Fair Week 2011 - Saturday

Another fair has come to a close.  I can't believe it's already over, it seems like it just started.   I always have mixed emotions as we drive away from the fairgrounds on the final night of fair week. 

On one hand I am glad it's over.  Fair week is an exhausting six days of non-stop activity.  Even the chicklets start to drag a little on the last day or two. As for myself, I could use a very looooooooong nap or two or three!

On the other hand, it is all so much fun it's sad that we have to wait a whole 'nother year for it to come around again.  The competition, the entertainment and the sheer excitement of it all make each day of fair week something to look forward to.  Having my niece and nephew here made this year's fair even more fun for all of us. 

I am pretty sure the carnival is going to be high on what my chicklets miss most.  We had bought the older kids (Boy Wonder, The Joker and Super Girl) armbands that allowed them to go on rides as often and whenever they wanted.  We sure got our money's worth there.  Those three loved the "freedom" of being able to come and go on the rides.  I liked not having to worry about whether they we having fun or not.  The Munchkin loved the rides too, but we didn't think she really needed unlimited rides as we needed to be with her whenever she went anyway.

All in all Fair Week 2011 was another fun-filled adventure that has left us anxiously anticipating next year.  Highlights of our last day included:

• Boy Wonder competed in the Showmanship Sweepstakes along with 17 other 4H-ers representing 9 different animal projects at the fair.  He did really well for his first time and even though he didn't bring home the big trophy, we are still so proud of him.  There were approximately 1000 youth participating in the fair this year ... that puts Boy Wonder in the top 2 percent ... not too shabby!

• The kids took advantage of their carnival armbands and managed to squeeze in a few more rides.  It was a scorcher today (well over 90 with humidity) so they waited until after dark to really hit the rides.  The Geek and I found a nice bench to sit on and people watch with the Munchkin and the Little Prince.  Ain't nothin' like people watchin' at the fair.  There are some real curious folks out there people!

• We snuck away from the fairgrounds just for a bit to take the Joker and Super Girl on a little sightseeing tour of our neck of the woods.  They were anxious to see a little bit of the area and it was a nice air conditioned break from the heat and humidity.

• We ended the night by watching motocross racing at "The Pit".  I didn't think I was going to enjoy it very much but I was wrong.  Unfortunately we neglected to put up lawn chairs earlier in the day, so we had to watch from the standing room only section.  The heat kinda limited how long we could watch, but we saw enough high flying dirt bikes and jolting crashes to last us a while.  Boy Wonder had a friend from church racing in one of the heats, so once we saw him (complete with a minor crash into a wall) we headed back to the poultry barn for a quick check on the chickens.  Before we knew it, it was time to gather everyone up and head home for the night.

The boys have to go back in the morning to collect the chickens and all of our other projects and ribbons.  Once that's done we can officially say good bye to Fair Week 2011.  It was a good one and we can't wait for next year!

Fair Week 2011 - Friday

My niece and nephew were disappointed to find out I had not given them nicknames on the blog. I would hate to lose my current favorite auntie status so they shall now be known as The Joker and Super Girl.  Very appropriate names since my nephew is a real hoot and there isn't a whole lot my niece isn't good at. 

I had every intention of posting pictures today, but since it is now after midnight and we have to get up at the crack of dawn tomorrow I have reconsidered. 

So without further ado today's highlights include: 

• All the kids tried their had ant "Minute to Win It" games this afternoon.  There weren't any ribbons given out, but it was a fun diversion for an hour.

• The Munchkin and Super Girl took part in the pedal tractor pull again.  The Munchkin left empty handed once again, but Super Girl managed to improve her game and came home with a "Second Place" ribbon to go along with yesterday's "Third Place".  She was disappointed she didn't get the trophy, but this has made her all the more determined to come back again next year.

• Boy Wonder made some more contacts in preparation for tomorrow's Showmanship Sweepstakes.  He learned how to show a steer and I wish I had captured his face afterwords.  His eyes were as big as saucers and he just kept repeating, "I just walked a 1300 pound steer!".  He has now practiced showing every type of animal he will show tomorrow so he should be in good shape for the competition.  He really is blessed to have this opportunity at this age.  Most 4H-ers don't do this until they are at least 15. 

• We enjoyed a treat we only get during fair week today.  Ginormous, warm "elephant ears" sprinkled with powdered sugar were just the thing to top off another fun day at the fair.  They were definitely a hit with our out of town guests as well.  

The picture is of The Munchkin at the Princess Tea yesterday.  I didn't take this photo ... someone posted several pictures to the fair's Facebook page (that's actually my hand and camera on the right) This is not the best photo, but it'll have to do for now until I finally get around to downloading  my own.  It does a pretty good job of capturing her pure joy of being in the presence of "royalty" though, don't you think? 

