of different beers to try. And dang they were good. Personal favorites were the key lime, and an IPA. We also played a round of A hole. (A take on bags) that was fun, and of course a round of cribbage. Then on our way out of town we stopped at Theilen meats for the very very good beef sticks. 

Day 3 

Day 3 we went to golf at Double eagle golf course. It ended up raining so we headed into to Eagle bend- to granny’s cafe. Which my uncles family owns and waited the storm out. This was the cutest little mom and pop spot. With good old fashion cooking. We he rest of the day was spend jet skiing, wake boarding, and pontooning around the lake. 

Day 4

Next destination on the trip was Itasca state park!! On the way we stopped at moreys fish & seafood in Motley. The store in this place is awesome! All sorts of seafood, dips, bread, jerky fish... so flipping good! We got some dip and a fillet of salmon to have for dinner. Next stop was me again where we found the st. Urho who was the grasshopper saint. This was the weirdest roadside attraction we have found. And yeah I get it you think all of them are weird.. but this is too of the list. Next we got to Itasca where we hit up the headwaters, and then drove the around the scenic 10 mile loop. Here we stopped to hike out to the old fire tower and climbed to the top of the 100 ft tower. So unbelievably beautiful, but the whole tower was shaking, I’m glad it was just the 2of us.... next we stopped for dinner at Foxys. Couldn’t tell ya where it was but it was good bar food! Then we headed for the cabin, where we grilled up our salmon and headed out on a pontoon ride with Craig! 

Day 5 

A few years back we mountain biked at cuyuna lakes, we had a blast. So we decided to rent bikes at DL mountain. We had a blast and it’s such a good workout! So after that we decided to reward ourselves with some shakes. And a relaxing afternoon at the lake. 

Day 6

This day we drug grant along with us to Dutton locks county park. A cute little park that’s in between 2 lakes. We hiked about 5 miles again and then on the way out stopped at Dutton pottery right outside the park, this woman hand makes everything and does a beautiful job. Dinner was Zorbaz, the boys favorite of course. Nachos and pep za for the win. 

Day 7

The next day the Weiss girls showed up, so we spent tons of time playing, swimming, and exploring around big Floyd with them! 

miles  550

Parks: 4

Days 10 

Pontoon rides: 20??

 Lennon’s Birthday Bash #2!

We started this tradition last year, spending a day with just Miss Lennon herself.. instead of buying her a gift. This year we made it a “surprise”. 

We took this crazy wild monkey to sky zone where we jumped into the ball pit, onto the side trampolines and got some serious energy out. This was followed by a mini shopping trip to Justice & Claire’s. Where she carefully examined every damn thing in the store... twice.  what I loved about her is she didn’t scream and cry and tell us she NEEDEDDDDD THISSSSS when she picked something up like the average 5year old. Instead she would pick up what she was looking at, show me and say “OMG Cassi look at how cute this is!!!” And then put it back..... when it came to picking out what she wanted to buy she choose a rainbow veil unicorn headband..... I was not impressed. But it’s what she wanted.. somehow by the time we walked to the counter she changed her mind and wanted lipgloss.... perfect. Since she changed her mind I told her we could pick something out from Claire’s as well. Since she was having a hard time deciding there we decided to take a break and just walk around the mall, where we stoped by the children’s place and found the cutest little(but still to big) dress with open shoulders.. which she has been wanting for a “really long time” as Lennon would say. 

Next was lunch time where Lennon chose the great “noodles” which we will never complain about... so good. 

Now we head home, but not before stopping at the teacher store. (Mostly for Michael) but Lennon also loves playing teacher. We picked out some stickers where she found her absolute favorite “Fruit of the Spirit” I’ve never seen a kid so excited! 

Next we met uncle G at junk yard so Lennon could have a root beer. And we could have real beers.  and popcorn of course! 

Next we headed home for a much needed NAP!! 

that night was followed by grilling out as the weather was finally semi cooperating... Lennon wore her new dress for the occasion! We also had time with Ellis & Laney who are growing up way to fast.. they are so cute! 

The Schreckenweiss honeymoon!

Iceland day 1: 

Flying to Iceland we left at 7pm Minnesota time, was a 6 hour flight and we arrived in Iceland at 630 am iceland time. So we pretty much pulled an all nighter.. but surprisingly we were not that tired.

First stop as the very famous Blue Lagoon. 

