Fairly Wonderful

Another year means another trip to the State Fair in Iowa.  We decided to try something different this year and come in through the northeast gate.  The kids tend to get tired and we often don't make it up to that quadrant of the fairgrounds, so we thought if we started there it would be all new to us.  First stop was the building that exhibits birds, including an incredible array of chickens.  The kids have been into chickens since meeting Aunt Nicki's chickens earlier this spring, and they loved seeing how different the breeds looked, seeing which ones had laid eggs (at the fair!) and trying to figure out exactly which rooster was making all that noise.

We also rode the sky glider, which is like a ski lift that goes over part of the fair.  My dad told a story when we were growing up about how he once took my brother and I on the sky glider when we were about three and one and thought he was going to have to knock my brother unconscious to keep him from trying to get off the thing mid-air.  One he got on, he said "Down, I want down!" But of course there is no safe way to do that mid-trip.  Having ridden that thing this year, I have a new appreciation for the story.  It was about three stories in the air, passing over large areas of concrete with the only thing holding you in is a single bar that does not fit snugly.  I wrapped my arm tightly around Julia and held my breath until it ended.

Food is a big thing at the fair.  This year we went with just Bauder's ice cream and a lemonade.  Two classics.  Some people love to try all of the new food each year.  We did a little bit of the midway and stopped by the master gardeners' show garden. Mom is going to take classes this fall to become a master gardener.  Next year, she may be one of the gardeners who helps with the exhibit at the fair.  How neat would that be?  The equivalent of knowing fair royalty.