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August 19, 2002
Howdy all!
Just thought I would post an entry and tell you all about the superbly fun time we had this weekend. :))
Last week was Fair Week in our town. This is the biggest event of the summer in Kalispell, (we don't get out much...LOL) and the whole family always goes, usually on the weekend. We packed up the fanny pack with extra diapers and wipes for Alyssa, grabbed out sweatshirts and off we went. Ariana was so excited she could hardly contain herself... she LOVES the fair.
We got there about 3 PM, got our hands stamped to ride the rides, (all except James, who doesn't do rides...) and jumped right in. We were there with my mom, my best friend, Julie (I forgot to introduce her last week, we are not related but have been friends for 18 years, we couldn't be more "sisters" even if we were related) and her son Bryce, who is only 3 weeks younger than Ari. They have known eachother since birth, and are just like siblings... they love eachother fiercely and fight like cats and dogs. LOL! Anyhow, Julie took Ari and Bryce off to do some big kid rides, while James and my mom and I took Alyssa to the kiddie rides. She had a fantastic time, and especially loved the carousel. Once, in the middle of ecstatic laughter, she looked at me from her perch on the horse and said "I flyin', mommy! I flyin' on dis horsie!!" SO sweet!! Then we met back up with the others and went to tour the barns. We saw horses, cows, pigs, sheep, goats, llamas, and a whole barn full of chickens and bunnies. Next James took Ariana and Bryce to the Fish, Wildlife, and Parks Hunter's Education display. They said it was very cool, there were different stations with interactive exhibits on gun safety and sportsmanship, then you got to go inside a virtual reality tent and use a laser gun to shoot at VR targets... Ariana scored very well in her age division in both "Markesmanship" and "Knowing When NOT to Take a Shot". While they were doing all this, my mom, Julie, Alyssa and I toured the 4H building to see all of the sewing, craft, and cooking projects the local kids exhibited, then the quilt and needlework building (SUCH cool quilts, makes me feel VERY humble...LOL). Then we visited the horticulture barns, and saw all the beautiful flowers and the huge squashes and other veggies. We all met back up again and had dinner (BBQ chicken and corn on the cob followed by snow-cones). After that, my mom went home, and James took Alyssa to ride the kiddie rides a few more times, and Julie and I took the big kids to ride big kid rides. I LOVE to ride rides, so I was as excited as they were. By this time, Julie was way tired of rides, so I ended up riding with both kids. We had a blast; we made our car spin faster than any of the others on the Tilt-a-Whirl, the kids loved squishing me flat on the Super Sizzler, and we discovered the wonders of centrifugal force on the Round-Up. Finally, it was getting late, and everyone was tired. As is our tradition, we got sodas and junk food from the midway (nachos for James, a caramel apple for Julie, and Funnel Cakes for the rest of us) and found a picnic table from which we could see the fireworks shot off from the grandstands area after the rodeo. (James and I love the rodeo, but the kids have trouble sitting through it, so the last few years, we have not gone.) We ate our junk food, and watched fantastic fireworks set to "God Bless America" and "Proud to be an American". Then we piled all the sleepy bodies into the van and headed home. It was an awesome day, (if a bit on the EXPENSIVE side...) and it was such fun to be able to spend time together as a family.
On the last day of the fair, Julie bought tickets to the Demolition Derby and took her son and Ariana to the derby. Ari had a WONDERFUL time, told me all about it in great detail afterwards, and has spent most of her free time since then racing matchbox cars around the floor and making them crash with loud and realistic sound effects. Silly kid. :)
The end of the Fair always is rather bittersweet. In Northwest Montana, it symbolizes the end of summer. Time for back to school!! We will still have some warm days, and probably a nice Indian summer in September, but from now on the nights will be getting cooler, and when the breezes blow the tang of autumn will be in the air. I adore autumn, it is the most beautiful season, and has some of my favorite holidays... but I am NOT fond of winter, which for some reason insists on following autumn. :( Summer is about over, and I just am not ready for that yet.
Where ever you are, I hope that you and yours are having a great week, I know we did!
Hugs,
Tanya
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