Miracle at Big Rock is an epic light show including 17 million lights in St. Croix Falls, Wisconsin. See the year-end finale!
What a blast!!! Holiday lights, food trucks, artisans (located in a beautiful barn), s’mores, cocktails, and so much more.
⛺️ Private Rental Spaces
🏠 Onsite lodging
🎇 Fireworks
🌝 Visit the Moon (This was a favorite but there a so many unique installations, watch for Bigfoot!)
We knew this would be a fun night but it was even better, we left feeling like little kids full of joy.
Here is a list of the remaining hours and events from their website :
Wednesday, December 27: 4pm-9pm, Youth Night! Kids 4-12 $8 admission using code “Kids” Thursday, December 28: 4pm-9pm Friday, December 29: 4pm-10pm FIREWORKS at 830pm Saturday, December 30: 4pm-10pm Sunday, December 31: 4pm-10pm
A Big Rock’n NYE Barn Dance and Fireworks!
Definitely add @miracleatbigrock to your holiday to do list. Cheers!
Every little bit makes a difference. There are many ways to help, including sharing information, buying unique gifts from the Best Friends Animal Society store, donating, volunteering, fostering, or adopting.
Help Homeless Pets on Giving Tuesday and Beyond.
Giving Tuesday is an international day of giving and an opportunity to support the organizations that you love. Together we can end the killing of cats and dogs in America’s shelters. During Giving Tuesday, every donation to Best Friends Animal Society will be triple matched up to $1 Million! Your donation ensures warm beds, healthy meals, and lifesaving medical care to the animals at Best Friends and to pets in shelters across the country.
Best Friends Animal Society
Best Friends Animal Society is the largest no-kill sanctuary in the Nation. Their mission is to Save Them All and live in a world with no homeless pets. The sanctuary is home to over 1600 homeless pets including dogs, cats, pigs, horses, birds, and more. The Best Friends’ team works hard towards their goal through creative programs such as the spay and neuter program. Including, reaching far beyond the sanctuary teaming up with shelters all over the country.
Above is our girl, Utah. She was part of our first experience at Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Kanab, Utah. We drove through Utah on our way home after visiting Las Vegas and stopped for a sanctuary tour. Of course, we couldn’t resist that face and adopted her that day. Since 2016, we’ve visited the sanctuary over ten times to volunteer. It is a life-changing and beautiful place to volunteer plus learn more about their initiative. It is a must-add to your bucket list if you love animals.
We have adopted three dogs from Best Friends Animal Society over the past eight years. Utah, Allen, and Carol have changed our lives for the better. Sadly, Utah crossed the rainbow bridge in 2020. She was a gentle force that is greatly missed. Allen and Carol continue to bring light to our lives through unconditional love, laughter, play, adventure, routine, and steady companionship.
You can read more about Utah and Allen‘s adoptions by clicking their names.
We like to say that we save them, but I believe that they save us. 🧡
Join me in giving homeless cats and dogs a second chance this holiday season! Triple your impact for animals and make a gift today at https://bfas.io/igt23.
Holiday Events in Lindstrom, Minnesota, and surrounding communities
The holiday events start the first weekend of November!
You will find an abundance of holiday spirit in Chisago Lakes, Minnesota. There is so much holiday magic, I believe Santa has a special place in his heart for these Minnesota communities. In fact, you will see Santa at most of the Chisago Lakes holiday events arriving in epic fashion! Chisago Lakes is a 40 minute drive from the Twin Cities and encompasses Chisago City, Lindstrom, Center City, Shafer, Taylors Falls & Almelund.
Where to See Santa This Holiday Season
The Chisago Lakes area is known for celebrations year-round, but over the holidays, it is extra magical.
The holiday season events are what you imagine or remember when you think of wholesome fun, connection, and community. You will feel wonderment and joy watching Santa ride in on his sleigh, singing Christmas carols, taking horse-drawn sleigh rides, counting down and anticipating a town tree-lighting, shopping for the perfect homemade gifts, experiencing Swedish traditions, drinking hot chocolate, and seeing historic houses lit up in spectacular lights.
Calendar of Holiday Events in Chisago Lakes
Check out these festive annual events in November and December!
Kick off the holiday season at the huge Chisago Lakes PTO Annual Craft Fair at the Wildcat Community Center! 150+ booths with vendors and local crafters, plus food trucks and fresh baked goods. Free admission, easy parking, and building access. This event has been taking place for over 30 years!
Experience unique wines paired with amazing chocolates and rare cheeses the winery has specially selected for this special weekend. Winehaven Winery and Vineyard is a family-owned and operated winery located in Chisago City, Minnesota, and has been in operation since 1995. Its vineyard consists of 15 acres of various winter-hardy grapes.
