the great minnesota get together.

..otherwise known at the state fair! I didn't attend last year, so this was my first Minnesota State Fair. It was a fun fun night of friends, food and seed art. A couple favorites..
-the amazing wooden boxes of corn and soy beans. I felt like I was at the fair in the fifties.
-seeing showrooms FULL of dahlias, all colors and sizes from the Minnesota Dahlia Association.
-there are literally no words to describe the amazing fried cheese curds. I will return to the Fair every year even if only for these little amazing nuggets.

canning.

...i have a new found love for canning after this summer thanks to my mom. She came back to visit me this week and she taught me how to can tomatoes! We brought 5 trays for homegrown tomatoes back from nebraska. Fun fun fun. Stocking up the cupboards for winter!

summer evenings at lake harriet.

..i can't help but be so thankful every time i run or walk around lake harriet. I am in awe that 5 miles away from my downtown apartment there are 3 beautiful lakes..one of the many reasons I am becoming more and more fond of Minneapolis and the quaint state of Minnesota. It is picturesque in everyway...grandpas teaching grandsons how to fish, bands playing in the bandshell, happy (and intense) rollerbladers (another reason i love Minneapolis..rollerblading has never been more cool), and content dogs playing away in the water..i wanted to share just a few pictures of my run around lake harriet. There is also a little gnomes house that people can leave notes at..and i hear he responds! i haven't left a note yet, but i want to.
..I don't take for granted any sound, plant, or warm moment i have around the lakes, because winter is coming..

oakland farmers market.

...finished one side of the new Oakland farmer's market sign! pictured with fresh veggies from the nicollet farmers market...how cute are those carrots?

oui paris.

lovely cards from darling clementine.
seen on jillian's blog!

joanna and dayton.

my sweet friend joanna got married a few weeks ago. here are some shots of their sweet wedding! i helped design the place cards and program!

Mmmm...

OOooo...loving all of these beauties. I'd say I'd have to go with the yellow ones...
Available here.

new and improved kate spade shop.

love the new look of kate spade's store on 5th ave. found the pics on there "behind the curtain" section at katespade.com. i hope you all have taken a peek at her new apparel collection because it is beautiful.

this weekend.

made homemade biscuits.
finished sewing the amy butler gumdrop pillows for my lil sisters dorm room.
began painting the new Oakland farmers market sign.
started my running again (i am running another 1/2 marathon at the end of october).
saw a beautiful newfoundland taking a canoe ride on the lake.
love it.

onesies.

more things at target.
"cute to the core" apple for girl, "no girls allowed" tree house and "silly monsters" for boy.

mama's swiss chard.

how beautiful is swiss chard?
a lovely palette straight from the garden.

new things at target!

the monster prints are here! there is a girl version and a boy version..love it! there will be some dresses and onesies to show you once i get my hands on them!

pickles.

In the county fair spirit, my mom and i decided to make pickles with the fresh cucumbers from her garden! We spent a lot of time in Bill's garden (our neighbor who graciously lets us munch on his harvest) eating tomatoes till i was full and filling my pockets with fresh jalepenos, peppers, but most importantly to get fresh dill of course for our project. We used a simple dill recipe that didn't require weeks of soaking (as some do). Our recipe included fresh garlic, pepper, a little sugar, dill, and sweet onion..that's it! You make a simple solution of vinegar, pickling salt and sugar that you boil and pour into your jars, seal the lid and voila! I opened my first jar tonight and they are very tasty .

burt county fair.

I went home for a much needed weekend of small town life. Work has been very very busy, very exciting but busy, so i do apologize for the lack of posts..but i have lots of fun things to share! The Burt County Fair was this weekend in Oakland. I loved watching the judging of the vegetables and flowers, categories of which included miniatures and 5 cluster perennials, and in vegetables, the giant category..my favorite. And seeing all the yummy homemade treats and canned goodness. My mom's oatmeal cake and mike's wheat bread both got 1st place stickers. Lots of beautiful things to see and appreciate...