If You Give A Three-Year-Old An iPhone...

Avery May has always been infatuated with my iPhone.  

She absolutely loves to see herself move on the screen when I flip the camera and she can easily scan through pictures, so we get a lot of this when it's in her hand: "Look at this one. Look at this one. Oh Jamie, look at this one."

Last weekend, she discovered that you can point it at someone else and take a picture, which was a major game changer in her book. However, while she might be the smartest three-year-old you will meet, she's still working on the hand-eye coordination and it was pretty darn tricky to hold the phone, point it where you wanted and press the button.

So, in turn, we got a lot of almost-there shots. I narrowed it down to a few of my favorites; I definitely think she has a future in photography. :)

{left: lots of green grass and little three-year-old foot. top right: my cute husband bottom from the chin down right: time for a close up.}

{top left: we told her to point the camera at us, instead she pointed her finger at us. Oh well, we are getting closer! bottom left: I've always wanted a picture of these shoes. top right: We finally found a subject! blake man swinging. bottom right: Mark & Blake playing. I think she was on to something with the angle!}

 So here's my take away:

1. It's fun to see the world in the eyes of a three-year-old. What if we all simplified to this?
2. Kuddos to the iPhone (I accidentally just wrote eye-phone. Editor brain is officially turned off.) for being a camera that you can hand to a toddler and they can take a decent picture.
3. And finally, can you even dare to imagine what our world is going to be like when these three-year-olds that are already obsessed with an iPhone (and that honestly understand how to use it) grow up? They will be a generation that will know nothing but file sharing through Dropbox, messaging through Facebook, immediate information and gratification online and the Apple domination. I can't even imagine the things they will create after growing up in a world where things were always bigger, better & at their fingertips.

If you're a forward thinker, it's actually pretty exciting to think about it.

XoXo

Weekly Wisdom | Stop Stumbling

You lucky ducks get two posts in one day, but I couldn't resist sharing this quote I saw on Pinterest this week. 

                                                 

  Source: google.com via Jamie on Pinterest

Such simple words that will always ring true. 

In fact, I wish someone would have shown me this five years ago; I could have used this friendly reminder. Luckily, life has been pretty darn good lately and there hasn't been much to stumble over, but it's a good reminder to keep the past in the past and do nothing but enjoy the present.

Happy Wednesday - we are halfway there! Will you be joining us on Friday for a H5F4? I sure hope so!

XoXo,

Every Three-Year-Old Should Have A Mustang

Meet the coolest three-year-old in southern Minnesota.

Yes, of course she drives a mustang. What three-year-old doesn't?

She may or may not have gotten her bright red convertible from her Daddy's friend who ordered it for her late one night after too much fun at the bar.

It's the shiniest car in her little town and she fits right in with the local golf-cart gang. (What? Your little town doesn't have a golf-cart gang? You are missing out.)

She even was generous enough to let me drive. 

As you can see, I am an excellent mentor for her with my beer in hand.

But, let's be honest, she actually might have forced me to drive, because she has already (three days in) declared herself a terrible driver. According to her, she would much rather walk. 

What more can you expect from a girl who likes her bike helmet and her safety bell more than the trike itself? She's officially Miss Safety Pants.

But, unfortunately, my butt is too big to really make this little beauty look good.

 And Blake Man might be a talented little baby, but he can't quite reach the pedals yet.

Thank goodness his sister loves him enough to give him a ride home.

Plus, watermelon was a really good bribe for driving the car back to the garage. :)

Really, this is what summer is all about - a happy baby and a juicy slice of watermelon.

Well, and Greg's Meats & Oak Meadow brats on the grill. Next time you drive down 52, you must stop and pick up a packet of Mushroom Swiss brats.  

Best. thing. ever.

XoXo

Must Watch | I'm Farming & I Grow It

This parody by these three Kansas farm boys is definitely going viral. 

"I got passion for my plants and I ain't afraid to show it show it show it show it. I'm farming and I grow it."

A Really Fabulous Weekend

Hello!

I hope you survived your Monday. I more than survived mine, so I am calling it a success. :)

We were cattle-show free this weekend and took advantage of our freedom. Don't get me wrong, I love hanging out on a showbox and working with cattle, but sometimes, it's nice to actually do your hair, dress up in cute clothes, sit on a patio, drink a beer and just relax.

We started the weekend with a grill-out featuring fresh guacamole, brats on the grill, watermelon and Sierra Nevada's SUMMERFEST. And of course, my adorable niece & nephew.

{Check back tomorrow for more on that shiny red car they are driving!}

Bright and early Saturday morning, we road-tripped up to St. Paul to visit Summit Brewery. I am a huge beer fan and have a goal of visiting as many breweries as possible in my lifetime. As we were pulling in, my husband informed me that he believes once you see one, you've seen them all. Glad we are on the same page.

Since I vow to hold nothing back from you, the tour itself was not fantastic, but you do get three free samples at the end, so it's good enough for me! :)

Here's your Summit Fun Facts for the day:

• 90% of Summit beer is consumed in Minnesota and 65% in the Twin Cities. As of now, it's not distributed west of the Dakotas.
• Their most popular beer is the Summit Extra Pale Ale, but my personal favorites are their new Summer Ale, their classic Pilsner and the Oatmeal Stout. In fact, you should add the Oatmeal Stout to your list of things to drink before you die...yes, it's that good.
• The Twin Cities sits on top of five excellent aquifers, meaning we have exceptional water to brew beer with, which is part of the secret behind Summit's success. Who knew?
• If you work at Summit, it's totally acceptable to drink beer on your lunch break. Do you think that is true in the marketing department, too? :)
• At any time, they have nearly 3 months supply of beer on hand. Not a bad place to get lost in. 
• And perhaps the most important, while they might not charge you anything for the tour, three not-so-small samples later, you'll make it worthwhile to them in the gift shop. Be warned.