Another can’t miss event at Winehaven. Enjoy a fantastic dinner and dueling piano show! The winery will be filled with the sounds of music from the 1970s through current favorites. Grab your family, friends, and favorite song requests for a fun night of food and music.
The quaint town of Taylors Falls, Minnesota, becomes a Christmas Card Village! This event has been held on the Friday after Thanksgiving since 1985. The Lighting Festival includes a parade, medallion hunt, craft fairs, Christmas at the 1855 Folsom House Museum, an ecumenical Choral Vesper Service, family Bingo, Mrs. Claus at the library, a giant bonfire, and snowman making. Watch for the limited edition Lighting Festival ornament and make sure to wear your lumberjack flannel!
Santa arrives in a fire truck! Small Town Christmas is hosted by the Center City Fire Department Auxiliary at the Center City Fire Hall. The annual small-town Christmas evening includes cookie decorating, cocoa, popcorn, raffles, and a Christmas story read aloud. Put your Christmas jammies on and celebrate! This is a FREE family event. All proceeds from the raffles go to local residents in need this holiday season.
The annual Christmas Bazaar has been a tradition for over 20 years. Including more than 30 vendors and their always popular “Bethlehem Bakery,” stocked full of fresh baked goodies, including lefse! They serve hot cinnamon rolls and coffee in the mornings and then a sloppy joe lunch in the afternoon. There are also antiques and a raffle with great prizes!
The Holiday Craft Boutique is hosted by the Center City Fire Department Auxiliary at the Center City Fire Hall. Their annual Holiday Boutique has many vendors, crafters, and baked goods! There will be unique gifts for teachers, family, co-workers, friends, and so much more. Raffle tickets will be available for a chance to win prize baskets. Lunch will also be available for sale. Do some holiday shopping while supporting a great cause! All proceeds go towards local residents in need.
Have a fun day shopping! The Holiday Craft Fair has several vendors with a wide variety of items, including holiday gifts, Scentsy, jewelry, handcrafted items, and gifts. You can make a day of it and attend two other craft shows on the same day in Center City (within 4 miles of each other). Visit the above link to the Facebook event page with a Google Map and information. Local Cub Scout Pack #144 will be selling food and beverages, plus wreaths and garland.
Don’t miss Lindström’s Annual Tree Lighting Festival at Lindström’s Memorial Park! FREE Admission.
Visit a winter wonderland and see live reindeer, take pictures with Santa, stay warm with hot cocoa, coffee and a bonfire, enjoy a freshly grilled hot dog or brat, make a s’more with Boy Scout Troop 159, meet the KOD/Chisago Lakes Ambassadors, plus listen to live music: High School Brass Ensemble & Santa Lucia Carolers.
Chisago City’s Annual Tree Lighting Festival at Moberg Park.
Come to Moberg Park for Chisago City’s Annual Lighting Festival! FREE Admission.
Events include horse-drawn sleigh rides, music, caroling, refreshments, and of course, Santa! Bring your letters to Santa with a returned addressed envelope, and Santa will reply.
Picket Fence Gals is a one-of-a-kind sale! They have become one of the premier occasional sales in Minnesota. Through the years, Picket Fence Gals has grown to 2 buildings and added Picket Fence Guys. Each vendor has their own design aesthetic that gives Picket Fence Gals a wide array of styles that shoppers will love, from Farmhouse to Modern to BOHO to Mid-century. Every day during the sale is different because the vendors restock each night. Have fun and find wonderful treasures.
Join the Chisago Lakes Chamber team for their Annual Meeting and Holiday Gala. Get to know the community and the team during a social hour then enjoy a delicious buffet dinner and desserts!
For more events in Chisago Lakes, visit the Chisago Lakes Chamber calendar!
Another fun and unique spot to shop is Pleasant Valley Orchard. Plus, you can pick up fresh apples for your Thanksgiving pie.
Life is short, never stop searching for what stirs your soul. ❤️
Pleasant Valley Orchard is open for apple season starting 9/2/2023! The family owned apple orchard is located near Taylors Falls, Minnesota, in the scenic St. Croix River Valley. Judy and Jim are passionate about the land and growing top-quality apples and pumpkins. The fall season kicks off with a bang including many fun family-friendly events; hay rides, live music, local artisans fair, their second annual authors event, and the orchard’s anniversary event. There is a fully stocked bakery and the Pleasant Valley Food Trailer which serves yummy apple donuts, apple brats and apple cider slushies. Follow my Instagram stories for opening weekend and apple season fun!
*Hayrides and the full menu of weekend activities begin September 16 & 17. The food trailer will have limited hours opening weekend and will be fully open starting September 9 & 10. See —LIVE MUSIC CALENDAR.
