Last night Marty and I had a big night out.  We went to St. Paul to attend the 40th birthday party for my friend Jean's husband Chris.  We stayed at a hotel, we went out for a relaxing dinner, and we left to go out at 9:30.  All practically unheard of and such a great treat.

We went to a bar in St. Paul called The Happy Gnome.  The name alone practically guarantees that you'll have a good time.


We missed the surprise part of the party, but arrived in time to hear music performed by the Sweet Colleens.  A blend of Celtic, country, and Cajun-style band...their music was fantastic.  We picked up one of their CD's which includes one of my favorite accordion players - BeauSoleil.  I kept trying to get good photos of the accordion player from the Sweet Colleens, but didn't really get a good shot because he moved so fast.  He played the accordion over his head, taking breaks to have a sip of his beer which was held onto his microphone stand by a wire cupholder.


Thanks to Jean and Chris for inviting us to the party.  We had a great time.  It was fun to watch you dance and to catch up with everyone.


And, it was probably the only time that my mom stayed home to watch the kids while we went out and hung out with her friends.