Yesterday we spent the day at the Iowa State Fair. We got tickets on sale from Fareway then thought we weren’t going to be able to fit a visit in after all that has gone on in the last couple of weeks. Then we decided to just take the day and go. The weather was perfect, there weren’t a lot of people there and we took our time and slowly wandered around. I have no idea what other state fairs are like to compare but the Iowa State Fair is really something to experience. My favorite is the animals barns, Joe likes the tractors and Drew wanted to see everything and do everything!
We love watching the chainsaw artists – such talent!I would have loved to have taken this bench home with me!The famous butter cow – no trip to the State Fair is complete without visiting the butter cow!Of course Drew had to pet the goats!A life size chalkboard horse – fun!I wandered over to look at the real horses and when I came back Joe was writing on the chalkboard horse.He does love me!Of course we checked out the campers.Drew’s girlfriend!Drew and I rode the Ferris Wheel.Ye Ole Mill – always a favorite.Ye Ole Mill – we had to ride it twice – Drew loved it!On the Sky Lift – it was a beautiful day – and not a lot of people which made the day so much more enjoyable!Another Sky Lift view.The Mountain Man exhibit was interesting.
A giant sand sculpture – they were working on it while we watched.Drew loved this – he got to take a bag of the cracked corn home. The chickens loved it!
We didn’t come to close to seeing everything there was to see but it’s impossible to see it all in one day. All in all we had a very relaxed and enjoyable time. I’m okay with going to the State Fair about every three years or so but Joe likes to go yearly so I’m guessing we’ll be back to see it all again next year!
My daughter Abby, me, Aunt Konnie and my sister Beth.
We said goodbye to my dad’s twin sister yesterday. My beautiful Aunt Konnie. Her son-in-law summed it up perfectly when he described her in three words. Kindness, servitude and humility. She was the kindest person I knew. She served others willingly. And she was the most humble person I ever met. She fought a hard battle with cancer and it was such a blessing when she passed. No more pain and suffering. There’s no doubt in anybody’s mind who knew her that she is in a better place today. She had a such a deep faith. It was uplifting to be around her. She will be missed by many. We loved her dearly.
Our annual camping trip to Clear Lake for the car show went by like a blur this year. We enjoyed watching the cars parade around the lake Friday night, then Joe’s sister and brother-in-law came Saturday for lunch and then uptown to see the cars. An evening around the campfire with the whole group of us. Then up early to clean the camper and make it ready for friends to use. On to Pella to set the camper up before finally getting home. It seemed like a whirlwind of activity in a short space of time. I’m obviously getting old – it was fun but it wore me out!
Drew found some free time to paint a pretty picture with the paints Uncle Les and Aunt Linda brought him!
I’ve always been a homebody but it seems the older I get and the longer I’m out of the workforce, the more of a homebody I’m becoming. Being away from home these past few days was fun but I would find myself wishing I was back home. When we got home Sunday evening and headed down to check on the chickens I found our first blue egg. Matilda had laid her first egg while we were gone. It really didn’t matter that I wasn’t home when Matilda laid her first egg but it felt like I had missed out on a milestone in one of my baby’s lives! Silly I know but I just like to be home!
Wow – what a whirlwind the last few days have been. We left the house last Friday at noon headed to Clear Lake for our annual camping trip with friends. We had a fun, very busy weekend. Then Sunday we headed back to Pella where we were hoping to find a camping spot. Joe kindly offered our camper to a guy he used to work with. The sprint car nationals are held every year in Knoxville, Iowa and his friend lives in Pennsylvania and has always wanted to go to the races. We lucked out and found a spot (the campgrounds tend to fill up fast the week of nationals) and set the camper up. Then we headed home.
Just one of the many many neat vehicles we saw during the drive around the lake!
Monday saw Joe back to work and Drew and I went with my dad and mom to visit my Aunt Konnie who is in the hospital and not doing well at all. When we all got home, we decided to head back to the campground. We figured as long as the camper was sitting in Pella and Joe was scheduled to go to Vermeer both days anyway we might as well use it! So for the past two days Joe drove right into Pella to work and Drew and I stayed at the campground. We went from a very busy, nonstop on the go, friends and visitors everywhere camping weekend to a very quiet, laid back, back to nature, just us couple of days of camping. I have to say I really enjoyed the laid back days! We finally got home around 7:00 Wednesday evening. We unloaded the car and Joe headed back to the campground. His friends will be arriving tomorrow morning and he wanted to be there to show them around. It was fun to get some unexpected camping time in but it sure is good to be home!
I did a lot of stitching today. I should have been doing other things – like getting the camper ready for the weekend. But instead I stitched. Drew and I did run and get groceries after perusing the sale ads that came out today. Then back home to stitch some more. I want to get this sampler done so I can start on an order. I’ve been stitching samplers here lately along with pillow tucks to sell but this one I’m going to keep for myself. I have no idea where I’m going to put it but it’s staying here with me!
