Fabulous Find #1 - Shaved Wood Wreath (Country Living Fair 2010)

Shaved Wood Wreath

Well folks, my first fabulous find at the Country Living Fair 2010, was a gorgeous curled shaved wood wreath I stumbled upon not 5 minutes into the fair!

I was walking around and noticed this one tent with a frenzy of activity - I'm not kidding...it was ridiculous how crowded it was! They had a huge line of people waiting to pay and everyone, and I mean everyone, great natural goodies in their hands: wreaths, twig pumpkins, beaded acorns, corn husk gourds - just fabulous stuff!

So I worked my way into Nest's (www.nestgr.com) tent - if I'm ever in Grand Rapids, MI, I can tell you right now, I will make a beeline for this place!

I had my eye on two wreaths: a rust-colored one for fall and a green one for Christmas. I'm kicking myself now because I was wavering on the green one and now I think I "need" to buy it - I wish I could make a decision a little more quickly than I do - I tend to agonize over purchases and really...is it worth the needless stress???

And then a "bonus" for my stress level, was that I found out I needed to get in line with the hope that the had enough of them behind the counter! So begrudgingly and with fingers crossed, I got in line, hoping that I wouldn't get to the counter and have them say "Oh, I'm sorry, we're completely sold out of the wreaths."

Inching along, I could see the wreaths flying out of the line - would there be one for meeee????

Finally....I reached the counter and...yes!...one medium-sized wood shaved wreath for little 'ole me...and at a bargain (I think) of $35 bucks!

I've seen that Target currently has some red cone trees made out of similar wood shavings, but I have to say, I think my wreath is a little more solid.

I think it's fantastic...don't you?!?

Country Living Fair 2010

Country Living Fair 2010 (Columbus, OH)

I'll start this post by saying that I have an amazing husband in Larry. I've been wanting to go to Country Living Magazine's Fair since it first started 5 years ago - but there was always something going on, so I sat miserably by the sidelines and read about it after the fact in the magazine. But not this year!

Larry's birthday is at the end of September and we typically go away for the festivities. So I thought "Hmmm...away for the weekend...Larry's birthday...why not Ohio and the Country Living Fair!

Now, I'm a University of Dayton grad and I must say I'm a big fan of the Buckeye State and Columbus in general. So don't you think it would be a great idea? So I posed the idea to Larry and he said why not. Of course, feeling a little guilty that I finagled my way into going to the fair for his birthday weekend. I did look up on the Columbus Convention and Visitor's website to see if there were any "Larry-friendly" events. Well, luck would have it that on the very same property that the CL Fair was being held (the Ohio State Fair ground), there was an Oktoberfest....definitely right up Larry's alley!

So on the weekend of September 24-26, Larry and I trekked to Columbus for the 2010 Country Living Fair(www.countryliving.com (2010 Fair).

We headed to the fair on Saturday am - and I will say I was probably frothing at the mouth I was so excited. I wasn't able to sleep the night before because I had visions of all the finds I'd discover. I'm sure Larry thought I was a bit goofy/neurotic/etc. with me poking my head out the window with a grin on my face like some golden retriever with its tongue flappin' in the wind giddy at the wonders of the world (yep, I'm comparing myself to a dog) as we made our way into the fair grounds, cars lined up making their way to the parking area (will we be able to park???).

Finally we settled in to our space and I lept  out of the car, excited and....BAM...I see that everyone (I mean EVERYONE) has these little foldable shopping carts ready and waiting to take the fair by storm. I felt completely dejected because how on earth was I going to carry all my finds???

Larry didn't seem to comprehend the seriousness of my dilemma and we made our way to the front gate, me looking a little stunned because I was now completely unprepared.

As soon as we made it into the fair I managed to recover - there were all these tents with fabulous finds - I think I started to froth at the mouth again.

Larry took one look at the crowd and headed to the friendlier confines of Oktoberfest, where I know there was beer waiting for him with his name on it.

Let me first say, that I reeeaaallly enjoyed the fair. BUT, I swear I almost had a nervous breakdown with the number of people that were milling about - I think I started muttering to myself, that the "early bird" special that CL was offering for early hour entrance was probably a good idea.  



Huge Crowds! 