Everything you could imagine but 10x better. The water is warm, and then there are spots that are reallllly warm. And no not from someone peeing . They also have a in water bar, sauna and a mud mask station. This place was so relaxing considering we had pulled an all nighter. And yes, it was very touristy, tons of selfie sticks.... but honestly it didn’t take away from the calm relaxing vibe. 

Next we started our about hour drive to our first hotel. But first we stoped in a little town by the lagoon for some lunch.. when we walked in and saw the 3 tables full of locals we knew it would be good. They had 2 options for food lobster bisque or soup de jour. so we each got some lobster bisque some bread and a coffee. Looking back now probably the best meal we ate.... 

The road followed the coast, which was beautiful... we turned off and saw some different things that weren’t planned and we don’t speak Icelandic so we have no idea what they were....

Next we checked into the hotel, which was on the river & in the side of a mountain. The hot tubs that overlooked both were the place to be. We drove around the town. Before we headed back for dinner. Next we went to town for dinner where we ate at ovelerk brewery. We shared pizza and a pretzel and of course had some beers as well! All very good. 

Next we had dessert at the hotel. Carrot cake, my absolute favorite. And this was cooked using the steam from the hot springs. Holy hot damn that was unique & delicious. 

After dinner and dessert we headed back to the hot tubs cause that was the place to be!

Day 2

Continental breakfast at the hotel overlooking the river in the full windowed restaurant was a beauty....We started the morning off with a hike, this ended up being the only hike we

 Took all trip because most other “hikes” are legit mountains. This hikes destination was a hot river. Though we were not planning to swim. All I can say is we didn’t know what to expect and this was the best thing of the whole trip, the hike was a total of two hours. The scenery was beautiful. So so beautiful, from wild sheep running on the trail in front of you to the waterfalls that follow the curves of the hills. When we got to the top the steam was so thick from the hot river you could barely see in front of you. After the hike we headed back, checked out of our hotel and went to the town of selfless for lunch. Lunch consisted of “hot plates” the lady made us the 2 most popular and they were damn good, not super Icelandic, but different which is always fun.

Next we went to Kerid which is a large volcano crater lake which has the most beautiful blue/green water. Next was the Geysir, which shoots water up into the air. There was a large hill to go up and watch from a far. That was my favorite, less people beautiful views. Next was Burarfoss waterfall. These were 3 hot spots in the golden circle so they were PACKED with people. It was overwhelming, but the views make it worth it. Our next hotel was Hotel Fludir in the very small town of Fludir. We ate dinner at the hotel spent some time in the hot tub and went to bed early. 

Day 3.

To start this day off, we went to the “secret lagoon” that is in fact no secret. The views of the mountains were phenomenal, the water was perfect. And I could have sat in there all day. Next we stoped at a bakeri for marriage cake. Then back to the hotel to freshen up for a day of road tripping! 

Fridheimar Tomato farm: all you can eat tomato soup & bread, while you are sitting in greenhouse with tomatoes growing around you. Absolutely insane

The trip consisted of these stops 

Tjodveldisbaerinn : a large double waterfall 

Hekla mountain 

Seljalandsfoss: a waterfall you can walk behind 

Dinner at eldsto art cafe 

Urridafoss: Large waterfall

The best part of this day was that every stop (except 1) had less then 3 cars at each spot. A lot easier to enjoy the beauty in peace. The whole trip was about 4 hours total. We ended back at hotel Fludir with anther break and the hot tub and off to bed! 

Day 4: 

Today we were heading to Reykjavik the capital of Iceland. On the way we stoped at Thingveller National park. Next stop, Reykjavik! We had a late lunch at Kaffivagninn, sat outside overlooking the port. Next we went to the Maritime museum. Where we dressed up like fisherman and took a ton of photos. Next we went got checked into the hotel, took a nap and headed to Bryggjan Brugghus brewery for a food and beer pairing. Food was good, beer was good and the people we sat with were awesome! 2 from Italy, 2 from England and 2 from New York. So great making new friends as well. After a few to many samples we stumbled to the bar and had another. And then headed out for light night ice cream and a hotdog because Iceland is known for their hotdogs! They didn’t disappoint either! 

Day 5

Our last full day in Reykjavik, we woke up early and walked to bread and co. Where the line was out the door, that’s how you know it’s good. When we got in, we got cinnamon roll and another breakfast pastry, there were no seats inside so we headed a block down to a park to eat. As we finished up we realized there was a cat under the bench watching us eat!! So cute! 