{Of course, we all walked out with new Summit apparel and proudly wore it for the rest of the day!}

Plus, when you start your beer tour at 10:30 am, there is still a lot of day left to fill. Ours consisted of a patio lunch & bloody mary bar with Mark's Grandpa, a quick game of euchre, my first ever stop at Trader Joe's (I scooped up some butternut squash raviloi -- any tips how to make it?), another patio dinner by the river and a perfect night listening to acoustic music in downtown Northfield.

We spent Sunday cleaning, doing cattle chores and some TV time with a season of Gossip Girl.  

Sounds like a pretty darn good weekend huh?

And if you are still following today's random thoughts, here is one more. I heard on the radio last weekend about some research that shows the summer when you are 24 will be your best ever. I am 24 and last weekend was the first weekend of summer. So far, it's definitely right for me. Was 24 your favorite?

Cheers to the rest of the best summer of my life!

High Five For Friday - Pork Chops, Hair Cuts, Jeans, & More

You know what is the worst?

When you think your Monday is Thursday, making your Tuesday a Friday, so when Tuesday finally comes, your completely disappointed that you still have three more days until the weekend.

Does that make any sense at all? 

If you by any means can follow my craziness, it means that I was way off this week and as a result, Friday took flat out FOREVER to get here. 

So, being happy that it finally is actually Friday is an understatement. This girl is officially ecstatic.

First & foremost, before I get into too many happy thoughts about the last seven days, I need to apologize for being a little MIA. Folks, I have so much to blog about...in fact, I have a list of ten blogs that I really want to write and I need to share with you pictures of what's going on in the fields, because it's ugly out there. But gosh, I have been just crazy busy. And the one night I had free, my husband offered to help me clean the house (cue the singing angels!) and I had to take advantage of it. 

Anyway, I am making time for a High Five For Friday with Lauren @ From My Grey Desk. Why? Because I am a firm believer in celebrating the little things! And I'm not leaving the house tonight until I get a few things ready for you for the weekend, consider it a promise. 

#1 - Haircut

{Goodbye hair! It's so much easier to take care of it & I am completely loving it. You can read more about it here.}

#2 - The Perfect Jeans

After my hair appointment, I made a quick stop at the outlet malls north of the Twin Cities and I scooped up an awesome deal on "the perfect jeans." 70% (yes, you read that right!) of dark denim jean trousers in petite, AKA, pants I can put immediately on my body and not have to wait for my mother to hem. (This deserves a #shortgirlproblems hashtag.) Don't you love when that happens?

#3 - Organization

When you decide to travel the state every Saturday & Sunday to cattle shows and then book every week night with appointments, drinks with friends and volleyball games, it leaves little time for house cleaning, bill paying and "life stuff." Luckily, we took Wednesday night to catch up. Thank goodness. 

{Plus, while picking up bins for packing away winter clothes, I found these fabulous little bins from Target for $5.99 for five and I scooped them right up. They are perfect for my slightly out-of-control craft shelf.}

#4 - Catching Up W/High School Friends

I got blessed with some really great friends in high school and I finally got to catch up with them again.  These days, babies, houses & weddings are our favorite subjects. :)

#5 - Pork Chops On A Stick

Our family friends win the award for best graduation party food this year (or ever).  

Yum! We took this one right off the grill before we left and it was SO DARN GOOD we couldn't stop ourselves from taking a bite before the picture. I am definitely thankful for the pork farmer that provided that tasty goodness! :)

Happy Friday!

I'm Rocking A New Look

And I am absolutely loving it. 

That old hair was just dragging me down.

Let's face it. A girl who is five foot nothing is not meant to have 20 inches of hair. And if for some reason that I would ever want to try it again, it at least needs to have layers, be thinned and have some body. I was rocking a long, thick, layerless mob that had been nothing but trimmed for 8 months. It had to go.

{#86 on my 101 in 1001 list is complete!}

And go it went. My gorgeous friend Casey at Artistic Salon cut off 11 inches & that's not even counting the huge pile of "thinned out" hair on the floor.  I love my before and after - what a difference a haircut can make. Plus, it took me approximately five minutes to get ready this morning - big win in my book!

But there was a reason for the drab before look and I am so excited to send those two ponytails of hair off to Pantene's Beautiful Lengths so they can go into a wig for someone who needs it.

By the way, not to discredit any donation that you might have made to Locks of Love in the past (who I initially planned to donate to myself), but if you are considering cutting off your hair to donate, I highly encourage you to take a look at Pantene's program. Unlike Locks of Love, their wigs are donated to cancer patients or women who need them, where Locks of Love typically sells them for thousands of dollars and is a profit organization, which I was surprised to learn. I 100% believe that regardless if they are free or not, the hair is appreciated, but I personally wanted my hair to help another women feel beautiful, regardless of her financial situation. Just something to think about...

And another random thought for the day, I am thinking my new hair will finally be the motivation to get a new driver's license with my correct last name. No more dreading a new picture! :)

Have you ever donated your hair before? And/or blogged about it? Share the link, I would love to see the transformation! 

XOXO, 

P.S. I'm hoping to get a new Corn Report up for you tomorrow -- darn Mother Nature has been making our life a little more complicated lately. Such is the life of a farmer I guess!