lydia loves it!
wow, august 26 and the fair is already here? hard to believe. since we were super pumped to include lydia in one of our favorite traditions, we thought we would be smart and go during the day, on opening day, to beat the crowds. wrong. place was packed.
first off, the mn state fair is ridiculously huge. only tx has a larger fair (everything is bigger in tx). so, you have to be bussed in. there are several park & ride stations throughout the twin cites and we chose a church in st paul. upon arriving around 10 am, we were the last car allowed in the full lot! seriously.
the top two reasons (and i think the only reasons) we love the fair: the food and the people watching. i was excited b/c i could finally eat some b’fast since we were arriving in the morning. all the old folk love eating b’fast at the fair. time to get my feet wet.
lydia was caught licking her fingers in anticipation.
we decided on a church run epiphany diner. i got bacon & eggs. and i got just that- bacon & eggs.
nothing out of the ordinary and i was a little disappointed in myself b/c i could have probably better utilized that stomach space for something grander, like perhaps ostrich on a stick.
oh well, live and learn.
time to get serious and go right after the heavy hitters- cheese curds. my mouth is about to water as i type. i have never had nor heard of them before i moved up here but they are amazing…..it’s like the fattiest part of creamy cheese tastily breaded and deep fried until golden crisp. maybe it’s party b/c we only eat them once or twice a year, but regardless, they are crazy good. oh, and all cheese curds are not created equal- you gotta get them from the mouse trap stand in the food building. nothing makes me more angry than eating something insanely fatty that is not good. these are worth the lbs.
i got busted eating some while in line.
also conveniently located in the same aptly named "food" building
were another staple of ours- fried dill pickle chips.
bomb. only this time, i had to sans cajun so lydi-bug could partake. mmmmmm. good stuff.
we then hit the streets and stumbled across a fun drink for lara, some fresh chokecherry soda. lydia tried some as well and liked it.
not to be outdone, i found some swedish egg coffee across the way. nasty.
after more walking, we had to stop for some alligator bites and a pronto pup. lydia digs it all.
for the next food break, we stopped over and briefly checked out kfan, my favorite local sports talk station, doing their show live on location.
lydia was showing signs of weakness, so we had to quickly wrap up to get her to bed.
so, we rushed to the french fry booth. the place was getting even busier.
these are not any ordinary fries…..they are the official ff of the mn state fair (as ordained by me). freshly cut and scorching hot, these things rule. put some salt and vinegar on top and go to work. one whiff and lydia was ready for more
we could not leave without showing lydia the farm animals, so we heading to the barns.
she loves the animals and enjoyed seeing the pigs and cows.
here she is doing her impression of a pig
and……for the grand finale………no trip to the mn state fair is complete without a massive cone of sweet martha’s chocolate chip cookies and a glass of ice cold milk.
deeeeeelicious.
we had a great time watching lydia enjoy her first of many sweet martha’s treats.
after dessert, it was time to head back to the casa. on the way out, i decided against getting a souvenir at the inflatable thingee stand.
but, we did stop for a group shot.
oh, now for second part of the report…..people watching. here are some of our favorites:
old couple dressed alike (notice the attention to detail)
the ever-popular kid on a leash
another kid on a leash
guy with huge stuffed animal (what are you gonna do with that?)
crazy old man mohawk (why is he in front of the merry-go-round?)
back view
large banana winner (what were the items that he declined if he is bringing this home?)
cowboy in striped sleeveless shirt tucked into super-tight wranglers
and, last but not least, funny hat guy
this was a great day at the fair.
i also got to hit the twins v. orioles game with my brother-in-law jim. always a good time at the dome.
at one point in the game, i headed to the concessions and when i returned i learned that jim had been selected as the “fan of the game”, won a grab bag prize box, tix to a future game, and most important, got his mug on the jumbo-tron. unfortunately, i missed all of this but still awesome.
later in the week, i took lydia on a walk around the block. she frequently stops to pick up sticks and other distractions.
we also discovered that we are growing pumpkins, that we did not plant, in our front flower bed. lydia loves them and always wants to go check them out.
after my long run on saturday, lydia was excited to play with me during my ice bath.
then it was time to try another burger joint- 5 guys.
pa tickle had been telling me about this place in nc, and they have recently opened some up here. the place was packed and you get to eat peanuts from boxes while you wait in line. nice touch.
the burger was good….better than smash burger but not better that matts.
5 guys is located in centennial lakes, so we took the opportunity to walk around the lake after lunch.
that night, lydia found a new toy- a box.
we started our never ending process of cd organization. we are getting rid of all of our cases and shelves and putting them in notebooks. very. time. consuming.
mocha helped.
finally, late in the week, lydia goofed around in the yard.
she loves smelling flowers.
check out the awesome shirt the ma & pa tickle got her.
we'll have a video of her trip to the fair up soon. that requires some editing...
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