Next was the Hallgrimskirkja church, an absolute beauty from anywhere in Reykjavik. But up close is another story, and the inside is impeccable. Then you can pay a couple of bucks to go to the top, get a full panoramic view of the city. 

Next, did you know Iceland is home to a penis museum? Cause we do, and you betcha we went! They had one from every species (except human). All I’m going to say is Michael and I are 13 at heart and we’re dying laughing the entire time. Everyone else... very serious. In fact one guy had his kids and was using it at a learning experience  I’m laughing just thinking about all of this.  

Next we walked the shopping street & then we hit the pier went to the Harpa which a beautiful theatre right on the water. As well as the Viking ship. Not the Minnesota Vikings though. Next we went back to Kaffivagninn and had coffee and dessert. Next we headed out for a Icelandic beer flight at Icelandic craft bar. Meet some great “locals” from Canada. Who told us about a comedy show happening downstairs later that night. 

For dinner we went to laekjarbrekka where we tried fermented shark. NASTY. But also artic char and lamb which were amazing.. 

Then we went back to the comedy show which was in English and was pretty funny! And free !!

Day 6. Last day 

We woke up ready for a short day in Iceland followed with a long flight ️ and drive to Marshall. So we went out for brunch in Reykjavik. We went to Cafe Paris recommended by a local, very good food. In fact amazing salmon eggs bene for me. Next we drove up the coast to the light house just 5 minutes outside of Reykjavik. Then started our journey to the airport. Our first stop was the beach, not to many brave soles at the water considering it was 65 out. Next we went to the Merian Museum. This place was sweet and talked a lot about the different geographical things of Iceland. Then they had built an ice cave we got to walk through, they kept saying bundle up it will be cold! Michael had shorts on... we were just fine. The top level of the museum was a large dome, our tickets allowed us to go out and see the view on the patio, 360 of Reykjavik, the coast, the mountains, the volcanos. Pure beauty. We wasted another 45 minutes having a cup of coffee and some macaroons before heading to the airport.. 

Frequently asked questions:

What’s the food like: mostly seafood, lobster, artic char, salmon. extra speedy too since everything is imported

Best part: being outside of the capital driving around to see the natural beauty. Example driving by the volcano and parts of the road were washed away from lava. Thing you would never see here. But the absolute best was the hike up the mountain to the Hot pools. 

What language do they speak? Icelandic. But everyone also speaks English, the signs are hard to read but the country was easy to navigate. 

Flight: Iceland Air 

Travel agent: Sherri Schreckenghaust AAA Travel Minnetonka 

Air Miles 2936.75

Car miles 500+

Countries 2

Days 6 

Honeymoon ✔️

First #schreckenweissroadtrip with a plane ✔️

First out of country✔️

The 3rd Annual 4th of July #SchreckenweissRoadTrip

The weekend Started with a trip to my parents cabin, researching all the stops that we would hit up on the way from Detroit Lakes to Duluth, a new route that had many Large attractions. When we got to my parents cabin, the weekend was filled with wake boarding, Jet Ski, relaxation, boat rides & good food. we never fail to eat good food. I wake boarded for the second time ever, AND went outside of the wake and "jumped" Back into the wake without falling. When I say jumped I mean it felt like 2 ft. it was probably about 2 inches.




Next we headed to Michael's parents cabin in Detroit Lakes. Monday we spent the day outside playing with the girls & going out to the wedding venue for last minute details. It's always so much fun hanging out with the girls. Laney is getting so big & CRAWLING! Ellis loves to play with her babies & cuddle. and Lennon is all about spa days and being a waitress. She even painted my toe nails (or should I say my feet) one was red, one was blue. Monday Night we grilled, went for a boat ride & watched Longmire.

Tuesday morning we woke up, had some Ellis snuggles, some coffee and found out there was a flood in Marshall. Luckily one of our good friends stayed at our house that night... she went downstairs to find a few inches of standing water in our basement laundry room, bathroom, and a lot of wet carpet. This is Something even growing up I have never had to deal with, I couldn't believe it. We are 4 hours away, our basement is flooded and we are supposed to be in Duluth the next day on our vacation.



Here is my mad rant- I had a non refundable hotel room for two nights in Duluth, one of my best friends from high school's wedding was on Friday. and all of that got put on hold because of mother nature. I'm not going to lie, but the month of June was a real bitch to me. I had been on an emotional roller-coaster that felt like I was only going down.  This trip was my up, my getaway, with no worries. just me and the partner in crime doing what we do best, spending quality time together.

