::ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND BACK ...THE CONCLUSION::

Hey all!

My apologies for not posting about the book giveaway this week yet.  I got whisked away to the Emerald Coast.  The weather has been lovely here all week with the exception of one storm that passed through. 

I was loving the sand and sun so much that I totally forgot to post the final installment of our trip across the country.

One of the must haves to see when in Washington state is Cour D'Alene.  Not sure on that spelling.  It has a charming downtown with lots of shops.  The particular day we went there was a farmers market.  My daughter was so excited.  She bought a lavender plant.  She can't wait for it to flower so she can dry them out and decorate with them or make sachets.  Before we headed out to Cour D'Alene though we stopped off at the Buck Knife factory.  If you have following this blog for any length of time you know we used to homeschool and I am a sucker for  a "field trip."  The family indulged me on this one even though we don't homeschool anymore.  The tour is free.  It was interesting to see the process on how the knives are made.  They are quality knives.  Quality means expensive..and rightfully so.  Handcrafted won't come cheap.  Our tour guide suggested that a great way to purchase a Buck Knife is to buy the off cuts.  Basically, there is nothing wrong with the knife, but to Buck Knives if there is a discoloring or some of that nature it doesn't make it to the sales bin.  If you have ever seen there knives they are flawless and they don't sell anything less than that.

Here is a pic of the downtown.

They have a wonderful Brazilian steakhouse to eat at if you ever get the chance to visit there.    I think it's called Ipenema's.  If you have perused my pinterest board you will see a Brazilian lemonade recipe pinned.  I had to find the recipe of that drink we had there.  It is fabulous and non-alcoholic.  We loved them.  Hoping to make some of that beverage when we get back home.

We also took a drive around while visiting in Cour D'Alene.  Check out the scenery.  It's breathtakingly beautiful.  I don't think I did it justice with my photos.

Check out the rock face going around the moutain below.

Then the long awaited day came y'all! 

I was beyond excited I tell you.  I had my daughter there with me and it was a beautiful day.  The folks shopping at the Farm Chicks were the nicest people.  There were so many vendors and so many things to see and be bought.  My daughter and I found the textile table right off and spent way too much time there.  Had we not pulled away and looked at other things I do believe I would of spent all my money at that table.  They had vintage table cloths, chenille, vintage quilt tops and quilts.  Oh my, daughter and I love textiles, so it was hard to walk away from that table.  I did however purchase two things and will post those when we get back home.  I don't have pics of them in my camera yet.

Heather from http://postroadvintage.com/blog said she would have a booth there and invited folks to stop by and say "hello" if they would be at the Farm Chicks.  I did make a point to find her booth and say "hello", but their booth was bustling with folks and I didn't want to tie up her time chatting with her when she could be talking to potential buyers.    Hopefully I didn't freak her out.  I did ask if she was Heather  when we got there and she seemed quite surprised that I knew her name.   Sorry if I freaked you out Heather.  She was just as sweet as she could be though.  If you have a chance, stop by her blog and check it out.  Here are some pics of their booth

The highlight of the day at the Farm Chicks was being able to meet Heather Bullard and Serena.  Serena was gracious enough to autograph my Farm Chicks cookbook and Heather autographed a Country Living magazine for me.  Serena was so excited that her folks were there with her for the first time at one of her shows.  She even introduced us to them.  They were both so down to earth and were happy to take pictueres with anyone that asked.  Thank you both for being so sweet.

That's the end of our tour out west for now.  I have tons more pictures we took on our way back home traveling through South Dakota, but I don't want to bore y'all.

Friday morning I will posting the cookbook  giveaway.  It's a good one to y'all, so don't miss it.
Have a great day!
CherylPin It Now!