Celebrate the Halloween season October 20-31 at Pleasant Valley Orchard. The 12 Days of Halloween is the big end up season event including daily sales, spooky story time for the kids, scavenger hunt for all ages, pie baking and pumpkin carving.
Have you been to Medora, North Dakota? What a kick! This area is rich in history and nature but also offers unique activities for the whole family from the Pitchfork Steak Fondue Dinner to the Medora Musical.
Medora is located at the entrance of Theodore Roosevelt National Park with beautiful views of the North Dakota Badlands. Medora was founded in 1883 which is also the year that the young Theodore Roosevelt visited this region to hunt bison. Can you imagine the feeling of seeing this amazing landscape for the first time?
The Pitchfork Steak Fondue Dinner was delicious and yes, the steaks are truly cooked on pitchforks! Our steaks were cooked perfectly and we appreciated all the sides which included fresh fruit, salad, coleslaw, vegetables, baked beans, garlic toast, baked potatoes, brownies, and cinnamon-sugar donuts plus coffee and lemonade. You can purchase wine or beer at the bar.
It was busy (see picture below) but they are super organized and the line moved quickly. There’s also plenty of tables in either the shade or the sun so you don’t have to feel rushed for a seat. We were impressed with all the staff walking around asking if we needed anything and clearing our plates.
They have a live band (The Coal Diggers from the Medora Musical) playing good ole western music. The music combined with the views and eating outside, it’s a night to remember!
We walked around the bluff after dinner and took in all the views. Both the Pitchfork Steak Fondue Dinner and the Medora Musical are located up on the bluff. The drive up is only 5 minutes from town and they do offer shuttles.
The set of the Medora Musical
We stayed at the historic Rough Riders Hotel in the heart of downtown Medora. The rooms were very nice. The three C’s…convenient, clean and comfortable. 😉 Plus, there is a wonderful private library filled with everything Theodore Roosevelt for you to enjoy.
Breakfast is always my favorite meal and The Farmhouse Cafe perfectly satisfied all my cravings from the coffee to chocolate syrup on the pancakes! Check out the Redneck Breakfast below, that’s a huge piece of ham on top of sausage with an over-easy egg and cheesy hashbrowns. Holy moly so good! The service was top notch and I found the most unique gifts here.
If you live in the Twin Cities, getting to Medora is an easy 8-hour drive. Fargo is approximately at the halfway point, so it’s a convenient stop to take a break for lunch or to spend the night. We stopped at the Würst Bier Hall in downtown Fargo for lunch. The locally-made polish sausage was amazing and Terry loved the local beer. Terry will be sharing more in his Tuesdays with Terry post.
The Story of a Best Friend Animal Society Adoption
This is the life story of a rescue dog, our Best Friends rescue dog. When we met, I had no idea how much you would change our lives for the better. Our time together was short but continues to have a lasting impact.
Thousands of miles and adventures in your years. Thank you for saving us, sweet girl. Run free…
We met at Best Friends Animal Society, a place that was on my bucket list after seeing their National Geographic “Dog Town” series. We scheduled a tour and then randomly checked their website for puppies available for adoption. There you were! Without hardly thinking, we submitted our adoption paperwork. It was late in the evening. The next morning during the tour, we got a call from the Best Friends Adoption Specialist. Our cell service was sketchy, so we could not connect. We were so nervous that we would miss the opportunity. But then…
From that day forward, life was full of lessons, adventures, and love. You taught us patience, how to work together, to take breaks, to enjoy daily walks. You literally made us laugh every single day. Your personality was larger than life. You loved to travel and road trips. Every hotel, every new location, was a place to discover and explore. You climbed on every table and chair even when you were too big to fit. You loved sitting on the lawn chairs in the backyard and taking it all in.
I could post a million pictures of you and tell a million stories. When we found out that you had kidney disease at your one year check-up, it was so heartbreaking. We made up our minds to fill your short life with adventure. Another thing that through you changed us forever. We grew closer, discovered ourselves through traveling, and became happier. I felt a strong connection to you because of struggling with my own pain. We both had challenges but we figured out ways to work around them and live our best lives. We took breaks when we needed them and pushed ourselves when we could. Together.
You were never sure what to do with your long legs. 🙂
You died at the young age of three (almost four). I’m so thankful for the time that you had with your brother, Allen. He brought out so much joy in you the last year of your life.
We miss you so much.
Best Friends Animal Society started over 35 years ago with a no-kill sanctuary in Utah. Today, they are helping homeless pets in every corner of the country. Their goal is to have the country no-kill by 2025. You can learn more HERE.
Learn more about Best Friends and make a gift in honor of your animal best friend at https://bfas.io/bfday23.
Life is short, do the things that stir your soul. ❤️
*Originally posted January 12, 2021. One year after Utah passed away.
The set of the Medora Musical
