County Fair

Saturday was our 11th wedding anniversary. We celebrated with a family outing to the county fair.

I had hoped to get there early in the day before it got too hot, but Connor had other plans. He was up three times the night before, so we were all exhausted, and then he wouldn't go down for a nap during his usual time that morning. So by the time we left (2pm) we were all tired (still), cranky, and a little frustrated. I was determined that we were going to go though, and that we would all have a good time. It was one of those we're-all-going-and-we're-going-to-have-fun moments. Haha! We're still getting used to life with a baby.

We all relaxed considerably on the drive over, and Connor dozed off for a bit. By the time we got to the fair grounds we were all in a much better mood. We followed the directions of the guys on horseback to a parking spot, got Connor situated in his stroller, and made the walk to the fair's entrance.

We splurged on some fair food...very unhealthy, but very delicious. We shared a pineapple smoothie, a foot-long corn dong, and an elephant ear. 

We ducked into the nearby indoor arena and watched some of the on going draft horse competition. The race consisted of two teams of horses being driven down and back across the arena with stops for loading and unloading hay bales. It was fun to watch, and our favorite team included two young boys doing the loading and unloading. Before heading back out into the heat, we snapped a selfie so we at least had one picture of us together on our anniversary.

Next we walked through the arts & crafts exhibits. I loved all of the quilts. There were so many of them, and each were so different and beautiful. I would hate to be the judge in this category.

I was also excited to check out the knitting projects on display. There weren't very many knitted pieces so I was a bit disappointed. There were a pair of socks that caught my eye--I hope to try my hand at knitting a pair soon-- and a knitted mallard duck hat that was pretty cute. Most of the rest was crocheted or felted pieces. There were a couple of beautiful crocheted doilies, but nothing else too exciting.

In that same building on display were flower arrangements, drawings/paintings, baked goods, and sculptures. I was a little disappointed at how wilted the flower arrangements were, but it was the last day of the fair so they'd been there for awhile. After a quick walk through of the other categories, we headed across the fair grounds to wander through the livestock pens.

We had a lot of fun viewing all the animals. We started with the sheep. They were all very clean and groomed perfectly. It was fun to see all the 4H kids walking around and working with their animals.

We looked at the pigs next, although we didn't stay super long in that section. Though not bad, the area wasn't quite as clean as the others and there were a lot of flies buzzing around. Pigs aren't my favorite animals...although I do enjoy a good slice of bacon, so I'll put up with them when I have too. We took some time to walk through the pens of goats and cows. There were plenty of holstein cows, a breed I'm quite familiar with from growing up on a dairy farm, and also some jerseys. I love jersey cows. I just think they are so pretty.

Connor wasn't sure what to think of all the animals, but they held his attention. He was so serious as he watched each animal that we walked past.

     

Next we found the barn that housed the rabbits. We had fun looking at them. There were all kinds and colors. Some had very short hair, while others had so much hair you couldn't even tell they were a rabbit! It was really hot, so someone had set up fans in the corners of the building. This bunny on the corner was enjoying the breeze from a nearby fan, and it was funny to watch him just lounging away as his fur was blowing in the wind.

The chicken area was next. I'm not a huge fan of birds. I think they're stinky and dirty and they gross me out--maybe because we used to raise chickens and pigeons when I was a kid and I hated going into their coop to find eggs. I really enjoyed looking at them here though. The area around their cages was very clean and the building didn't smell at all. It was also very cool in there...so maybe that's why I liked it so much. Haha!

     

We got to see some unusual breeds. I call these ones with the crazy feathered heads Tina Turner chickens. Once, my dad raised some chickens with spiky feathered heads when I was little, and I called them that one day. The name stuck, so that's what we call them. Haha!

They had some really impressive, and I might even say pretty, roosters on display. One of these guys would let out a loud cock-a-doodle-do, and then all the others in the building would answer him back with their own. It got a bit loud at times, and the noise made Connor sit up and look around as he tried to figure out where all that noise was coming from.

Next door to the chicken exhibit were the horses. We walked over but there were only a few draft-type horses in the pens. Most of the pens were empty. We were all getting overheated, and Connor started fussing, so we headed back to the indoor arena to enjoy the air-conditioning. After a diaper change and some time out of his stroller, he cheered up immensely.

We got to enjoy the draft horse log pulling competition. It was really fun to watch. I though for sure each time they made the turn at the end of the arena to come back that the log would wipe out the cone, but it only happened once. It was quite impressive. We got to see some pretty horses too.

We were on our way out when we walked by the fair's petting zoo. We just had to go in. We didn't buy any food to feed the animals, but instead just walked around and petted the animals. Connor was pretty tired at this point, so we just let him stay in his stroller. The pot bellied pig was pretty great.

The goats were all so excited to get a treat that they were practically jumping out of their pens. With all of the people there feeding them, it was a surprise that they were still hungry. Maybe they switch them out or something. I though this angora goat was funny. He wasn't getting much attention when we walked by, so he climbed up the side of his pen in hopes of getting a treat. We didn't have anything, but we did pet him.

There were the tiniest baby pigs and goats, and they were the cutest things. Their pens were surrounded by children though so we didn't get a chance to pet them. Besides the run-of-the-mill farm animals, we got to see a zebu (a sacred cow in India) and a yak. The zebu was so small, and it's fleshy hump felt very weird. 

The yak wasn't as cool as the zebu, but I don't think I've ever seen a live one before, so it was still kind of neat.

Connor was quickly becoming impatient, so we headed back to the car. Once home, we got him in a bath to cool him down from being out in the heat. 

That night we picked up some Cafe Rio takeout for dinner, and on the way home stopped at JoAnn's so I could get some yarn for my next knitting project--a poncho for my brother Luke. It's going to be awesome, so stay tuned for that. Connor was so hyper and took forever to go down for the night, so after eating dinner and then getting him settled, we were both so tired that we just went to bed too. Not the most romantic way to spend a wedding anniversary, but we got to spend the day together at least, and we did have fun at the fair.