It has been a while since I've posted. Since that last post my Mom was diagnosed with cancer and lived with us while I cared for her before she passed away. She was 90 years old and was active and mentally sharp right up until the end. After she passed away and the family gathered several times, many family members came down with Covid even though we had had the vaccines. Then of course all the details of her home, vehicle, and Estate had to be taken care of. (Yes, she lived in her own home and was driving until she got sick.) It has been a busy and difficult time for us. So of course, Blogging was the last thing on my mind.
Here's a picture of my Mom when she was younger.
And a more updated picture of my Mom and I.
But we made a decision to keep a yearly tradition. Every year at Christmas, the women and girls in our family have had a tradition of attending the Lorie Line concert. Last year because of all that happened we waited too long to get tickets to Lorie Line. My Mom had always loved getting the women in our family together for a special event at Christmas and we thought she would be happy if we kept this tradition alive. So we came up with a last minute plan to change things up and we attended the Christmas Festival at the American Swedish Institute in memory of Mom's Swedish heritage.
This is me with my three granddaughters.
The Swedish Institute includes a Cultural Center, Turnblad Mansion, Fikka Cafe, A Scandinavian Giftshop, a Swedish Museum and is also an Honorary Consulate of Sweden.
The Turnblad Mansion was built by Swedish Immigrants, Swan and Christina Turnblad who hired local architects to custom design the magnificent home during the 1800s. During this time more than 54,000 Swedes immigrated to the US landing mainly in the upper MidWest. Many Swedish Immigrants were hosted in this amazing mansion upon arriving in Minnesota.
The Turnblads had not lived there long until they moved into another home and this was donated to the organization which is now the American Swedish Institute. The family left an indelible mark on the American Swedish history in Minnesota.
This was a very fun Christmas Festival with an outdoor market and many vendors selling their handmade wares, along with touring the mansion and seeing all the Swedish Christmas decorations.The outdoor market had fire pots so we sat around the fire and ate some delicious handmade fudge we had purchased. The Fikka Cafe was open serving traditional Scandinavian dishes.
A group of people dressed in authentic Scandinavian clothing entertained us with music...
If you're Swedish or Norwegian ( or even if you're not ) this is a wonderful place to visit, especially during their Christmas Festival, though they
do have activities all year long. Go
here to go to the American Swedish Institute website for more information.
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