Here is my grateful rant-
I'm gratful for our families who were willing to drop everything to come down and help us. who called and checked in, gave advice and helped us through.
I'm grateful for our insurance agent (who happens to be Michael's brother) for filing our claim before we even walked out the door in Detroit Lakes. and checked in with us & insurance while he was on vacation.
I'm grateful for the list of people who were at our house when we were driving home. squeegeeing the water out of house, fanning the basement, checking the sumpump, and emptying out the garage (also had 3 inches of standing water).
I'm grateful that we were only 4 hours away, the hotel refunded our non-refundable hotel room & that Michael was so strong through all of this.
I'm grateful for our neighbors, who didn't just help us with our basement, also had us over for beers & dinner two nights in a row!

I'll be honest, I cried for 3 of the 4 hours on the way home. I was mostly crying about the time that we lost being spent with family, and each-other, and friends. I don't care about the things, I care about the experiences we lost out on.

So our Tuesday was spent getting everything out of the basement, setting up fans, dehumidifiers and shop-vacs. But we did go out to dinner at Brau with the Raveling clan. I was so glad to get out of that damn house. and enjoy some time with friends.

4th of July.
Or 4th of July was spent the same as our Tuesday. we did take one break to go play Frisbee. and was interrupted by a call from service masters that said they weren't coming till Friday. (Madi's wedding was Friday) at this point I was pissed, but all ended up well because I still got to go.

This night we went to Brau for a Craw fish Boil (yes 2nd time at Brau in two days). It was a very fun night out with friends & we got a perfect view of the Marshall Fireworks!

Thursday was spent ripping out carpet. because we woke up to a smell I was not about it. We also found that there was carpet under our carpet, and that was drenched all over the whole room.

Friday I woke up early and drove to my parents where I had a nice lunch with brother, and then rode with friends to rush city for my good friend Madi & Devin's Wedding. it was the most BEAUTIFUL wedding I had ever been to. I cant event begin to tell you my favorite part, maybe the sibling dance that was phenomenal??? or maybe the pulled pork,  mac n cheese baked beans for food?? seriously so many great things. also the music, I am ALL about dancing the night away <3

the rest of the weekend was spent bringing thing upstairs as we prepare for the 99.9 percent chance they will be ripping our tile. we also got rid of two dumpsters worth of crap, and a car load worth of stuff for the thrift store.

I am kinda annoyed that we have to renovate our basement a month before our wedding. but I know when this is all over and I have brand new basement. I will be happy.

A good friend told me, this is all part of the adventure, even though we were not on a trip. Adventure is right is our basement....








I am just ready for the #WeissHoneymoon but do we still call this blog Schreckenweiss? Or what? open to suggestions.

Schreckenwiess finds the #ONLYINMN statue!

June 1st 2018 Random lake trip

Normally I don’t write about lake trips because we don’t do much But be at the lake.. but after under communicating with my fam, apparently they weren’t coming up until Saturday late morning... 

So Friday we stoped at one of our favorite restaurants in spicer (NOT ZORBAS.)

O’Neils: first of all, if you have a whole menu of Moscow mules automatic 5 points. So Michael had a Tito’s mule, I had a ruby red mule. So so delicious. Next if you have a patio with a view of the lake 5 points but it was next to the highway so minus 5.... the food though, holy smokes. We came here last summer and I got the Parmesan crusted walleye sandwich and Micheal has been pissed he didn’t get it ever since. So he got that, and I got the crab cake sandwich. 

The food and drinks did not disappoint

Okay if you didn’t know, I am OBSESSED with the Amish. And we go right through prime Amish country of Long Prairie Minnesota. Like I wanna go live with them for a long weekend, but I am also very scared to talk to them. I kinda feel like a 4 year old when you get to daycare for the first time. So anyways we got to see the Amish which means it’s going to be a great weekend at the lake 

We got to the lake, which reminder it’s just the 2 of us. And by “cabin” we mean a we have toilet that you you don’t flush unless ya.. you know. So 1st we see these big nasty bugs, do you know what they are?? Come to find out it’s just their skin, they shed their coat. after some infestigation, we think they are dragonflies... WHAT??

Then the bald eagle is sitting on our shoreline just 10 yards away!! So cool. This is all within 10 minutes of getting here. It’s also super windy. So tonight is consisting of making rhubarb syrup (for rhubarb mojitos tomorrow) playing cribbage and watching one of the chick flicks I downloaded onto the iPad ( Thank you Netflix for this feature) cause us out here roughing it need something to do when it rains or is cold!

