Iowa State Fair 2018

 The Iowa State Fair is always a special time for Danny and me because it comes after his nine-days-in-a-row stretch at work. After seeing each other for only a few hours during that time, having one whole day together is always amazing. This year we saw so many new things, and we have so many new memories from the time we've spent together.


The mountain men demonstrated fire starting and hawk throwing.


Twin goat kids had just been born that morning.


The Isiserettes, a drill and drum corp from Des Moines, were absolutely amazing! If you're in the area, you'll definitely want to check them out.


The chainsaw carver is always amazing.


And, of course, we eat our way across the fairgrounds. This year we only tried new foods, from the list of new additions to the food vendors' menus.


Itty Bitty (yes, that's his real name) was the champion big boar this year. And he's thrilled with the title, can't you tell?


One of our favorite places to visit is the horse barn. This year we were in time to see the Percherons and the Clydesdales in the cart events. We found a spot near the set-up area, getting a behind-the-scenes look at just how big they really are.


By the time we were ready to head for home, some people were just arriving. The main thoroughfares were packed all day, and dusk was no exception.


Thank you, Iowa State Fair, for another amazing year.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Holland Creme - That Amazing White Stuff In Donuts

Image
I remember going to the grocery store every Saturday morning when I was growing up, and my favorite place in the entire store was the donut case. All the glazed, powdered and filled baked goods drew me like a magnet. My favorites, far and away, were the ones filled with that beautiful white, fluffy creme. At the time I didn't know it was called Holland Creme - I just knew it was the most amazing concoction ever. Ever. Here is my version of this sweet treat. You can make your own fried donuts and fill them, or like I did here, you can cut a crevice into store-bought donuts with a knife and fill them with creme in a piping bag. Either way, you're going to love it. Ingredients: 1 cup sugar 1/2 cup water 1 cup vegetable oil 1 cup shortening 1 cup butter 1 Tbsp vanilla 7 cups powdered sugar 1. Make a simple syrup by combining sugar and water in a sauce pan over medium heat until boiling, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and allow to cool complet
Read more

Recovering An Old Card Table And Making It Usable Again

Image
This card table recover project has been on my to-do list for months. I've been using it as my workspace in the craft room for quite some time, and it sees a lot of abuse. Here it is now, with a neutral cover on it so I can take better pictures for my tutorials. There were dents and dings in the old blue covering from metal tools. And yes, I've used my embossing heat tool on it several times, leaving pretty good scars. The padding underneath the blue cover also made it difficult to keep paper crafts flat when adhering them together, so it was time for something new. That's where a simple vinyl tablecloth comes in handy. The process to recover the table is pretty simple, but I learned a couple of lessons the hard way. I share them with you now. First, don't do this on any surface but a carpet. I tried it on the deck int he sunshine to get better pictures, but all it did was tear up the cover. Second, get a second pair of hands to help you kee
Read more

Simple DIY Beaded Keychains

Image
We're having so much fun putting together goodie bags and door prizes for our upcoming ladies retreat at the church. So many of our ladies have donated craft supplies, decorations, time and energy to treat our visitors to an amazing time. These keychains are just one of the gifts some of the attendees will find in their bags. All you need to make them are a variety of beads, some fairly thin yet sturdy cord and a jump ring. Cut a length of cord, fold it in half and string it through the jump ring. String matching beads on both sides. And tie it off with a double knot. So simple, yet so pretty. Here's another variation: Cut a length of cord, fold it in half and thread it through a jump ring. Tie one or two beads on one side and tie it off with a knot. Make the other side longer with additional letters and beads before tying it off. Make a variety of lengths, colors, patterns and phrases so no two are alike.
Read more