What would the end of summer… Labor Day Weekend… be without attending the state fair? It's the season's right of passage into autumn, afterall. So, early yesterday morning, Dick and I headed to the Minnesota State Fairgrounds in St. Paul. One of our final buildings to tour last evening was the one where the Princess Kay of the Milky Way contestants' heads are…

Today is Dick's and my 35th wedding anniversary. We decided to eat at Lost Lake Lodge north of Brainerd.   We ordered a dinner for two "special" for $69.00!! We each ordered walleye that was steamed in a parchment pouch.      The restaurant has a grist mill where they grind their own flour and make their own…

This morning I needed to get out the door early, so I chose to make quinoa for breakfast because it cooks in just 15 minutes without watching over it.   I sprinkled some wild raspberries on top that Dick and I had picked yesterday on our property. It was all the sweetness it needed. Those are…

I thought it would set the stage, for our road trip to Laura Ingalls childhood home in southeastern Minnesota, if I picked some peas from my garden to shell on the way to the town of Walnut Grove that was the setting for her book On the Banks of Plum Creek. It just seemed fitting… while I read…

Saturday evening Dick and I attended a community theater performance in Pequot Lakes (Minnesota), which is 17 miles north of Brainerd. The musical comedy was called A Don't Hug Me County Fair "where the Bunyan County Fair is the biggest thing that's happened since the winter carnival snowplow parade. Bunyan Bar owners Gunner and Clara…

I must say… this year's 4th of July goes down as my most memorable. Our decision to attend Garrison Keillor's 35th anniversary live Prairie Home Companion broadcast in Avon, Minnesota this past Saturday was an unbelievable experience! Dick and I, accompanied by my sister Rita and her husband Jerry, arrived at Lake Wobegon Park at noon to set our lawn chairs in place…

Last week, Dick and I had this conversation: Dick: "It's the 4th of July next weekend." Adrienne: "Oh no, it's not." Dick: "Yes, it is." Adrienne: "No, it's not. Today's June 16th. It's 2 1/2 weeks away." A calendar ended our disagreement abruptly. It was the 26th of June. The next weekend was the 4th of July. Where had June gone?? The…

At 7 a.m. this morning, despite the chilly temperature in the 50s with heavy cloud cover and a brisk wind, I was headed down a straw mulched row of strawberries swinging my empty 5 qt ice cream pail. I had joined other pickers who, like me, had visions of smoothies, strawberry shortcake, jam, rhubarb strawberry sauce, and fresh berries sliced on…

Tonight Dick and I attended a grand opening at Franklin Arts Center in Brainerd (Minnesota).  The facility, built in 1932-33, is the former Franklin Junior High that housed 7-9th grade students. Artspace officially took over ownership of the building on February 15, 2008. Artspace is "a nonprofit real estate developer for the arts based out of Minneapolis, Minnesota. The company purchases…