Saturday happenings.

We did a lot today! Our good friends, Lauren and Stephen, were in town this week, so we met up with them this morning at the Farmer's Market. It was our first time this year, and even though it was raining, we had a good time!

Lauren and I.

After that, we had plans with our friends from church, David and Lindsay. I was super excited because we were doing two things that none of us had ever done before.- we had lunch at La Mie Bakery and went on a tour of the Salisbury House.

Here are some pictures of the bakery. It did not disappoint- it was so cute/modern and the food was good!

Kley and Dave, showcasing the bread. 

My fruit tart- I had to get it. I love fruit, and it was so colorful. It was delicious.

Lindsay's creme brulee.

Then we headed to the Salisbury House. Unfortunately, our tour guide was not the best. He was older, very awkward, had lots of pauses, gave very random details, and just said some really strange things. All in all, I am glad we went, but don't really want to go again! I'm glad we all went together- we had a good laugh in the car afterwards about the whole thing.

Here is what the Salisbury house is, in a nutshell: It was built/owned by Carl and Edith Weeks, and they lived there with their four sons- Charles, Willliam, Evert (Hud), and Lafayette (Lafe). They were inspired to build it when they visited Salisbury, England, and decided to build their own manor house back home in Iowa. They lived there from 1926-1954. They started building in 1923. The original budget for the house was $150,000, but they ended up spending $3 million, which would be $40 million today. It has 28,000 square feet and 42 rooms, with tons of imported artifacts and artwork from all around the world. It had the best of the best for the 1920's. While most people still had outhouses, their upstairs had 7 ornate bathrooms. 

Unfortunately, with the Great Depression and a few other issues, they couldn't afford the upkeep. In 1934, they donated the house to Drake University, while they still lived there as tenants until their youngest son graduated. With WWII happening, Drake couldn't afford to maintain it either, so Drake and the Weeks family jointly sold it to Iowa State Education Association in 1954. The Salisbury House Foundation was formed in 1993, and purchased the grounds/house from the ISEA in 1998 for $4 million. They spent $10 million restoring it, and made it what it is today!

Quite the story, right here in our own Des Moines.

Great Room.

Common Room.

Library.

Dining Room.

Breakfast Room.

Some of the bedrooms upstairs.

Guest Room.

Edith's dressing room.

Edith's Bedroom.

Carl's Bedroom.

Outdoor Gardens.

From the outside.