Crowds aside, there was anything and everything for people: great vendors, food and design demonstrations, Tanya Nyak of HGTV (www.hgtv.com) - which try as I might to see her lecture, I for the life of me could not find where she was speaking. Then there was the Country Vet (should have asked him a question about Jack, our cat), tasty food offerings and cute shoportunities galore!  



Love This Arrangement!

 

Benches And Starfish and Beakers...Oh My!

 

Tres Chic!

 

Why Not Ride In Country Living Style?

I truly was in awe of all the fantastic vendors there were and all the had to offer. It was a bit overwhelming,
because you had to make your way through each tent like a sardine in a tin can - and if you had bags with you, well, too bad!

By the time I made my way through everything (I hope I didn't miss anything) I was about to pass out - who would have thought that shopping could be so exhausting?!? Honestly, I originally thought I'd like to th e3-day pass, but if I did, they'd probably have to carry me out on a stretcher because I actually think I'd spontaneously combust - I'm not kidding! I guess I learned something about myself that day: hot day + lots of people + shopping = equals one hot mess of a Jill!

Seriously though, this was a fantastic fair and I hope we can venture back next year. And if the stars are alignedd and there is an Oktoberfest again at the same time in Columbus...we just might!

Next up...my great finds from the fair...

Brewers Game & The Fruitless Search For The Schlitz Brewery - Saturday & Sunday, July 10 & 11, 2010

Larry and I love to get away on weekend trips whenever we can - it's a mini-vacation, not too far away and always hits the spot.

So we thought it would be fun to go with Mom and Dad to Milwaukee for a Brewers game - I'm sure Dad wished it was a Yankee's game, but we promised a great time in Milwaukee and said he'd love the stadium.

We hit the road early with breakfast in Richmond, at the International - great breakfast!

Then we thought we'd drive around Milwaukee - maybe search out a brewery tour.

Well, let me tell you brewery tours are hard to come by in Milwaukee! We thought we'd try to find the Schlitz Brewery and entrusted our "handy" GPS to send us on our merry way to hops heaven!

Well folks, after driving around forever with aforementioned "handy" GPS, we ended up in an abandoned lot - no Brewery as far as the eye could see - not even a stinkin' beer can!

So we pulled into a Walmart and found a guy to ask about the Brewery. Guess what? The Schlitz Brewery is gone and apparently years ago.

At this point we were all a bit weary of a tour and decided maybe on another trip we'd go on a Miller tour.

Our stomachs were rumbling so we thought we'd go to a favorite spot of ours: The Historic Third Ward District for lunch. I love this - it's artsy, gorgeous historical buildings, great shops and restaurants and the Public Market.

We had a quick bite to eat and headed back to the hotel for a nap - yes, I seem to need naps to function at night - sad, but true.

After the nap we headed to the game. Miller Park is just an awesome sight - whomever was the architect on this really did a fabulous job - and the retractable roof - quite cool!

Larry got some great tickets for the game (Brewers vs. Pirates) and we had a great time watching the game and eating crap food - OK, it was good crap food, but not the best for you. But who cares!

And to top off the night the Chorrizo won the sausage race (can't beat that kind of fun!) and the Brewers won - so it was a joyous night in Milwaukee!

Om Sunday, we were just going to work our way back home, but managed to make a few stops: an RV show we just happened up and a looooong trip to Golfsmith.

I love RVs. Never really been in one except when I was a kid, but it you put one in front of me I need to explore - the bigger the better - so this show was up my alley; and it was free, so hey, why not?

The Golfsmith stop happened as we were driving by a shopping center, Larry saw it and the car just miraculously veered towards it...and hour and a half later...Larry was just glowing. I'm not kidding, he was in some golf induced euphoria!

We had such a nice time this weekend - it was relaxing AND I got my RV fix!

Crystal Lake 4th of July Parade - July 5, 2010

This year Crystal Lake's 4th of July Parade was amazing - just guessing, but it looked like a record crowd. The weather was perfect and the crowds came out. Larry and I enjoyed watching the parade on the front porch and lawn - front row seats!

Enjoy the photos!

Fun with Sil Continues...Dinner at the Mays' - Sunday, June 27, 2010

On Sunday evening Mom, Dad and Sil came over for dinner. Larry and I showed Sil the progress we've made on the house, and we had a wonderful evening catching up, enjoying the great weather and grilling out - beer can chicken, veggies and fruit salad.

It was such a wonderful weekend with Sil...can't wait to see you again Sil - we love you! :)