Minneapolis, Minnesota

I decided to duplicate this Labor Day holiday and do what I did last year on this very same weekend.

I flew to Minnesota to spend the week with my husband in his neck of the woods. Instead of him coming home to me for the weekend as he usually does, I went there to spend the long weekend with him.

Here I am enjoying my window seat on the airplane...??? What in the world happened to the window?!?!?!??

My darling husband greeted me at the airport and took me to dinner at McCormick & Schmick's. I'll just say it once right now. All the meals we ate in Minnesota were delicious!!!!

Glen took Friday off work again like he did last year. And like last year, we once again attended the Minnesota State Fair.

From the photo, it is evident there weren't as many people there this year as last year.

We were there last year when the all-time attendance record was set--1,824,830 people in 2014 (see yellow "State Fair Trivia" facts further down in this post).

Being part of that record once was enough for us. We liked to have a little breathing room this year as we walked from exhibit to exhibit.

It was definitely more hot and humid this year. The water misters were enjoyable for those who stopped for a misting.

Shockingly, I wanted to buy something at the fair. Most people will think this is a sign I'm turning into an old lady, but when I saw sheepskin seatbelt covers--I HAD TO HAVE THEM!

At the present time I am using a washcloth to pad my shoulder because the seatbelt crosses right where my pacemaker sits and puts pressure on it and makes it uncomfortable for me to drive. 

Once home and trying them out, the jury is still out as to whether I'm in love with the sheepskin cover or not. It works great once in place, but it doesn't allow for the seat belt to retract back when unbuckled. 

All I can say is next time someone sees someone driving with one of those on--don't judge the person too harshly!! Maybe he or she also has a pacemaker or some kind of device implantation and likes a little padding as well.

This is what a float in the state fair parade looks like.

Couldn't help but think of our daughters at various times during the day.

I just had to pose with Big Foot to prove to Sarah her extreme fear and anxiety over possibly coming face to face with the creature when she is out hiking is justified. He is real. This proves it.

This sleep shirt caught my eye as I thought of Rebecca who used to wear a nightgown that said, "Perky morning people should be shot."

We saw the usual animals. Cows, horses, goats, pigs, sheep, etc.

Don't know why these poor suckers had to wear coats on such a hot and humid day. Felt sorry for them as sweat dripped down our backs while we were pondering the situation.

This sheep was getting sheared and had to feel much cooler having shed an outer layer.

Anybody heard the expression "lazy pig?" 

The llamas were probably my favorite animals I saw at the fair this year. Not so ordinary. Interesting to look at and uniquely different.

Let's see...any fair food look appealing? Definitely not the deep fried candy bars (see trivia below) nor the deep fried Twinkies.

Let's just say our cold, refreshing, frozen, non-dairy Dole Whip hit the spot for both of us!!

We really enjoy the bonsai plant display. Some of those things have been growing for decades upon decades and yet some are so small despite their old age.

We also like the county displays.

 So glad there was more state fair humor this year.

Something new to us this year was seed art--which means just what it sounds like. Everything on display is made out of various kinds of seeds.

This was one of my favorites because it was so well done. Not sure I love the politics involved, but the artwork is superb.

 This is another of my favorites.

  There was an interesting (and partly disturbing) section of scarecrows on display.

I thought my dad would enjoy seeing these large sugar beets.

The fruit display was colorful.

After the honey bee section, we decided to call it a day.

 Glen found this great restaurant for our dinner dining pleasure.

I splurged and ordered an appetizer of cauliflower/white bean hummus and vegetables. Look at those huge radish-type slices and the purple cauliflower. Interesting visually and I enjoyed every bite.

Glen, on the other hand, scowled while tasting a few of the things. He's not a very adventuresome eater. He did enjoy the meal he ordered, so he ended on a good note.

All in all--I'd say we had a very fun day as we laughed about going to the Minnesota State Fair more often than we've gone to our own state fair.

Quotes of the Week

"Happy people plan actions, they don't plan results." 

 -- Dennis Waitley 

"Through humor, you can soften some of the worst blows that life delivers. And once you find laughter, no matter how painful your situation might be, you can survive it." 

 -- Bill Cosby

 "I really believe that everyone has a talent, ability, or skill that he can mine to support himself and to succeed in life." 

 -- Dean Koontz 

"Freedom consists not in doing what we like, but in having the right to do what we ought." 

 -- Pope John Paul II 

The Amazingly Fun Yard of Andy and Amanda

We all love it when Andy and Amanda welcome the whole family to their back yard for a summer dinner party. Their yard is so big and has such fun things for the little children to do while there.

At this point, I would show a picture of the swing set the kids love to play on. And I would show a picture of the play house that has a slide coming out of it and a fireman pole in the middle of the house. And I would show a picture of the chicken coop that houses the chickens the little ones love to feed.

The only problem is I didn't take any pictures of those things this time, so refer to Rebecca's and Sarah's blogs to see those.

There were definitely some added things to enhance the experience this time. Like--the Paris photo booth.

Since Glen and I got aced out of the Paris part of our European vacation, we (okay, maybe only me) were anxious to step up to get our photo taken by the Eiffel Tower.

Okay, enough of us!! Next up is the Golden family. It is impressive Madison appears to know what she is doing with her prop.

Brooke and Caroline are in French immersion classes at their elementary school so they actually know what the words they are holding say and mean.

The Excell family steps up for a pose.

Look what Carson found...

Spencer soon joins him in the canoe and they begin paddling as if their oars were really smoothly gliding through water and not clunkily hitting rocks.

Cute Rachel has had practice at posing since the photo booth was made for the activity day girls in her ward.

Dennis, Kaelyn, Samantha and Robyn strike a pose. When asked if Dennis would like a prop, he said he already has a mustache. Silly question to ask wasn't it!

Bryce consented to have his picture taken. In the background Andy had set up two telescopes for viewing mountain goats on the nearby mountain. After ten tries, I was finally able to spot the little critters through the tiny viewing hole.

Clint was willing to pose for a photo as long as it was taken right where he was sitting in his lawn chair. He was busy helping Nani with her computer.

I am just now noticing I did take a picture of the chicken coop (in the background of this photo) and also a picture of the playhouse (albeit a tiny sliver of the playhouse) with Spencer demonstrating the fun slide.

It didn't take long for Eli to join the other boys in the big boat. Carson and Spencer took turns with the net bending way over the side of the boat to scoop up fish from the side of the boat.

Not every family member was willing to jump in the photo booth, but Seth and Kenna were more than happy to do so.

Sister pose!!

Soon Caroline and Madison joined in the boat fun.

Look at this cute couple! Dad said he and Mom didn't need to get a picture because they already have a real life photo of them in front of the Eiffel Tower from back in his military days.

But I am so happy they were good sports because this picture is adorable!! So thankful to call these people my parents.

Just can't say it enough--thanks for hosting the dinner party Andy and Amanda. The grilled chicken was delicious and the yard was out-of-this-world fun!!!

Wish I could photo shop Andy's eyes all the way open because this picture is so darn cute!!

We can't wait for next summer to roll around so we can have another memorable back yard experience.