The Great Minnesota Get Together

The Minnesota State Fair is truly one of our favorite things about Minnesota. It is a HUGE deal around here and always a great end to the summer. We introduced Kim's mom to the state fair three years ago and she was so impressed that she insisted Kim's dad and brother come back with her to experience it all again (which they did last year).

Some of our favorite things to do at the fair are finding great food. This year we had some incredible kettle corn! It was such a perfect sugar glazed buttery concoction that we licked the bag clean when we finally finished the ginormous bag we got that night four days later. MMMMMM! We also hit our favorite ice cream spot in the food building: Nitrogen Ice Cream (the creamiest ice cream in the world!). Other favorite fair spots are:

• The Giant Corn Slide



• Machinery Hill (where the boys "drove" lots of tractors, diggers, and scoopers),



• The Little Farm Hands - an interactive farm for kids,



• and the Space Tower ride that takes you high up in the air and turns 360 degrees to see the State Fairgrounds and the Twin Cities around it (it's pretty neat to see both the Minneapolis and St. Paul skylines!)

We had a great fair experience this year, not too hot, not too crowded, and lots of help from the grandparents!

Turning in all of the previous year's pocket change for State Fair Money at the bank, a tradition Brian grew up doing in his family.

Jacob driving a tractor tricycle at the Little Farm Hands exhibit.

Grandma helping Peter drive his hay bale to the next destination.

A pretend cow for milking. Real liquid squirts out of the utter into the bucket!

Jacob "driving" one of the real tractors on Machinery Hill.

Grandma and Grandpa, Can I have it. PUHHHHLEEEEASE!

Peter operating a scooper. Look how small he is in there.

Leah hung out in the sling almost the whole time.

The boys went for a ride in the sky buckets too.

Space Tower riders.

Racing down the "Giant Corn Slide"