one year ago today.

It's my most popular blog post ever. Most discussed of all my writing. And it all happened one year ago today. If you've got the time, take a moment to read or re-read our adventurous move from Omaha to Minneapolis by clicking here.

And if you have read it before, can I tell you the absolute craziest ending to this story?!! Around January I got a blog comment from one of my favorite friends from high school and college, Heather. She told me she was catching up on my blog, had just read about Story City and couldn't believe we were at the Comfort Inn because her in-law's own that hotel in Story City. What in the small world?!!

And, you might also be interested to know that I did send Al a birth announcement. He was such a nice guy!

more Sara Groves: Invisible Empires!

I got an email this morning for all of the pre-release goods for Sara's new record. You can get the package above for $25 or a $10 download of the album. I think the best part of the deal above is the download with the commentary edition. It's Troy and Sara talking over the album sharing a lot of behind the scenes, how the music was chosen and the stories behind the songs.

If you're interested, head over to http://www.saragroves.com/ and get your new music! It's so good!

fried green tomatoes

Well, it used to be one of my favorite movies and now it is a favorite food. We have an abundance of tomatoes right now, and a few green ones fall off the vine every now and again so I decided to try my hand at some fried goodness.

And oh goodness are they good! I've made them three times already! They're just pan fried after dredged in egg, flour, egg again and italian bread crumbs. After one side is golden I sprinkle them with garlic salt. But the best part is the dipping sauce. I used this recipe from The Neelys. (sort of modified depending on what I actually have in the house when I make it.)

Twanda!

Sara Groves: Invisible Empires!

Well, sometimes I just turn into her biggest fan. And here I go again. We had a listening party a month ago to hear this new album and just yesterday Rory came home from a brother's breakfast with our own copy. We've listened to the whole thing six times now. Because it's that good.

The album doesn't release until October sometime...but I wanted to get the word out about her CD Release Concert for those of you twin cities folk. Tickets are on sale now, and I guess I just really think you should go. Sara is a storyteller more than anything else, and a CD release concert is full of the stories behind the songs. And there are some really good stories within these songs.

So the details!
The Release Concert is at Church of the Open Door in Maple Grove on October 1st at 7:30.
Line up your babysitters now! :)

You can order your tickets by calling 877-840-0457 or else you can click here to order online.

If you're not in the Twin Cities, check out her concerts page for her future shows this fall and Christmas. They have shows in MD, NC, TN, FL, WA, WI, ND, CA

And I just found this interview with Sara talking about the new album. Enjoy!

before you head out to the fair!

I've said it before (in 2009) and then I said it again (in 2010). And now I'll say it another time. I adore the Minnesota State Fair. Love it. I went last night to arrange flowers with my mom and it was great, though I was glad we decided to leave Ivar at home with Rory at the last minute. It was a bit hot and I watched enough kids have meltdowns that I felt good about having my little boy at home.

This is just a quick post to let you know I found a new fair favorite. I've always loved the fruit stand, but I cannot even tell you how good the peaches are this year. They're enormous and are the kind of juicy that has you slurping your fruit from the very first bite. At $3 they're probably the cheapest thing you'll find to eat. And it's the best $3 you'll spend.

Unless, of course, you're excited about the new chocolate covered jalapenos. I was in this line getting a lemonade for my mom and these babies were popular! But I think they were underwhelming. It was a raw jalapeno dipped in melted chocolate. And the chocolate was still saucy. One guy took a bite next to me and said, "well, it tastes like a pepper dipped in chocolate."

For those of you going to the fair in the next few days, the Fruit Stand is between the Horticultural building and the International Bizarre and looks like this:

And my mom swears by the World Famous Coconut Macaroons. I'm bummed I didn't get them!