Vacation and Farmfest

It's been a busy couple of weeks and I haven't been able to keep up with my posts! 

My dad, Jaron and I, and my sister and two of her kids went to Ag PhD Day sponsored by Hefty seed. It's an education day for farmers where everything is free- admission, the education sessions, food, and treats. Because of the kids, we didn't sit in on any education sessions this time. The weather was beautiful and we had a great time looking at machinery and playing with farm toys (and enjoying root beer floats and mini donuts). 

The following week we went to Farmfest. This time it was my dad, brother-in-law, and Jaron and me (my sister was planning to come with the kids, but they got sick). It was actually very pleasant with such a small group. Jaron was content to see tractors and equipment everywhere, and the smaller group made it easier to ask questions of vendors and see the things Dad wanted to see. 

Jaron tested out a lawnmower there...

Jaron and I also continued my summer tradition of going on a trip with my college travel friend. We went to Indianola, IA, for the hot air balloon festival. Before we left, the weather forecast looked beautiful. Once we arrived, wind and rain moved in and all the balloon festivities were cancelled every day we were there. 😩 

It was different than usual since she brought her four month old and I brought my 21mo old. We still enjoyed eating out, afternoon ice cream, late night chats, and hiking local parks. 

But our evenings out ended much earlier than usual so the kiddos could get to bed. Our daytime activities also revolved around naptimes and feeding times. Honestly, it was a bit exhausting being the solo parent. 😅 We both have wonderfully helpful husbands. On our way home, we talked about what next year's trip might look like... We both agreed we should find a cute place to stay closer to home and have low expectations about how many activities we'll accomplish on our trip. We'll probably look for a town having a festival around our trip dates, one with nice walking paths and a decent ice cream shop. 😉