NO PLACE BETTER TO SELL

 Than near the shore of Lake Superior. 

This past Saturday we sold our soaps at Festival by the Lake in Duluth. It was soooooo hot outside but the host of the event gave us a spot just a few steps away from Lake Superior, it was really nice. Thankfully we'd occasionally get a nice breeze off of the lake otherwise I'm not sure I could have handled being out there 12 hours like I did. It was a quiet event, not as many people as I had anticipated. Not sure if it was because of the heat or something else but regardless it was really nice day to be in Duluth and close to our favorite lake. 

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LOVELY LAVENDER

I absolutely love lavender, it's one of my favorite scents. There's a really great lavender farm not too far from my house called the Lavender Barnyard where you are allowed to drop in and pick bundles of this intoxicating aromatic herb. I love everything about the place, the owner Marie has created a beautiful place with a wide variety of lavender species to choose from for picking, a gift shop to browse and buy, events and activities that she hosts, etc... I don't know what I like best about the place, picking the lavender or hanging out with all of the bees that come to pollinate. 

 

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BOMBS AWAY...

I decided to make some bath bombs for the upcoming Festival by the Lake in Duluth, MN this Saturday. I usually go for the round bath bombs but another soap maker gifted me some really cute molds so I made some starfish. What do you think? No, I wasn't really at the beach when I took this picture but I can pretend, right? 😄

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WE NEVER MISS A CHANCE TO GO BERRY PICKING

Who doesn't love berry picking? Every year since my kids were babies we've gone berry picking. We love to pick strawberries and blueberries. Our favorite strawberry farm closed down after the owners retired and our favorite blueberry farm lost too many plants to our three years of a drought so we've been in search of news farms to visit and this year we found our new blueberry picking spot. We visited Little Hill Berry Farm  in Northfield, MN. It's such a lovely farm with rows upon rows of blueberries and currants to pick plus they have a small store with lots of locally made items for sale. If you love berry picking and live in Minnesota this is a great place to go.  Bonus: the berries are organic.

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ARTS IN THE PARK

We had a wonderful day selling yesterday at Arts in the Park in Forest Lake. It was our first time selling at this event and our first time in Forest Lake so we weren't sure what to expect but it turned out to be really nice. The sun was shining, the people were all very friendly and happy, and there was a lot of activity at the booth. We couldn't have asked for a better day. 

I must say that the organizers of this event have also been very easy to work with and incredibly helpful and patient. They really work hard to put together a great event that the people enjoy. We wish we could be there every Tuesday. If we didn't live so far away we definitely would be. 

If you are in the area, we'll be back in Forest Lake on July 16th and July 30th. We'd love for you to stop by and see us. 

For more information about Arts in the Park follow this link: CHECK IT OUT HERE

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IT'S TIME FOR SUMMERWEEN!!

Did you know there was a Halloween celebration at the start of summer? Well I didn't until last year when my daughter mentioned it to me. The story is Summerween originated in the fictional town of Gravity Falls, Oregon. Gravity Falls is a Disney cartoon that my girls use to love to watch. It's no longer on the air but that won't stop my youngest from participating in Summerween with a group of friends. Since this whole thing has become a nationwide event that young people like to do I decided this year to create the following graphic to use on Instagram to help promote the fun idea of having Halloween at the beginning of summer for those who love Halloween as much as we do. 

You can find the Gravity Falls Summerween episode here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-SNEwiG98SM

Feel free to use it for your own social media post.

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WILD NEIGHBORS

One of my favorite quotes comes from Aldo Leopold

"There are some who can live without wild things, and some who cannot."

I cannot.

The world is lifeless without wild things. Each day I awake I'm overwhelmed with gratefulness for all of the critters that choose to visit our property. Our home is planted smack dab in the middle of their territory and yet they don't hold any ill will towards us. They come, eat, play, and leave. Their very existence makes everything beautiful. 

I took a short trip up north this past week and had the pleasure of seeing lots of feathered friends; mallards, geese, mergansers, gulls. They reside in town and in the forest. They're everywhere and always willing to gift us with their presence. Here are a few photos of our wild neighbors and some scenery too. 

Me just admiring the beautiful scenery at Grand Portage state park.

A mallard and her ducklings. We encountered this bunch on a walk in Grand Marais. 

An overlook near the Grand Portage reservation.

A ring-billed gull we encountered walking around in Grand Marais.

A waterfall at Devil's Kettle

A gorgeous loon.

The shore of Lake Superior at dusk.

Mama mallard and her babies.

The bay in Grand Marias at dusk.

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