The next morning we drove to little falls due to a lack of breakfast f coffee at the cabin. First we went to Pete and joys Cafe. Amazing bakery. Had a cup of coffee as we waited for my dad and brother. Since they didn’t serve breakfast on Saturdays we decided to get some donuts to go and head over to west side cafe. For little Falls being under 8000 people, it’s a pretty poppin town. I mean we found 4 small town cafes for breakfast. 

West side cafe had about 7 tables and a cute little breakfast bar, they served eggs, cakes, hash-browns and toast as well as your choice of meat. Or biscuits and gravy. Dad and I got the biscuits and gravy, which you could tell was home cooked. The sausage was from theilen meats (which we will get to later) and the gravy melted in your mouth..., the bacon my brother got was phenomenal best bacon maybe ever???

Next we stoped at the little falls meat market called theilen meats, this is a one of a kind meat market. The beef sticks are my all time favorite, with all different flavors like wild rice, cheddar, teriyaki, mild, and hot! 

 Also the #ONLYINMN Statue just happened to be here for the a month! I have wanted a selfie with this since Explore MN announced they got it!! 

Miles: 400

States: 1

Cities: 3

Days: 3

Roadside attractions: 1

Schreckenweiss takes on part of the Fargo Marathon!

May 19th 2018 Fargo marathon #TeamEllis 

My soon to be niece Ellis is the strongest 2 year old I know. Just over a year ago she was diagnosed with epilepsy, it’s been a bumpy road the last year but the smile on her face we see now makes the bumps go away! Erik and Kendra decided to do a fundraiser for epilepsy foundation and raise awareness by getting people to run the different races during marathon weekend. 

I decided to join a team 4 weeks before the race..... I hadn’t run since high school, had a BIG work event right in the middle & a mid life crises the week of the race. But it wasn’t about that bullshit, it was about Ellis. So I found the time to run, and actually used it as my getaway and did the 4 person relay marathon. (About 6 miles) I’m not trying to brag, nor am I going to tell you my time, but for me I killed it. Stopped one time for the free summit beer (THANK YOU TO THOSE PEOPLE) 

I also want to give a shoutout to another lady who I was training for, my favorite girl assistant coach in the world, Kari Loft. #LoftChallenge 

The race went great, it was so fun to see family and friends all come together for this little girl! After they had a taco bar at Dave’s Southside Tap and everyone came together to drink beer, eat tacos and celebrate miss Ellis! 

After a long long long winter not seeing family, it was so great to be all together. 

Miles: 400 ( 6 ran)

States: 2

Cities: 1

Days: 3

Roadside attractions: 0 

Schreckenweiss takes Brookings & Hendricks Breweries

April 21st 2018 Brookings / Hendricks day trip! 

There are a few things I’ve learned since I’ve started writing this blog.. we really like breweries, wineries and random weird things most people don’t stop for. Also that Michael can be quiet when on trips and I am not great at writing, not that I don’t know how to write, but I write what I’m thinking (Not what’s grammatically correct) so the reason it sometimes takes us months to post a blog, is because Micheal has to take time to read through and edit it.... but back to the trip!

Stop 1: Wooden legs brewing company: a brewery! Imagine that!! Okay so this place was just okay, I am an ex waitress so when I walk in somewhere new and I don’t know anything, I want someone to explain the beers to me. Instead I got “what can I get you” “yes we do flights” “here you go” UGH  LIKE SERIOUSLY YOU GUYS!!! I’m not saying I’m yet greatest waitress ever but i couldn’t. So rant over, beer was good... After ordering the flight I realized I ordered a beer that wasn’t even theirs which I hate doing....

Next we went to Eponymous Brewing company, which was just a walk through downtown Brookings to get there. They were in a newer building, and had beautiful live edge wood countertops. The hospitality here was AMAZING! He explained each beer to us, explained the flights they do. Which we did a flight of each beer.

DeCeNum saison

S’morgle porter 

Funkzilla APA

Third Stall Stout 

Apricot Honey Wheat

HoBo Hazed IPA

I  am not a stout / porter drinker but I actually really enjoyed the third stall stout! 

Next we went to meet some friends in Hendricks and went to Bank Brewery the location is so cool, old bank building (hence the name) beer was good and cold! Owner was a nice guy to, strongly recommended this one*! 

Miles: 150

States: 2

Cities: 2

Days: 1

Roadside attractions: 0