We had a great day today! No rain, cooler temps, and decent directions from the GPS. I think the GPS lady wants to have us see every inch of the countryside while looking for shops. It was beautiful countryside...but we have seen enough fields and forests for now.
First stop, Needles and Pins. This is another shop out in the country, with a barn quilt on the barn and a friendly shop keeper inside. On the downside...it is a yarn shop! What?! We looked around, chatted with the owner, and I even bought a button and my sister bought a skein of yarn for a scarf. The shop was packed with gorgeous yarns, but I'm not a proficient knitter, and not interested in learning now. On to the next.
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| We have seen many barn quilts on our travels. They pop up everywhere! |
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| The quilt shop that wasn't |
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| Every conceivable type of yarn in one tiny shop |
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| A crib full of fingering yarn |
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| Buttons, buttons, buttons! |
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| I bought the closure seen here on this sweater. |
Next stop not a quilt shop, either. Nope. The Apple Barn is a farm market operation with something for everyone. Fresh strawberries were the order of the day (yum). They had cheeses, salsas, dips, jams and jellies, butters, cider, honey, a bakery and homemade wines. After a wine tasting with the other shoppers, I bought two bottles of wine, some raspberry-jalepeno salsa, black bean salsa, tomato basil dip, strawberry jam, apple butter and apple jelly. My sister got fresh strawberries and surprised me with a strawberry-cream cheese bear claw. Yum!
Time to get back on track, off to a quilt shop.
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| They have a barn quilt, too! |
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| The shop is in this barn |
We ate our goodies while driving to the next destination, Sawdust and Stitches in Elkhorn. This was another small business shop on the quaint main street in town. They featured Civil War reproduction and French General fabrics. They had Primitive Gatherings patterns and the wool, flannel and thread to make them, Lori Smith patterns and all the best books for the fabric they stock. A nice niche shop.
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| The little shop with the cute awning |
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| The owner was there ready to help, and the little shop is packed to the rafters with quality fabrics. We didn't leave empty handed. |
It was a long drive to the last shop of the day, and I was a bit disappointed with the offering there. Its a fine local shop with a class in progress in the back, but had only a couple of rows of fabric shelves, and not much we hadn't already seen elsewhere. The shop keeper was bubbly and helpful, and we enjoyed talking with her. In the end, I bought only a couple of black and white pieces I was looking for, and we went on our way.
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| They did have a barn quilt, even though the shop was in a small strip mall along a busy highway |
On the way home, we stopped in the nicest grocery store I have ever been in, Festival Foods. Oh my goodness! They must have a staff of elves to keep the shelves stocked and artfully displayed at all times. So much to look at...I'm sure the shoppers thought I must be a yokel because I was oo-ing and Ah-ing while taking pictures of the food. ha ha ha. I bought some Wisconsin treats for Mr Wazoo and myself to take home in a cooler.
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Wonderful produce. Reminds me of the farm market in Paris.
All fresh, tidy and beautifully presented. |
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| Why cut up your fruit and veg when every imaginable kind is cut and packaged for your convenience? |
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| Wow! All sorts of nuts, seeds, rice and grains. |
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| You won't find Cornish pasties and hand pies for lunch in the deli in Georgia! |
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| Just a sampling of the deli meat and cheese offerings. |
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| Fresh seafood in a Wisconsin market? Certainly!! |
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| Beautiful steaks of every grade and cut. Look at the size of those T-bones!! |
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| Another Wisconsin favorite, many flavor varieties of bratwurst and bratwurst patties. |
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| Local Summer Sausage |
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| Cheese curds. Almost gone by this time of day. There will be a fresh, squeaky batch in the morning. |
A quick stop at home to unload our purchases and it was off to the Decoy Tavern in Edgerton to meet the family and have some supper. We were a fun, loud, laughing group and had the best time catching up after not seeing each other for a long while. We may be a motley bunch, but I love these people, and wouldn't trade a burger supper with them for a five star restaurant meal. We had Cheese curds, macaroni bites, fried vegetables, shrimp baskets, fish plates, fried chicken and big juicy burgers.
I phoned Mr Wazoo from the pub and we all had a chance to say hello, passing the phone around and taking turns speaking to him. Little Dechen behaved well, gnawing at an apple and stealing french fries from his mama's plate. The evening was wonderful fun.
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Daughter-in-law, son and grandson, niece, grandson, brother,
tavern owner (brother-in-law of my brother), sister-in-law, brother-in-law and my sister, and one daughter who is so camera shy she isn't in the picture! |
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| My son and my youngest grandchild. |
Tomorrow night, I am going up to Madison to hear the Madison Scout's Drum and Bugle Corps with Jenny and enjoy a bratfest, too. I'm halfway through my vacation, and enjoying every minute.
