Our State Fair is a Great State Fair

When I planned this marathon trip back in the confines of winter, I had one thing on my agenda: the Iowa State Fair. There are, after all, not one but 2 musicals devoted to this event. This is America's Fair; the fairgrounds comprise an entire town. I feel it is the obligation of every patriotic American to shill out large amounts of money for greasy food and spotty rides.

So early on a Monday morning we found ourselves amidst the great unwashed masses (don't be offended, I'm referring to my children and the pigs...on second thought, the pigs were pretty clean).

I'm proud to say that I fully accomplished my agenda for the day:
1. Visit the barns
2. Eat a pork chop on a stick
3. Check out the winners of the Ugly Cake contest
4. Eat something deep-fried
5. Witness the famous marvel that is the butter cow
6. Eat cotton candy

I think it is very important to set and reach lofty goals.


Ladies and gentlemen, the moment we've all been waiting for...will it be a Guernsey, a Holstein? This year's exhibit is the Jersey cow! I'm sure you all know that the Jersey is not as prolific a milk producer as other cows, but her milk has a very high cream content, making it perfect for ice cream, yogurt and cheese. This message was brought to you by the Iowa Dairy Farmers Association...thank you. (Please ignore my hair...I was fighting the war on humidity. I lost. Actually, I surrendered 20 minutes into our Midwest arrival.)

Once we made it through my formidable list of required activities, we were free to enjoy the rest of the unusually mild summer day. I asked the kids what their favorite things were at the end of the day, and of course they all said, "the rides." There's nothing quite like a $4 merry-go-round ride I guess. Although, I will say that the squeaky, rusty, tilting nature of all carnival rides does lend an aspect of daring rarely seen outside a demolition derby.

Zachary and Noah managed to survive the "Reign of Fire" without losing their deep-fried Snickers bar. It was touch and go there for about an hour.

But over-priced, under-inspected rides aside, there were some other highlights as well.

Anna loved the miniature horse show. She tried to convince me that they were small enough to keep in our backyard; we could just tell the neighbors that we got a new dog.

Isaac enjoyed the Wild West roping show we watched in the afternoon. He stayed afterwards to learn how to spin a lasso. He made a pretty respectable showing for a city kid.

Noah got up close and personal with a variety of animals...cows, pigs, horses...and camels... you know, just the standard farm breeds you come to expect in Iowa.

Zachary enjoyed the chance to practice the bored, unenthusiastic scowl of a teenager.

(Can I just say that my favorite part about this picture is the "do not touch" sign?)

Aunt Kim was worried the butter cow would be a let-down after all the hype, but luckily a cow carved entirely out of butter is totally able to meet all your expectations...and more!

I found myself surprisingly delighted with all the homemade food entries...you know...the pies and preserves. There were rows and rows and rows of different categories! It was all so wholesome...like stepping into the 1950s minus the poodle skirts. Sure wish I could have been on the tasting committee!

Cory fulfilled a life-long ambition of trying a deep-fried Twinkie. It was especially entertaining to listen to his arteries clog.

Grandma found the elusive Iowa State Fair, 2009 pin.

Grandpa ran into his missionaries and was able to get his picture with a giant, stuffed Spiderman.

All in all, a succesful outing.

So in conclusion...

Our State Fair is a great state fair
Don't Miss it don't even be late(state fair is great)
It's dollars to doughnuts at our state fair
It's the best state fair.. in our state

Winter Quarters

In the year 1846, members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints were driven from their homes in Nauvoo, Illinois. Church leaders hoped to lead the people across the frontier to a new home in the Salt Lake valley of Utah where they would be free to follow the tenets of their faith without persecution. They had hoped to complete the trek in just 4 months; it took them that long just to cross Iowa. They gained permission to establish a temporary winter settlement for two years. This place--near current Omaha, Nebraska--became known as "Winter Quarters." The people, led by their faith worked quickly to construct hundreds of log cabins and sod homes. Despite their courage and efforts, the winter proved to be devastating to the weakened condition of many people. In the 2 years spent in this temporary staging area for the trek to Utah, over 325 people died from starvation and disease. Only a handful of families were left untouched by death.

To tour the Visitors' Center of this historic site was sobering. We struggled to fit my little family of 6 comfortably into a cabin erected in the center that would have been for twice that many people. My children giggled over their struggle to pull a handcart over some rocks. It was funny, but also revealing.

We briefly toured the cemetery and memorial outside the visitors' center. There were so many babies listed on that plaque. So many mothers. And now, that consecrated ground is shadowed by this...

The place where my faith teaches we can unite families beyond death.

Seems fitting.

Bear With Me..

I just got back from a 10 day vacation and I have a whole lotta traveling stories to purge..I mean journal. We traveled over 1200 miles so there's a lot of ground to cover. I think I'll shoot for one story every day until I make myself so sick of rehashing that I can let it go. But while the memories are fresh...

We decided to make the long trek to Des Moines, IA to visit the in-laws this year by car instead of plane. I had this brilliant idea that this would be a great chance to stop and visit all the wonderful church history sites between Salt Lake and Nauvoo. I failed to recognize that this "brilliant" plan meant 5 of the 10 days of our vacation would include a large amount of time in the car. Still, I decided to make the best of things by breaking up the trip a little. Which is what led us to...

The "Great River Road Archway Monument!"

This is a museum in Kearney, Nebraska built directly over I-80 that is dedicated to all eras of western migration. When you enter, the staff dressed in period costumes direct you up a long escalator to start your "tour." You wear headsets that play repeating broadcasts that change as you move throughout the rooms. What you hear depends on what mannequin display you happen to be standing near.

It was noisy, hokey, and mildly informative. I loved every second! This is classic Americana at its finest...Disneyland, eat your heart out!

Zachary cried when we had to leave.

So if you ever find yourself in "middle of nowhere," Nebraska. Don't let the chance to visit this little gem pass you by. It was worth every single penny!

It Turns Out I'm Not Getting More Patient

I've posted a lot in the last year about the changes in my home life as my children are growing up. It's strange how quickly and suddenly you can find yourself worrying more about your children's Internet habits than their toilet habits.

So as I get ready to embark on an empty household in September, I have found myself feeling older and wiser--one of those moms with sage advice for women still dealing with preschoolers and potty-training. I'm feeling more calm and patient every day.

And then I took the kids back to school shopping.

By myself.

All 4 of them.

At the same time.

I guess it's been a while since I went anywhere by myself with all of my offspring because I was caught completely by surprise when after 14 minutes of shopping I was ready to abandon every last one of them. Seriously. I looked in my purse to see if I had any paper with which to make "child for sale" signs. I could only come up with a crayon and a gum-wrapper. Dang.

Now just the day before I watched some poor lady at the grocery store wrestling 3 little boys...one was crying, one was fighting, and one was attempting to set the deli on fire. I chuckled to myself about boy how glad I am those days are behind me. Then I patted the 1 child who was with me and told them since they were being so good, the could pick out a candy bar.

I guess some people can humble themselves; I, on the other hand, much prefer being compelled to be humble.

So after 5 hours, 4 stores, 2 potty breaks (I guess you never really get a break from their toilet habits after all), and $450 we are nearly done. No one got a candy bar, although I did hear Zachary at one point telling his siblings to "act like little angels" in the next store in hopes of a reward. Alas, they misinterpreted his well-intentioned speech and behaved exactly like little angels of darkness.

So much for all my smug thoughts that I was really learning to be a more patient, careful, soft-spoken, and compassionate mother. I wonder if there were any moms of older children watching my spontaneously combustible family and chuckling to themselves about how they remember those days. If so, they better watch out. Karma is not a patient lady either.