Did the Puyallup

"Oh, you can do it at a trot,

You can do it at a gallop,

You can do it real slow so your heart won't palpitate.

Just don't be late.

Do the Puyallup!"

That's right, the Puyallup Fair...we went, we saw, we conquered. We spent nearly nine hours there. We got in for free with a canned food donation. We kept ourselves from gluttony (surprisingly) while still enjoying a few treats along the way. We enjoyed the rodeo, but our favorite cowboy of all was our very own Ezra who bravely tackled the sport of Mutton Bustin'. Go Ezra! This post is PICTURE LADEN--beware!

Mmmmm, cotton candy. Too sweet even for the kids to eat too much of it. Plus, Caroline didn't like the sticky feeling on her fingers.
Pro Rodeo and all I can manage to get a photo of is the cowboy who got a "no time" for missing his calf in the cow wrestling.
My favorite cowboy! All ready to go with his mutton bustin' vest on. He was so excited. We couldn't do anything at the fair without hearing "Is it time for me to ride my sheep YET???" There was a man from the news with a camera interviewing all the kids as they walked into the chute and Ezra informed me "I am NOT talking to that man!" And he didn't.

Lots of protective gear. Good thing too, cuz the girl who won it went the full length of the arena and ran into the pack of sheep who had already been ridden; after she finally fell off her sheep the rest of them ran over the top of her. Ouch. She didn't even cry.
Here he is standing next to the gate looking at the sheep he was about to be lifted onto. Here is where I was worried he'd chicken out. But he stayed brave!
Post-bustin'. He managed to stay on for 2 seconds or so. I didn't get a single picture because I was back in the chute. I hear that a friend in the stands got a video and will post it on facebook. If it happens I'll attempt to pirate it over to the blog...but no promises.
After Mutton Bustin' we moved onto kiddie rides courtesy of Grandpa and Grandma. Caroline was too short for all of them, but we went around until we'd find a ride where the operator either didn't check or let her in anyway.

"Hi, hi, hi!"
"Hey Grandpa Idaho--I got a new motorcycle too! Does yours have handle bars in the back for Grandma like this one???"


After a dinner of overpriced Young Life BBQ, we toured the African Village sponsored by World Vision. The kids would have spent the rest of their life grinding corn, we had to beg them to leave after at least 20 minutes of grinding. I guess I need to invest in a mortar and pestle and some dried corn for the long winter days at home!

She was absolutely covered in cornmeal dust.

You would think they would enjoy the drumming more than corn grinding, but you just never know with a 2 and 3 year old!
The only time they sat nicely together in the wagon. Good thing I took the picture when I did, because they were back to fighting as soon as I put the camera away.
Ohhh, baby pigs! These ones are almost a month old--born on my mom's birthday. The other sow is due sometime around the 17th.

After 7.5 hours we were all tired and Grandma had blistered feet. Since the kids weren't using the wagon, she decided she would. Of course, this made the kids hop right in.

My mom and I just loved this bicycle. I think I'm now in the market for an old bike so that I can duplicate this look in my yard! SO CUTE!
And this big old boy impressed us with his size. The draft horse barn is always a little intimidating. He is from Blaine and his owner answered all sorts of questions. This guy is part of a plow team and quite gentle and well-behaved according to his owner.
As you can see, by 8:00 the kids were DONE! Time to turn in the wagon and head for the car. They were both asleep by the time we got home. True to toddler form, they are not any worse for the wear today and are outside playing in the gorgeous September sunshine, drinking in the smell of fresh salty air and harassing the dog. It's nice enough to head out in the boat today! Hmmm...I wonder what the next post will be about??? : )