Fair Week 2011 - Thursday

First of all, I want to apologize for the lack of pictures this week.  By the time we get home from fair I am barely able to drag my sorry self into the house, let alone think about uploading pictures.  The Geek has been posting to Facebook almost daily so if you have access to that you've seen some of what's been going on. I am hoping that tomorrow will be a shorter day and maybe I can treat you to a few pictures of FAIR WEEK 2011 right here.  As for my poem that I entered, you may have read it before here, if not ... here's your chance now.

I don't know if I mentioned it or not, but we have had out of town guests this week.  My niece and nephew from Boston are staying with us.  They came especially for fair week.  I couldn't help but think it was a bit like the city mice coming to visit the country mice.  They have never experienced a country fair in their lives and were so excited to come and be a part of it all.  I am pretty sure they have not been disappointed since they are already contemplating what their entries in the fair will be next year. 

It has been great for my chicklets to spend so much time with their cousins.  We don't get to see them very often, maybe once a year if we are lucky.  Boy Wonder has really enjoyed being able to go "exploring" the fair with them sans parents.  They have accompanied him as he has made his rounds prepping for the Showmanship Sweepstakes and both actually look forward to doing "barn duty" with Boy Wonder --- sweeping out the entire poultry barn and making sure all birds have adequate food and water.  I had worried that they might be too "jaded" to find our little fair any fun, but I think I my worries were for naught.  I am pretty sure I can safely say they will be going home with enough good memories to last a lifetime.

Today's fair highlights include:

• The Munchkin donned her favorite princess outfit and attended a "Princess Tea" hosted by the Fair Queen and her court.  She was in awe of the Queen's crown and vowed to one day be Fair Queen herself.  Incidentally, the Queen contest is as far from a beauty pageant as can be.  Although the girls were all cute in their own way, they are chosen based on the participation and leadership skills rather than on their good looks.  That's something this Mama Hen doesn't mind encouraging her little chickie to aspire to.

• The Geek earned the title "Grand Champion of the Men's Over 40 Hula Hoop Competition" --- Whoo!  Truthfully he was the only competitor, but he got up on stage and gave it his best, so if you ask me that man deserves a ribbon just for bravery alone :)  The emcee of the event even managed to convince my 87 year old father to give the hula hoop a try and he wore his "Participant" ribbon with pride all day.

• All the kiddies participated in the frog jumping contest, with Boy Wonder clinching first place honors for his age group.  The boys all headed out early this morning to a local park to catch frogs.  That alone is a memory my nephew will probably not soon forget.  They had a full bucket o' frogs when one large one manage to dislodge the bucket's lid and made it's escape ... along with all the other frogs that had been caught.  They had to start all over again, but I understand nobody complained.  Apparently boys and frog catching go together like chips and dip.

• The Munchkin and my niece competed in the tractor pedal pull competition.  The Munchkin was hoping to repeat last year's success and take home a trophy, but sadly that didn't happen.  She didn't care and seemed just as tickled to take home her "I'm a Pedal Puller" ribbon.  My niece took home a lovely "Third Place" ribbon for her efforts.  After the race she immediately informed me she would very much like to try to better her score at tomorrow evening's competition.  The Munchkin can't wait to get back in the driver's seat again either, so I know what's on my docket for a few hours tomorrow night.

• Today was my parent's 67th wedding anniversary.  My mother mentioned this fact to the emcee at the children's contests earlier in the day and was awarded a ribbon for "Staying Married So Long to the Same Man" --- a feat my mother says was accomplished by the fact that neither of them killed one another.  Too funny!  She wore her ribbon with pride all day too.  We celebrated by dining on fine fair food from a vendor selling broasted chicken and potatoes.  It wasn't fancy, but it was pretty tasty and I am just glad we were able to share their special day with them at the fair.

Fair Week 2011 - Wednesday

One of the best parts of Fair Week is the entertainment.  Our little country fair doesn't pull in any big names, but the local talent ain't too shabby!  There really is something for everyone.  Contests and games for the kiddies (ex. most freckles, hula hoop and bike give-aways) and the adults too.  Local bands perform throughout the fair.  There's even karaoke for the brave. 

If it's live action you want, it's there too.  The fairgrounds has a large outdoor arena called "The Pit".  This area is a favorite for most of the fair-goers and host a different event every evening at 7 o'clock.  There's tractor and truck pulls, mud drags, two kinds of demolition derbies and motocross.  Because it's such a big draw, you have to be sure to set up your lawn chairs by ten in the morning or you might be in the very crowded standing room only section. 

I tend to steer clear of "The Pit" because it's just a bit too crowded and L-O-U-D for my tastes.  The Geek and the chicklets love it though, so I find something else to do for a few hours.  I did make an exception on Monday for the rodeo.  I've always wanted to see one live and I wasn't disappointed.

