Garden
This garden, founded in 1907, is a common place where the family would gather in May, and were careful to not trample the trillium.
What is The Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden
She made the challenging trip to Columbia just to Olivia's freshman year orchestra concert—Olivia stated this, "I appreciated our time together and it's proof of how much she supports me and my passion for music."
Who is Grandma
When Annette dropped off milk, food, and weeded the wrong yard, the scared homeowners called the cops thinking she was up to no good — earning her this explosive nickname
Who is "Ramsey Milk Bomber"
From road trips to Des Moines and Omaha, to splashing down Wisconsin water slides and riding coasters at Valleyfair, these were some of this person's favorite adventures with Mom.
Who is Mike
This person’s favorite memory is singing the Hallelujah Chorus at St. Olaf, showing how music has been a powerful way to deepen family connections.
Who is Emma
She lines her garden beds with this paper product, always reusing, never buying new, and proving that the Sunday edition isn’t just for reading.
What is Newspaper
When Emma's friend asked what kind of dip Grandma brought to the family gathering, she had to explain it was this improvised blend of whatever she found in the fridge.
What is I have no idea—Grandma grabs what she has in the fridge, throws it in a blender and puts it in a bowl. It's usually pretty good! (FYI —now a running joke every time we get together.)
Perhaps one of his least favorite memories...After being accidentally left behind on a family vacation, young Mike briefly considered applying for a job at this fast food chain.
What is McDonald's
After Adam jumped out of the moving car, Mom accidentally ran over his foot. When he yelled, “Get off my foot!” she asked which way—Adam looked at the tire on top of his foot and yelled back this.
What is "It doesn't matter!!"
Instead of letting veggies go to waste, this clever mom turns them into this warm, healthy dish.
What is Soup
At 10:30 PM, Adam handed Mom a handwritten paper that had to be typed by morning. Normally typing 95 WPM, by 11 PM she was hitting this “warp speed” to get it done
What is 190+ words per minute
Despite smoldering carpet and a face full of smoke, Mike tried to act surprised when Mom asked about the noise from the home made tennis ball bomb exploding in the basement —but she wasn’t fooled, proving once again these two things: she cares deeply and she’s impossible to do this to.
What is to trick
This person is all about staying connected—whether it’s traveling to see people or inviting friends like Yassen from Bulgaria to stay at her place. (Yassen still talks about that visit!)
Who is "Annette"
When chokecherries ripen on the farm, Mom picks them to make this sweet, spreadable treat
What is Chokecherry Jam
From Mom, this person learned confidence, hard work, dedication, and the importance of not backing down from adversity—basically, if you want something, go get it!
Who is Adam
Mom spent hours weeding what she thought was her son's and daughter-in-law's yard—turns out, the freshly manicured garden belongs to these very lucky people next door.
Who is Adam's and Lea's Neighbor