You’ve heard from me about how fantastic our 2016 Quilt Minnesota Shop Hop trip was and I know at least a few of you have asked what my husband had to say about it. To satisfy your curiosity, I asked my husband if he’d share his thoughts about the trip. He was my helper: paid for everything, chauffeured me around, found things for me in shops that I had missed, and was in charge of taking interior and exterior shop photos while I interviewed and shopped. Without further ado, here’s Tu-Na Helper….

Hi everyone! Who’d have thought that I would be the talk of the internet (or at least this blog) and I am not even running for President!  Yes.  I accompanied my wife Karen on the MN Shop Hop not only this year, but for a total of three years now. I’m sure some of you think I may not have a life of my own. Not true! I have my own interests and hobbies that keep me more than occupied at times.

 

But first, where did my nickname come from? Well, we offered to bring my sister-in-law along for a day on the hop. Karen explained to her that she was going to blog about our journey and that I was taking photos for her blog. Karen told her that the name of the blog was “Tu-Na Quilts, Travels, and Eats”. My sister-in-law immediately piped up and said ” Oh, so that would make you Tu-Na Helper”. We had a good laugh about that. But unfortunately for me, the nickname seems to have stuck. What makes it even more unfortunate is that I do not even like tuna (fish)! Oh well, I’m a tough guy. I can take it.

So why would a husband agree to spend all this time shopping for fabric with his wife? I guess I do not think of it as lost time. I get to spend quality time with my wife doing something she enjoys (which also means she is in a pretty good mood). I enjoy looking for unique quilts and decorations that can be found on display in the shops. We also get to see areas in Minnesota that we otherwise would not get to see. Even after three times around the state, we manage to find something new and interesting. We are usually pretty focused on getting to our next destination, but we do look for some unique eateries for our evening meals. A couple of my favorites were Sherwood Forest near Nisswa, MN, and The Sawmill Saloon in  Virginia, MN.

 

I do enjoy helping Karen find some of the fabrics she needs. I have a fairly good eye for color matches if she has an idea of what she needs or a piece of fabric she is trying to match or contrast. I also monitor her spending to some extent. I know that it may not seem that way now that you have seen her loot, but believe me, it could be worse.

One of the sayings she frequently hears me remind her of is to “Spread the love”. What I mean by that is that she should not buy all the fabric she wants in one shop. Since we plan to visit all the shops on the hop we try to spread our purchases to as many shops as possible. We did not find items to purchase in every shop, but there was only a handful that we missed. The shops all go through a lot of expense and effort to hold the shop hop. Their reward is some additional business, sales, and recognition. While I understand that it is unrealistic to make a purchase in every shop, I feel that is also rude for a hopper to run in, get their passport stamped, and run back out without even looking around the shop a bit. Half the fun of the hop is talking to the shop’s owners and staff and seeing some of the fantastic quilts they have in their shops. Sorry about that, I will get off of my soapbox now…

A little more about my role as “Tu-Na Helper”. Using the Quilt Minnesota website to get the list of participating shops, I plan our route using an online site to find the most efficient route. While this is very helpful, it usually changes more than once along the way. Load the car, fuel the car, and we are on our way. My new role as photographer for the shop hop posts kept me busy while Karen would talk to the staff and do her shopping. I always ask someone on staff if they have any issues with me taking pictures in their store. Most shops have no problem but there are a few who prefer that no photos be taken. I honor those requests. I take my photographer role ‘very’ seriously. So seriously, in fact, that I took over a thousand photos! See what I mean!

 

 

 We usually do not know where we will end up at the end of the day. By mid afternoon we have a better idea and I can check ahead to see where we can get a room. It’s more exciting that way don’t ya know! The only time we had much of an issue was last year in the southern part of Minnesota along Interstate 90. The Sturgis Motorcycle Rally overlaps the Quilt Hop and every room within 30 miles of I90 was booked. In calling around I tried the Old Railroad Inn Bed & Breakfast in Jackson, MN. Luckily, they had just had a cancellation from a biker who had engine trouble earlier in the day and was not able to get to Jackson that day. We had a great night there!

Earlier I stated that I had my own interests too. I am an avid gardener and tend to supply my family with all the summer vegetables they can handle. We have a small fruit tree orchard as well. We have nine apple trees that are providing a record harvest this year. We have been cidering apples these past two weekends and have already pressed 134 gallons of apple cider with our cider press along with the help of family and friends. So what do you do with that much apple cider you may ask. Well, you ask everyone you know if they have any freezer room to store it. So far so good! Actually, fresh apple cider is a great tasting healthy drink. If that doesn’t suit you, we also take several gallons of cider to our local vintner to turn into apple wine. Doesn’t that sound better!

 

 I also enjoy photography and reading ( I prefer science fiction stories). Having retired from an information technology job I still try to keep up with what’s new in that field as well as any new personal technology developments. I have started entering my photos in some local contests with limited success.

 

This past week our local library had their annual used book sale. Books are sold by the pound at the sale, at one dollar a pound. Now that’s a deal! I got a little carried away, but in my defense I was shopping for four people. I even picked up one book for Karen. However, the vast majority were books for me. My purchase totaled sixty dollars! When I told Karen how much I spent she didn’t make a fuss. After all, what could she say after all the loot she picked up on the hop? Hmmm…  I wonder if the library book sale is still open tomorrow…

Well, I think I have used up enough space here. I hope you enjoyed it. I know Karen is excited about her blog and hopes that you will continue to follow her posts. Her blog is currently being read in 42 countries. I certainly never expected her to have so much success in such a short time. Enjoy life and stay safe!

What I, “Tu-Na Helper,” Learned Today:

1. A person can get pretty cold while picking apples on a windy 40 degree F day.
2. We would never be able to use up all our apples without the help of family and friends.
3. Happy wife, happy life.

Question: What is your favorite apple desert?

Thanks to my husband for being a good sport and writing this guest post. I’ll be back soon with a story about that plus quilt and some apple eats.

Linking to

Can I Get a Whoop Whoop (button on the sidebar)

Finished or Not Friday (button on the sidebar)

Em’s Scrapbag Moving It Forward

Cooking Up Quilts for Main Crush Monday (button on sidebar)

Love Laugh Quilt for Monday Making