Osage artisan festival

Last weekend, I drove up to my hometown in northern Iowa to visit my mom and stepdad.  My mom suggested that we drive to nearby Osage and check out the town's fall artisan festival.  We didn't know what to expect.  We thought we'd find a few food booths and a couple pumpkins to buy.  But boy, were we surprised by what we saw!  The main street was lined with food and craft vendors. Visitors were walking up and down the street, in and out of stores, wearing their knee-high leather boots and drinking pumpkin lattes. My mom and I had no idea it was such a big event!

I wish I would have taken more pictures, but I've been told it's kind of a "no-no" to take photos at a craft fair. The vendors don't want other people stealing their project ideas -- although maybe that's not as big of an issue nowadays with Pinterest and all.

Anyhow, I took a photo of the "Autumn" sign above, because I wanted to buy it but didn't have the cash.  (Again, we had no idea that it was a craft fair, so I didn't budget for it. If I go again next year, I'll save up some spending money!)  I also thought this jack o' latern chair was adorable.

Here's one of the parking lots full of vendors.  There were four of these vendor lots, if I recall correctly.

There was a taco truck that had a huge line of people, and the food looked wonderful.  But my stepdad wanted to stop at one of his favorite Osage restaurants, Teluwat.  The place was packed, but we managed to snag a table by sharing it with a group of really nice women, one of whom told us that she had more than 30 grandkids and four great-grandkids! She was adorable!

My stepdad and I ordered the special of the day: the breaded pork tenderloin.  It was huge, but so good!

Everyone told us that we had to stop at the new Unc's Cheesecake bakery in town.  We were so full after lunch, we didn't sample the cheesecake.  But my mom and I did order a couple of carrot cake balls for the ride home. Actually, I thought they were pumpkin cake balls, but when I ate mine the next day, it turned out to be carrot cake.  Still very good, although I really wanted pumpkin!

Sugar cookies decorated for fall.

Carrot cake balls for the ride home.

Have you been to any fun fall festivals this year?  I'm always looking for a new one to visit.  I just love this time of year!

Bike Iowa: Trout Run Trail, Decorah

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to stay overnight in Decorah for work.  I woke up early the next day so I could check out the new Trout Run Trail, an 11-mile bike trail that circles Decorah.  I took the photo above at the unofficial entrance to the trail.  This gorgeous work of public art is one of many along the trail route.

I read this terrific review of the Trout Run Trail on the Bike Iowa website a few days after I visited there.  It does a great job of summing up what it's like to ride the trail.  Like the reviewer, I was surprised by how scenic, and hilly, the trail is.  (And I can say that the hills aren't any better going clockwise!)  I usually do pretty good going up steep hills, but I had to get off my bike and walk a couple of them, because I didn't know they were coming and didn't have enough "steam" to get up them.  But don't let the hills discourage you.  I met a group of kids, who looked like they were part of a summer camp group, along the trail. So it's very family-friendly.

There are several scenic outlooks and trout fishing spots along the trail.  Check out these gorgeous views!
 

Along the trail, you'll also pass by the DNR's fish hatchery and the former home of the Decorah eagles, which gained worldwide fame a couple years ago when their nest was filmed by web cam.

It was also neat to see that the trail cut through farmland.  At one point, the trail bumped right up next to a dairy farm.  I just had to take photos of the cows!

Another highlight of the trail is the $2 million bridge that spans over Highway 9.  The bridge is lit up in colorful LED lights at night.

 Once I crossed the bridge, I rode past the Decorah bluffs. Such a beautiful part of the state.

I'm already making plans to come back to Decorah again in the fall -- for fun, not for work!  This trail is worth the four-hour drive to northeast Iowa.

Shopping Main Street Grinnell & an Iowa gift idea

I decided to skip the craziness known as Black Friday this year (I'm not a fan of the Black Friday sales starting on Thanksgiving night), so I asked my sister to join me on a Small Business Saturday trip to a place I've never been to before but always wanted to visit -- Grinnell, Iowa.

My family knows that I have to take pictures whenever we do anything together.  You can tell my sister (who is expecting a little girl in March!) is thrilled about taking photos. In the 20 degree temps.  I look like Rudulph, with my nose so bright!

We're not used to the cold temps yet (it was 80 degrees early in the week), so I didn't take my gloves off to take more pictures outside.  But we found several neat little shops in downtown Grinnell, including a shoe store, a Hallmark store with lots of fun holiday gifts, a flower/gift shop with beautiful home decor items (I'm already planning to go back when I have a little more cash after the holidays) and a kids clothing store that had the most delicious kids clothing (my sister wants to go back there after the holidays).

There were also several restaurants downtown.  We ended up at a Mexican restaurant (I didn't catch the name), but the food was excellent and a perfect warm up on a cold day.  My sister orders Cherry Cokes whenever we eat out together.

I ordered the "Speedy Gonzalez" lunch special: one enchileda, one taco, refried beans and Spanish rice.

And even though I had pumpkin pie for breakfast (I love Thanksgiving leftovers), I had to order the churros.  Don't they look festively arranged in a star shape?