Today's fair highlights:

• The Munchkin won the longest hair contest at a whopping 30-inches!!  In the past, they divided the kids by age groups.  This year they did them all together and the competition was "fierce".  She managed to hold on to her first place title by a mere 2 inches.

• My pictures did very well in the Adult Open competition.  Both photographs received blue ribbons for quality.  My portrait of the Little Prince was chosen "Best of Class" ... whoo hoo!!!

• My entry into the creative writing competition got top honors as well.  I'll be bringing home a second "Best of Class" ribbon.  Not too bad for my first year, eh?

• Boy Wonder continued his quest for Showmanship knowledge.  One of the girls in our 4H club won the showmanship competition for goats so Boy Wonder picked her brain for a while.  Then it was on to the llama tent to learn the finer points of llama showmanship.  Top tip?  How to avoid being spit on. 

Fair Week 2011 - Tuesday

Another busy day at the fair.  We headed out to the fairgrounds bright and early so that Boy Wonder could take care of his chickens before he had his interview with the photography judge.  The Munchkin and I made our way to where she would be showing her photos, but once there found out we were almost an hour early.  There were a few people starting to line up so we got in line and it was a good thing.  As it turns out there were well over 100 little ones participating in the Clover Sprouts projects!

By the way, I apologize if yesterday's blog post was a little "discombobulated" for lack of a better term.  I kept falling asleep while I typed it and occasionally awoke to find pure gibberish on my screen, like "Boy Wonder brought home 2nd Place in Poultry and sheets." Wha??? I even hit "Publish Post" in my sleep and just didn't have the energy to go back and double check it.  It isn't too bad, but now that you know you can kinda tell I was off my game.  Too funny! 

Well, I know you are on the edge of your seats for today's fair report so here goes...

• The Munchkin's photos were given high praise and each received a lovely neon green Clover Sprouts ribbon.  It's really not much of a real competition, but more of a just getting experience so that when they move on to "real" 4H they have an idea of how the whole fair/interview process works

• Boy Wonder's photographs also received high praise from his judge. He was told that his portrait (of the Munchkin) was the best the judge had seen so far.  His landscape (a lighthouse), animal (a baby chick) and collages were also given very high marks.  With such strong compliments, it was disappointing to find out that none of his photos received any trophies.  It's hard to encourage your child to accept defeat graciously when you feel they've been "robbed", but we gave it our best.  My biggest fear was that he might be discouraged from trying again in the future, but despite his disappointment, he says he'd try again.

• Boy Wonder has begun his "crash course" in Showmanship Sweepstakes preparation.  Today he work with a couple of boys who shared their knowledge of Sheep Showmanship.  It's so cool to see these kids work together and freely share information with one another.

• Tram rides--the fair has a tractor-pulled tram that takes people all over the fairgrounds.  Riding on it is one of our favorite parts of fair.  Especially after 4, when the horse-drawn trams come into operation.  There's not alot for the Little Prince to do quite yet at fair, but the horse-drawn trams definitely top his list right now.

We also had our share of fair food ... love those elephant ears... and looked at lots of animals today.  The Munchkin has a soft spot for horses so she and I took a trip through the horse barns.  Several 4H-ers let her pet their horses and she was in h-e-a-v-e-n.  She has begun her campaign to convince her daddy she must have one in earnest, but so far he isn't budging :)

Fair Week 2011 - Monday

Boy Wonder (as I have mentioned before) raises chickens.  Once a year these chickens get a chance to redeem themselves by bringing home a ribbon or trophy from the local county 4H fair.  Boy Wonder, in addition to showing chickens, also participates in the photography competition and has done very well in past years.

This year marks the first year the Munchkin can compete as a Clover Sprout.  She has chosen to show photographs as well.  It's also the first year I decided to throw my hat in the ring too.  I have entered two photographs and a poem in the adult division.

Fair Week is a very tiring fun week with very little down time.  I may not be able to do a lot of blog writing, but I will try to provide updates on our fair activities for the week.  If this is of no interest to you, rest assured I will return to my regular, overwhelmingly fascinating blog posts next week :)

Monday - July 25th

• Boy Wonder brought home 2nd place in Poultry Showmanship for his class (Junior Division, ages 12-15)
• One of Boy Wonder's chickens received best in it's class -- kinda a big deal.
• Boy Wonder's Showmanship score earned him a place in Showmanship Sweepstakes, a competition on Saturday where he will have to show each of the animal types at fair (ex. poultry, diary cattle, swine, etc)

What's ahead this week:

Just some of what's ahead this Fair Week 2011

• Mama Hen's pictures and Poem get judged by Wednesday 6.
• Boy Wonder and the Munchkin compete in Photography (not against each other)
• And lots of other fun times brought to you by fair.

Keep posted or if you'd rather not ... I'll see you back here net week.

Have a good week!