Carnivals, Fairs and Magic Grab Bags of Happiness

This past week has been very busy for us, but busy in a fun way! We spent a little time at the school carnival to let daddy rest from his surgery.

After a ride or two,

a few games,

and hair coloring,

Arie was in a pretty rotten mood.

So we got some food. Tortillas Grill had a booth there so I decided on a honey-mustard chicken wrap and sweet potato fries!

Trooper had a few slices of pizza

and Kaiya couldn't pass up the shaved ice.

Cotton-candy flavored.

After Arie had a few scoops

she perked up.

Really perked up!

Later that night, we spotted Mr. Toad Prince. He's lived in our backyard for a few years now and was hopping near the slide on this night.

Later on in the week, was the Big Fresno Fair school field trip. One of my favorite things to partake of at the fair are the photo booths. Wackiness ensues and you're left with a fun little souvenir.

To save money, we didn't purchase any this trip but I was able to dig up some from past years:

Sweet Kaiya and her friends.

I love how 2 years ago, Trooper and his friend weren't tall enough for the camera and that I had no idea I could have raised the chair. Oops.

Cute baby Arie ♥

There was a really cool exhibit of old black and white photos from Fresno's past.

This one is of the Boy Scouts. Their little scarves. socks and hats are to die for!

And these classy beach babes just kill me! I want every single one of those swimsuits.

Lunch time! Fair food - what to eat?

Salty...

Sweet...

(This Pennsylvania Dutch image on the side of their booth was so cute I had to grab a picture)

FRIED anything!!!

I decided to be brave, go out on a limb and try some fried avocados. They gave you some pesto sauce and ranch to dip them in. I have to say that they were better than I thought they would be but I found it highly lacking in flavor. Some things were meant to be fried, some things were soooo NOT.

Then it was on to the ag-center with the animals, which Arie was very excited about.

Of course, I had to get a picture of the gigantic first place pumpkin. ♥

A dairy cow looking very bored.

A few friendly bunnies and Arie was going nuts!

She has these crazy animal noises she likes to make. Much like Kaiya did when she was little. Check out her chicken call:

For Kim:

A little bag of magic....

What could it be?

Ever since I was young, the fair has been selling these little grab bags of happiness, made from scrap material, for $1. I think we've purchased one each time we go. My first time at the fair when I was in the 4th grade, I couldn't believe that you could get a such a treasure for only a dollar!

My favorite part is pulling out each individually polished beauty and inspecting every swirl and speck of color.

After we got home, Arie appropriately brought me this book from her shelf to read to her. I believe it was one of Andy's when he was little and the pages are in pristine condition! (Probably because he never cracked it open. Hahah.) I just love how it still has the little 25 cent sticker on the front.

Though we read it before, the words have special meaning after looking through our grab bag of rocky gems.

Just look at these sweet, colorful pictures!

The little boy in the book dreams of giving the rock to his grandma in a tiny, Tiffany-blue box. He sort of looks like my Troop. ♥

Hello, Rock is a Tell-a-Tale book. Remember those?

Welcome, fall and all your fun things to do. ♥

~b

Laaaaaaaaaaa! Finally!!!!

I can't believe I did it. Actually I can because I worked on making my checkout on Etsy lightening fast! And that is what you have to be in order to partake. Fast, fast, fast!

You see, Emily Martin of The Black Apple updated her Etsy shop today with dolls and original paintings. She only updates her store every 2-3 months or so and when she does, all her customers and fans are waiting and watching hoping to snag one of her sought after crafty lovelies.

Why?

Well, first, because they are super adorable and sweet! There's something about the faces of her little gals and guys that suck you in. The more you look at them the more you LOVE them! Secondly, because I'm in awe of her sense of style and color. She's peculiar, vintage and cozy cottage all rolled into one. And thirdly, because all of her original paintings and dolls sell out within the first 5 minutes of her shop updates. Yes, you read that right, FIVE MINUTES!!!!! It's pure insanity.

Emily posts on her blog the date and time of the update so that you can be ready. I blocked out the whole day today to make sure I wouldn't have any conflicts. About 15 minutes before the update, I logged on to Etsy. My palms were sweating as I was refreshing the page every 10 seconds to see if something had been posted to her shop yet. Then at about 3:01 everything was posted and guess what?? I was so fast I got not one, but two dolls!!!

Sweet Spring Cleaner by Emily Martin
(to help me dive right in to all the spring cleaning I need to get to)

Helpful Hannah by Emily Martin
(who can hold a multitude of small things for me, like my pen when I'm working)

I am sooooo happy about this!! I've tried to get one of her dolls now for the past 4-5 updates with no luck but today was definitely my lucky day!! They are my B-day and Mother's Day gifts from Andy (but if you ask me, I did all the hard work. Hahaha!), but I will give him the points anyway. =)

I can't wait to see what the dolls' packaging is like. Emily once placed one in a pastry box that she gifted to a little girl - you know those boxes with the see-through windows in the top? I've been saving my cupcake boxes from a new cupcake store I found in town for some of my softies that will be available in my etsy shop soon. The designs are still in the works but they are going to be quite quirky and cute, if I do say so myself. ♥


~B

Secrets of the Blossom Trail

Photo by Paula Friesen

Photo by Harriet Groft



During the months of March and April a beautiful thing happens here in the Central Valley. As much as Fresno is mocked by popular culture and some of it's own citizens, it does have some redeeming qualities and this is one of them...

Photo by Robert Chang



Spring.
Blossoms.
Pink and White.
Brown Branches woven within.
Covering the earth.

When flying above the valley from May-November, one might say it looks like a big patchwork quilt in every shade of green. The farm plots cut in perfect squares and rectangles surrounding little patches of gray and brown city blocks. But in the spring, it morphs into a light, fluffy blanket of pink, white and brown. Rows of color created by Peach, Apple, Apricot, Plum, Citrus and Almond Blossoms. Orchards blooming with life.

One can take a drive on the blossom trail to view these orchards in all their pink and white glory on the Fresno County Blossom Trail. We took this journey one past weekend and ended up in Reedley at Hillcrest Farms where we discovered many a hidden, magical treasure.


A pond with tadpoles and little fishies

A bridge over a small stream

And a stairway that beckond beyond...

A quaint little cottage just our size

An old mine shaft. Where does it lead?

A slide. Do they even make metal slides anymore?

An enchanted castle

A little turret look-out

Under another bridge..hand in hand.

Pinwheels, popcorn and pins for sale. How could we resist?

Boarding the train

A fun, and relaxing ride through the countryside

More blossoms!

How fun - just like Trooper's Thomas Train - a real steam engine!

A tall, tall tree house

An old, rusty truck

And a rope swing. Could the day get any dreamier?

Arie was a little afraid

But Trooper was in swing heaven! The higher the better!

I believe I captured the total essence of swinging here.

I think he wants to be a model. He said, "Mom, take a picture of me so that it looks like I didn't know you were taking a picture." Real sly there, Trooper.

All in all, a perfect blossomy day.