Where Farm Meets Fun

County Fair time is a BIG deal around the Dansie house.  I have been on the Fair Board for about 5 years now, and right now I am the vice president of the fair.  There are so many things I love about the fair, and I feel privileged to be part of it.  The fair showcases the best in the community.  It fosters unity and promotes a real sense of togetherness.  The entire fair is put on by a massive army of volunteers, and when everyone works together to do their part, great things can happen.  We practically live at the fairgrounds the week of the fair.  Here are some of our highlights.

 This was Levi's second year Muttin' Bustin'.

 He's a tough cowboy.  He drew a big sheep and he held on tight.

 Isaac was a little over excited when his hen won a blue ribbon.

 Levi's hen got a red ribbon. (And yes, if you would have had the privilege of watching me, over 5 months pregnant in the sweltering August afternoon heat, trying to take on the chicken coop solo, catch the specific chickens the kids wanted, and shove them into the porta-kennel to get them to the fair grounds, you would have had a great story on your hands.)

 This was Isaac's second year competing in the Toddler Tractor Pull and boy was he ready.  He had been practicing for days when the big race finally arrived.  He was all sorts of competitive.  (Is that a good thing?)

 His skills paid off!  He won second place and couldn't have been happier.

 We tried lots of different yummy food from the vendors at the fair.  The kids were fascinated by the liquid nitrogen at the SubZero ice cream stand. (I wasn't so smitten by the price!)

 The kids earned ribbons at the Ribbon Read.

 Levi was especially impressed with the beautiful queens, the Juab County Royalty.  He is already a flirt!

 The Bicycle Barrel Race is a big event with over 100 kids competing each year.  Levi was all business.

 Daisy is not as competitive, but she had a lot of fun participating.

 On Saturday both Daisy and Levi participated in the horse show.  Levi was a little nervous because the horse he showed isn't really well broke, but he was brave and did a great job.

 Daisy was really confident.  If it involves a horse, this girl is totally in her element.  She placed in the horse show.

 This guy couldn't have been happier when they handed him a blue ribbon.

 Daisy is a veteran when it comes to the walk/trot competition.  She did a great job this year on a horse that has never been used in the arena.

 This was Levi's first year competing in the walk/trot, but the horse he rode has done it for years.  She took good care of him.

 He stuck close to big sister.

 He took first place!

 Daisy got second place on Honey.

 Cute cowgirl.

 After the horse show, we walked over to watch the non-horse riding kids compete in the RC Race.  It was fun to watch!

 We took a few spins around the fairgrounds on the train ride.  It was one place we could be in the shade.

 It's always exciting to see all the livestock at the fair.  The 4-H kids work SO hard in preparation for the livestock show and auction.

 Levi took a short spin on this young steer.

 And the culmination of the entire week comes Saturday night at the Demolition Derby.  Let me just clarify that I am not a huge fan of the Demolition Derby.  It's not really my style of entertainment.  If it weren't for my boys, I probably would sit this one out.  For them, however, it is a major highlight of the summer.  They look forward to the derby for months.  They talk about the "crash cars" when we drive by the fairgrounds, and they play demolition derby with their little matchbox cars, and with their bikes.

 They get really into the whole thing.  They dance to the music, cheer for the drivers, and remain fully invested the entire time.

 At the height of his glory.

The interesting thing is...we seem to fit right in with the derby crowd...yikes.

It is always an exhausting week, but we love fair time, and we are already looking forward to next year.