Colusa Fair

Tonight was the opening night of the Colusa County Fair. After an incredible day out with my big boy, shopping and lunch just the two of us. Liam was so so good for me. He did have a little accident with the diaper while I was unloading the groceries into the back of the Durango. Oh well, at least he peed all over the parking lot and not the restaurant booth or the grocery store floor. We saw chickens in the parking lot too and Liam told me that roosters say "whaddawegonnado?" which is so freaking cute in my opinion because he's now repeating phrases left and right and comes up with the most random thoughts (like two nights ago when he told us he couldn't take a nap because he was still hungry and wanted pancakes - pancakes!).

We had to go to opening night of the fair since my colleague's daughter (and Liam's occasional babysitter) was in the Miss Colusa County pageant. The fair was mobbed with people I knew so i at least felt justified in the 20 minutes it took me to find an appropriate outfit that would be cool enough (the weather has finally figured out it's spring/summer) and fashionable enough. Jon rolled his eyes at me all that time, but we didn't get 15 feet into the fairground when i was accosted by 1/2 dozen of my students from this year and then former students and then colleagues and then students with parents. See, I was right to worry about my wardrobe choice.

Liam did not do well at the grandstand. While we were waiting for the pageant to start he had to run me up and down the bleachers (not good for my thing with heights). When it started and he had to be quiet and still, he started whining, crying, kicking. Jon took him to run around. They got back about 2 contestants before Victoria and he continued to whine. But, as soon as Princess Victoria came out, he locked his sights on her and watched with a huge smile on his face. But then the girls were supposed to give speeches and we just looked at each other and knew Liam wouldn't make it, so we left. Sadly, Victoria didn't win, but she also wasn't favored to either.
We then walked around the fair for awhile. We traveled into the different exhibit halls and looked at the things my students made like jams and quilts and flower arrangements. Many of my students did very well and got ribbons. Another colleague of mine who I carpool with is an excellent photographer and always enters several pictures in the fair. Well I think he may have had 1 or 2 photographs without ribbons on them. He took 1st and 2nd place for his pictures from last year's fair (as he does every year). Liam got a balloon from one of the vendors and Jon put in an entry to win $10k at Home Depot (which would be fantastic if we end up buying a house soon - wish us luck).

One of the coolest things was a butterfly house. They had monarchs and painted ladies in the enclosure. You go inside, get a Q-tip and dip it in sugar water. Then you hold it close and still next to one of the butterflies and let it walk onto the Q-tip. Liam desperately wanted to touch one but he was covered in melted candy on his fingers and he doesn't understand yet that you can't touch a butterfly's wings. I had a huge monarch climb onto my finger and stayed until I finally handed it off to another kid who couldn't get a butterfly and was a little upset.

Lastly we went to the animal pens and I took Liam to stroll through all the sheep, goats, pigs, rabbits, and chickens that my students and former students raised for 4H and FFA. I couldn't take him into the steer/cow pens because they just don't let anyone walk in between the pens. Liam liked all the animals and practiced his animal sounds. He kept wanting to pet them and it was difficult to keep him from sticking his fingers in the pens. Those lambs (they're still lambs even though they weigh 100 lbs and are 3 ft tall at the shoulder) and kids are so socialized that they come right up to the fence; they would not have thought twice about munching my boys candy coated fingers.

We stayed about 3 hours and then came home and put the boys to bed promptly. Everyone, especially Liam and I, was exhausted.