We made a good dent in our Christmas gift list. And while I'm talking about Christmas gifts, I wanted to share with you a little present I bought myself from one of my favorite Iowa artists.  I order a calendar from the Steel Cow Gallery in Waukon, Iowa, every year for my office.  I love the colorful cow paintings. One day, I'm going to buy a big cow print, if I can only figure out where to put it in my house.

You can order a cow calendar, or other fun items like cow magnets and Christmas ornaments, on the Steel Cow Gallery website.

Did you shop on Small Business Saturday?  Or are you a die-hard Black Friday fan? I understand why people like to shop on Black Friday -- the awesome deals and festive atmosphere -- but I just didn't want to get up early this year.

Autumn leaves on the High Trestle Trail

I took a few days off work and spent an afternoon on the High Trestle Trail in central Iowa.  The leaves were just starting to change color, and the milkweed seeds were out. They look like little cotton balls.

I passed a couple of corn fields as the combines were harvesting the crop.  They were kicking up a lot of dust in this dry weather.  This farmer waved at me when I rode by on my bike.

I love the contrast of blue sky and golden fall colors.  It was a gorgeous day, and I'm glad I took some time off from work to enjoy it.

Did you take a road trip to see the fall leaves?  What's your favorite place to see the autumn colors?

July odds & ends

I thought it would be fun to show you what I've been up to so far this summer.  I'm in love with my garden right now.  My herb pot looks amazing, and I've been harvesting ever-bearing strawberries and early tomatoes almost every day.

Last week, I visited the Des Moines farmers market and picked up the most delicious Missouri peaches.  We ended up eating a whole bag full of peaches in one day! They were that good!

We finally got rain last week!  It totaled about 0.8 inch over two separate rainstorms.  I was so excited to see rain after our two-week dry spell, I just had to take a photo while I waited in my car for the rain to stop.

I picked up this bag of Vidalia onions at the grocery store, and I was surprised to see Josh Turner, one of my favorite country singers, on the bag. It made me like Vidalia onions even more :)

My sister found this message in her fortune cookie the other day.  What does it mean?

I'm convinced that ice cream tastes even better when it's 100 degrees outside, and when it's eaten with a wood spoon.

I bought a few annual flowers and a couple tomatoes on sale to help fill out bare spots in my garden where the seeds didn't come up.  Do you ever buy plants at the end of the season?

My husband and I spent an afternoon shopping at the Bass Pro Shop in Altoona.  I loved this unique merry-go-round at the entrance.  Is this new?  I don't remember it from previous visits.

So what have you been up to this summer?  It's been a hot one, but a lot of fun!

Wordless Wednesday: Iowa Aboretuem

Western Iowa road trip

One of the perks of my job is that I get to escape the office occasionally and travel the state.  A few weeks ago, I took a long road trip up to northwest Iowa.  I spent about 8 hours on the road all together.  To keep from getting bored, I took a few goofy photos along the way so you could ride along.

I keep my little Iowa mascot with me in the car when I'm traveling. I call him Kernel.

I've been trying to snack a little healthier when I'm on the road, which means no chips or candy.  Lately, I've been really digging the single-serve milk bottles from Des Moines-based AE Dairy.  Chocolate milk always hits the spot.

When I swung through the town of Pocahontas,  I snapped this photo through my car window.

Pocahontas statue in Pocahontas, Iowa

Whenever I'm on the road, I don't have a lot of time to sit down and eat lunch.  My favorite places to stop are Subway, Culver's (I love butter burgers!) and Pizza Ranch.  I found this Pizza Ranch in downtown Primghar.

After four hours, I finally reached my destination -- a strawberry farm. The plants were blooming, and the strawberries should be ready to pick in early June.

Then I turned around and took the long way home, with blue sky and corn fields as far as the eye can see.

I always wish I had more time to sight-see when I travel for work.  But I like to be home by suppertime so I can catch up with my husband and get ready for another day at the office. 

Do you have any road trip essentials?  I always pack granola bars and apples whenever I'm on the road, so I don't get tempted to buy candy bars!

Lincoln Highway Prairie Park: Ogden, Iowa

I live near the old Lincoln Highway in central Iowa, and I've driven past the Lincoln Prairie Park rest area west of Ogden countless times, but never have stopped -- until last week.  I'm so glad I took a few minutes to look around.  It's really a cute little place to visit.

 

I was surprised to find an original Lincoln Highway marker on display.  See the arrow?  It tells travelers what direction is west, back before highway signs.

 

 

I found another marker in the shadow of the Lincoln Highway post.  I think it's an elevation marker? 

 

 I'm not for sure, but I've heard that there's a place in between Boone and Jefferson where you can see three different bridges, built in different eras, in view of each other along the old Lincoln Highway.  One of the bridges pictured below is a pedestrian bridge, but I think I saw all three of the highway bridges when I drove out of the park.  There's a walking path to get a closer look, but I was in a hurry and didn't go exploring.

 

The road that looks to be the original Lincoln Highway is in pretty bad shape.  You can see the potholes if you closely in the picture.

 

Of course, it's also spring planting time in Iowa.  As I was driving out of the park, a tractor drove by.  I saw dozens of tractors and pick-up trucks full of seed bags on my drive in the country. 

It's a fun time of year to explore Iowa!