Saturday morning I ran across a post on Facebook shared by my niece giving instructions on making a DIY Umbrella Stand Planter. Usually I just scroll on past these type of things but this one caught my eye. I then showed it to Joe and next thing I know – we’re spending our weekend making one for our deck! Dad and Mom kept Drew for us for awhile on Saturday while we ran to get supplies and then out for supper at Joe’s favorite restaurant, Bubba-Q’s. It was a much needed “date” for us as we rarely spend time by ourselves.
By the time we got home from Dad and Mom’s after picking up Drew it was after 9:00 p.m. but we decided to go ahead and get started. We got the cement work done so the cement would be set for the next day. Then yesterday we finished the project. After it was finished and put in place, I told Joe I thought rather than use it as a planter it would be more practicle for us to turn it into a table and he jumped right on it! The next thing I knew this is what we had – a DIY Umbrella Stand Table. I love it! Now we can sit out on the deck, in the shade, and not worry about the birds leaving droppings all over us. We have a tree over our deck which works great for shade but the darn birds like to roost in the tree and they sure do leave a mess!
We have had such beautiful weather here the last couple of weeks and last Sunday was no exception. We invited Dad and Mom over for supper on the deck and then after they left we cleaned everyting up and we sat outside under our new umbrella table until dark. I sewed, Joe had his iPad and Drew kept coming and going doing his thing. We had a quiet, relaxing, productive weekend!
I don’t know how they do it. They ride bicycles for miles, spend the evenings eating all different kinds of food and drink, party and play, pitch a tent in someone’s yard to sleep, then get up the next morning, get back on their bicycles and ride for miles to repeat the process. All the while being surrounded by thousands of people doing the same thing. Or they drive the sag wagons – those who take a different route away from the bicyclists but heading to the same destination to set up camp and have things ready for when the bikes start rolling in. For seven days straight. But those 20,000 plus people who do it every year love it!
These guys set their tent up back behind the shop – they might have had a racoon visitor camping back there!
The white bus was called Team Good Grief with a Snoopy theme.This group is called Team Detour. They tend to take breaks and catch up later – they do things like go kayaking at Lake Rathbun for the day. Some teams are diehard, bike every mile, bike the extra loop everyday. But some aren’t quite so serious – they like to enjoy the great opportunities for fun the state of Iowa has to offer. Some are very serious, some not so much but they all bond and have fun and enjoy their week!
I’m not sure how many people we actually had here. I didn’t get many pictures and no good pictures. We had two buses and I think five tents in our yard. The one group all slept in their bus while the others pitched tents and/or stayed in our camper. They ate supper, had some shaved ice, socialized, played bocce ball and ladder ball, had s’mores around the bonfire. We had beautiful weather, almost chilly by nightfall. It was all very low key and totally away from the crowds in town where they had food vendors and entertainment, concerts and I don’t know what all going on. It was great to spend some time with family. Joe’s sister didn’t ride this year but her daughter, son, and two of their kids did so she drove down and spent the night in the camper with them. We sat around the campfire until midnight and enjoyed each other’s company. And they were up and gone by 7:30 this morning. Some were gone a lot earlier than that. Off to Iowa City, their last stop before dipping their tires in the Mississippi River on Sunday before heading home.
A sculpture set up in town. Each community the bikers go through and spend the night at welcome the bikers with all kinds of fun things to see and do.
This years’s RAGBRAI – The Register’s Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa, started on Sunday. There are 20,000 plus riders from all over the United States and the world riding across Iowa from east to west. Add in the support teams that travel with them and you double the amount of people involved. They take a different route every year and this year they will be spending the night in our little community of 2,000 people on Thursday. There will be all kinds of entertainment in town along with food vendors and beer tents. And people. So many people! Needless to say I will not be going anywhere near Sigourney on Thursday! Eric has to work 9:00 to 4:00 at Casey’s and he’s not looking forward to it. The bikers will ride right past Casey’s when they roll into town and they will be hit hard!
Even though we won’t be going anywhere near town, we are hosting two different teams of bikers. Our nephew and niece (brother and sister) and their team and a team Joe knows from work. It looks like 20 some people will be setting up camp in our yard. We plan to feed them supper so I will spend today getting ready for tomorrow! I can’t even imagine spending a week on a bike cycling across the state of Iowa but so many people love it. It really is something to see.
We didn’t come to close to seeing everything there was to see but it’s impossible to see it all in one day. All in all we had a very relaxed and enjoyable time. I’m okay with going to the State Fair about every three years or so but Joe likes to go yearly so I’m guessing we’ll be back to see it all again next year!
Drew found some free time to paint a pretty picture with the paints Uncle Les and Aunt Linda brought him!
My family – on my mom’s side – we’re a small group but full of fun – and we love each other!
