One day and cow-nting

Tomorrow is the start of the "Great Minnesota Get Together" aka "the State Fair." Traditionally, I make it to the fair for the opening day and I think tomorrow will be no exception. I'm leaving the door open to the slim possibility that I will wait till Friday to go (because of weather), but right now I have a hard time imagining that tomorrow will be enough of a washout to keep me from being there. Perhaps it will be a short trip, but more than likely it will be a full-day af-fair. I love getting there the first day when everything is fresh and new. Everyone is excited that it's fair time once again.

Fortunately, I married a man who shares my passion for the State Fair (that & baseball...how can a girl be so lucky!). Last year Joel and I went on the first day, dodging raindrops at different times throughout the day. Just as we were finally deciding to call it quits (for our first visit) a thunderstorm darkened the sky. As we turned back to seek shelter from the storm, the skies opened up and dumped buckets of rain. As we ran across fresh sod to get to the Birthing Barn, my shoe was swallowed up by the saturated sod. It was hilarious and became one of my favorite 2006 Fair memories.

I realize different folks enjoy different parts of the fair. Here are some of my favorites:

Favorite foods:
Pork chop on a stick
Chocolate malt from the Dairy Bldg (these two items start me out...no matter what time I arrive...hey, protein and dairy makes a woman strong)
Shaved ice (on a hot day)
corn dog
Cream puff (with chocolate whipped cream)
(No cheese curds for me thank you)

Favorite buildings:
Fine Arts
Creative Activities
Education
Birthing Barn
Empire Commons

Favorite Fair activities
people watching
watching horse jumping competitions
collecting information and recipes
listening to music
checking out the "butter heads" of the Dairy princesses (Princess Kay of the Milky Way...its an annual pilgrimage to check out the butter heads...family tradition I instilled in my kids...remember, I grew up in Dairy farming country)

Hey, if you want some State Fair info to plan your trip, check out this link .

This year I am going with my new digital camera in hand (these pics are not mine). Finally, I will be able to capture my favorite fair sights and memories. I'll be sure to share some with you.

What are your favorite fair memories?


See ya there!